Leadership Style

Leadership Style

LDR/531

December 8, 2014

Leadership Style

There are many individuals one might deem a leader, from the President of the United States to a  character in a book. There are also many leadership style theories to help increase one's understanding and knowledge by defining the different leadership styles. The leadership style theories examine both personal traits and behaviors (Robbins, & Judge, 2013). To increase one's knowledge and understanding of the differences between personal traits and behaviors, one should perform a personal analysis as well as analyzing the individual admired. Areas the paper will address are; a leader I admire, his leadership style, and qualities and characteristics that helped support his ability to lead effectively. I will also discuss personal leadership styles, personal qualities and characteristics, and steps I can take to improve my leadership style and ability.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) was a civil rights leader that was deemed by society as a powerful individual. He had the ability to persuade and influence many to believe as he believed. MLK believed that one day all of society would have the same freedoms, opportunities, and equality no matter the individuals, race, gender, or religious preference. According to Edwards (2010),; MLK “inspired us to dream, challenged us to act, loved us and encouraged our hearts" (p. 43). MLK recognized he had obtained an immense amount of reverent power; however, he never abused it; instead he used it for the greater good. As stated by MLK:

“Power, properly understood, is the ability to achieve purpose. It IS the strength required to bring about social, political or economic changes. In this sense power is not only desirable but necessary in order to implement the demands of love and Justice... Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice” (Edwards, 2010, p. 43).

 MLK spread the message of “inclusiveness, which is where he dominated” (Huggins, 1987, p. 481) in his ability to attract followers. MLK like others before him created a path for future leaders to follow to achieve societal change.

Leadership Theories

According to Yukl (2013), studies were performed trying “to discover what traits, abilities, behaviors, sources of power, or aspects of the situation determine how well a leader is able to influence followers and accomplish task objectives” (p. 2). Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) is admired by many because he led his followers in achieving noble goals such as, freedom and equal rights. Many believe as do I, that MLK was a successful leader because he was charismatic. Individuals who possess charismatic qualities tend to be; risk takers, self-confident, creative, and inspirational.