Details of my leadership style and a taste of my writing skill.

1. RUNNING HEAD: Using Personality as a Guide to the Appropriate Leadership Style 1
Using Personality as a Guide to the Appropriate Leadership Style
Akosua Sapara-Grant
LDR 531
December 12, 2011
Daniel Kessinger

2. RUNNING HEAD: Using Personality as a Guide to the Appropriate Leadership Style 2
Abstract
Northridge Publishing, Co. is reorganizing to further achieve its operational goals. As a manager
and leader, I am required to choose a department to supervise. The analysis will cover my
personality, morals, and values as well as incorporate general leadership styles for comparing
and contrasting.

3. RUNNING HEAD: Using Personality as a Guide to the Appropriate Leadership Style 3
Using Personality as a Guide to the Appropriate Leadership Style
It is vital for any leader to understand the style in which he or she leads. Understanding
leadership gives the leader a better insight of his or her style and which environment or situation
fits it best. Matching leadership style with the environment is similar to wearing appropriate
clothing for particular seasons. Just as certain items do not work for a specific season, certain
leadership styles are not appropriate for certain organizations. Before choosing a position in my
restructuring organization, I must discover whether or not my leadership style fits the changing
environment.
Personality Assessment
Based on the leadership assessments, I am suitable for managerial or sales positions. I
require social interaction. Excellent communicators are important any work environment as this
helps the organization accomplish its goals. Effective communication allows people to work
together for the betterment of the organization. Being a leader does not equal attention. I will
never rob my employees of the credit they deserve. Having a type-B personality, I work well
with people by being considerate, a team player, and patient. An impatient or egoistic leader is
an impulsive one meaning that he or she makes decisions concerning themselves and what they
believe is correct. I believe people confuse leadership with dictatorship; both are completely
different. Leadership is an influential action whereas dictatorship is the act of ordering behavior.
Leadership is not an easy task. People will resist and others will accept it. As an agreeable and
conscientious person, I will accept this challenge.
Character Traits vs. Behavioral Demonstration
The Trait theory fails to define leadership by focusing on qualities and characteristic
traits of a person such as intellectual ability, skills, social status, etc (Yukl, 2010). It fails to apply

4. RUNNING HEAD: Using Personality as a Guide to the Appropriate Leadership Style 4
how such traits influence leadership ability. Behavior theorists answer by stating that leadership
can be taught (Yukl, 2010). Leadership is not necessarily a phenomenon that an individual is
born with. It is taught and learned whereas trait theorists believe leaders are selected.
In further support of the behavior theory, leading individuals model the behavior their
employees or followers should emulate. As a believer in behavioral leadership, my own actions
will focus on setting an example for others to follow. In other words, I will be come the model of
what I expect. Structure is implemented by defining roles for everyone. It is vital for everyone to
acknowledge his or her roles for successful collaboration. By modeling behavior, followers will
see the consequences of that behavior and decide to follow (Heifetz & Lisky, 2002). As a leader,
if I make the sacrifices I am requesting, my subordinates will do the same. This shows
commitment from the leader and eventually the employees.
A Mix of Direct and Indirect Influence
As I prefer social interaction, direct leadership also best fits my style. Leading directly
requires interaction with employees face-to-face as well as through electronic forms such as
video conferencing, emails, etc. (Yukl, 2010). Using this form will keep me involved in the daily
activities of the organization, I will also be able communicate through memos, letters, and by
being present. Direct leadership also prevents ambiguity, which I will not tolerate. My low
tolerance with incompetence will force me to attend meetings and check on other employees.
However, it may also give the impression that I do not trust my employees. So even with this
influential leadership, I will need a balance to maintain each person’s trust. As a manager, I will
most likely have a core team of other managers and supervisors who will report to me and thus
disable my communication with other employees. Achieving a balance, I will need to use
indirect leadership forms such as rules for the core team to follow allowing me to mold them into

5. RUNNING HEAD: Using Personality as a Guide to the Appropriate Leadership Style 5
examples of behavior that their subordinates need to follow thereby changing their own behavior
and attitudes (Yukl, 2010).
Organizational Culture: Transformational vs. Transactional
Influencing employees through modeled behavior adjusts their own behavior to fit the
organization’s culture. This method aligns with transformational leadership where the goal is to
set a foundation for strategies, policies, and procedures. A transformational leader uses strategies
to influence behavior and empower employees, thereby having influence onto his or her attitudes
and values, paralleling them with the leader (Kaungo, 2001). Transactional leaders – as opposite
of transformational – focuses on rewards and power to influence compliance behavior (Kanungo,
2001). However, it is better to empower employees to reflect the organizations culture rather
than forcing it because the employees will become more loyal to the organization as their
attitudes toward it were effectively molded. Employee empowerment also develops a culture
based on values, positive attitudes, positive interactions, etc. where employees care for the
organization and their colleagues (Kanungo, 2001).
A transformational leader is usually ethical with his or her morals and values
demonstrated onto other employees. My personality examination reveals that I do have high
morals and values with a need to be ethical, the weakness here is that as a transformational leader
I may impose this behavior onto employees in attempt to change him or her. As leaders must
take a step back to examine the total picture, employees need to do the same to understand the
sacrifices that the leader is taking to display the results; however the employee may reject it if
the strategy is too forceful. Here, transactional leaders succeed as they simply reward and
penalize behavior.

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Measuring Charismatic Leadership
Charismatic and transformational leadership are similar in that the style sells a vision for
others to follow (Robbins & Judge, 2011). A charismatic leader uses their personality and charm
in attempt to win over his or her employees. He or she has a vision, a vision statement, and a
plan full of strategies to achieve the vision (Robbins & Judge, 2011). While my personality does
fit a charismatic leader being outgoing, visionary, dependable, persistent, etc. the worry is that
employees will simply follow my personality instead of my skills as a leader. Will they not
oppose me because I am nice? Adolf Hitler, Charles Mason, and Andrew Cunanan were
charismatic leaders who gained followers using his or her personality and ability to win over
people. My assessments further display that I am agreeable and understanding, a strength as a
charismatic leader as such leaders use emotion to appeal to their followers (Robbins & Judge,
2011). I pride myself in recognizing needs of people, but at the same time so did those three
men, and they used this ability to manipulate people.
For this reason, I will welcome opposition, as it will show me the areas needing more
attention. Opposition is healthy in a work environment, people oppose because they do not want
to make difficult choices, and they need to be shown that the choice they make is worth the
sacrifice (Heifetz & Linksy, 2002). Even though I am ethical, I will struggle with my ability to
win over people out of fear of resorting to manipulation. It is important that there is room for a
healthy balance.
Conclusion
My leadership style focuses on the behavior example that I set for other people to follow.
I would rather be an example than simply establish rules for everyone to follow. Modeling
behavior will set a standard and culture for the department that I will lead because it will be

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almost impossible to lead a group of people if they do not at least understand the vision that I
seek to achieve.

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References
Heifetz, Ronald & Linsky, Marty. (2002). Surviving Leadership. Harvard Management Update
7(3).
Kanungo, Rabindra N. (2001). Ethical Values of Transactional and Transformational Leaders.
Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences 18(9).
Robbins, S.P., & Judge, T.A. (2011). Organizational Behavior. (14th ed). Upper Saddle River,
NJ: Pearson Education.
Yukl, G. (2010). Leadership in Organizations (7th ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson
Education.