Leadership a Philosophy of Leadership

Leadership

A philosophy of leadership is important, because it helps to guide the leader through all different situations. The philosophy embodies the truths and guiding principles that characterize one's view of leadership (Leboeuf, 1999). By having a philosophy to help guide in leadership situations, a leader can be more consistent in his or her actions (Ambler, 2006). If the philosophy is congruent with good leadership practices, the outcomes of one's leadership will be consistently strong.

My leadership philosophy is based on the concept of servant leadership (Greenleaf.org, 2011). I believe that the purpose of leaders is to allow the organization to excel. The leader needs to be the one to lead by example, to set the tone for the rest of the organization. The leader needs to make the rest of the organization better, and do whatever it takes to allow the other members of the organization to perform at their highest level. My experiences in the past with leadership have led me to adopt these ideas as my central philosophy. I believe that leaders are part of the organization, not above the other members but working alongside them to ensure that the organization's mission is achieved.

I believe that the best leaders are not born, but can be trained. I believe that leadership is as simple as understanding where you need to be and how you need to get there. Leadership is finding a way to get the people you need to do the things you need them to. Leadership makes the workplace better, because you not only have better people but they want to work for you, so you keep the best people. The best leaders always have time -- they do not exist for their own interest but for the interest of the people they work with, and the organization they work for.

The best leader that I ever worked for shared this philosophy, and was influential in the development of my leadership philosophy. I admire my uncle Gail, with whom I worked in construction. He took it upon himself to ensure that every member of his crew had the skills and tools necessary to perform at his highest level. He was the sort of leader who was the hardest worker on the site. His work ethic was infectious, and I could see the impact that it had on the entire crew. He worked alongside of everybody else, and helped them through any challenges that arose.

Gail was straightforward; his leadership style was direct. He made sure everybody knew what to do, and when it had to be done. He explained everything well the first time, so that the workers could simply focus on getting the job done. This required a lot of preparation on his part, and he spent whatever time was necessary to ensure that he was prepared. His instructions were always direct; workers always knew what was expected. They also knew the consequences of failing to live up to expectations. That he was tough made him a better leader as far as I was concerned, because he was honest and forthright. There were never any surprises with Uncle Gail, and his workers seemed to really appreciate that. He never showed me any favoritism either; equality was another great quality of his. Working for a leader like that, especially in light of some of my other experiences, showed me what great leadership looks like. It is honest, strong, and hard-working. Leadership that is fair, and performed with conviction and oriented towards the organization's objectives, is as powerful a form of leadership as I have ever experienced.

My worst leadership experience was when I worked at Hardee's. I understand that the standard of leadership at a fast food chain is not that high to begin with, but this boss was an especially poor leadership. This boss was lazy. Simply put, where Uncle Gail was prepared not only to do his job but to make sure everybody else was doing theirs as well, this boss at Hardee's was unwilling to even do his own job, much less help anybody else.

The entire crew hated him for that. Many newcomers were there for their first-ever job, and some were new to the country. Most of us had problems at some point during our work there, usually at the beginning, but this boss had no time for any of us, except to criticize when we did something wrong. Nobody ever improved, and quite frankly the restaurant was floundering as a result. When the manager cannot inspire people, cannot direct them to do the things that need to be done, and is unwilling to help make the people around him better, to me that is poor leadership. I hope to never work for another leader like that.

My experiences with leadership good and bad highlight why I feel that good leadership is essential in emergency service. Consider the outcomes that the organization is trying to achieve. If Hardee's has lousy leadership, the service is slow and the food is lousy. People might get upset, but there is still little risk of any real harm coming to anybody. Uncle Gail knew that if there were problems with the construction, either the company was going to spend too much money on the building or there would be flaws in the building. Failure to get it right the first time is simply not an option in that industry, and situations like that demand good leadership.

In emergency service, there is no room for failure. People's lives depend on all components of the organization coming together to deliver their service as quickly and perfectly as possible. This requires a great leader to perform all the essential leadership functions. The people need to be fully trained and able to do their jobs. They need to be ready and enthusiastic. The equipment must be in place and there not be any problems that inhibit the professionals from doing their job.