Reflection Paper On Leadership

Leadership Opinion Paper

Radhika Chayanam

Lawrence Technological University

They say change is the only constant thing in our life. People change, opinions change, ideas change, situation changes. And like everything else in my life, my definition of leadership also changed. As I could not get hold of my original definition from the beginning of the semester, I am going to try my best to remember what I wrote or how I used to perceive leadership as. A leader for me was a man of integrity who would treat all his followers fairly without showing any biasedness. A leader for me was a man who would know what he wants and how to get it. Earlier in this semester, leadership for me was all about success, integrity, followers. I did not acknowledge the factor of situation which I have come to realize is an internal part of it. It was a very narrow definition of leadership and as days went by, I realized the same and that leadership is more than a complex topic and it is very simple at the same time. Leadership can be defined as the function of three elements- the leader, the follower, and the situation. There is a general myth about leaders that ‘Leaders are born, not made’. It is believed by some that a leader is born with the all qualities needed by birth and some people believe that leadership qualities are generated in a person due to situations and life experiences. Both are true and both are incorrect. Leaders become leaders because of the innate qualities they have and by the formative experiences they had in their lives. For example situations can cause a normal person to take on a leadership role because he believed it was needed to lead followers and he senses that it is his duty to do it. A leader has a c...

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...urderers and thieves were treated better than Indian political prisoners. Bhagat Singh had a vision, he was courageous and determined, he was a man of Integrity and highly charismatic. He was also very intelligent. He read the teachings of Marx, Engels, Lenin, Trotsky and Bakunin and followed them. His life and death caused Indian youth to take an active part in the independence revolution. Situational leadership calls for different types of leadership styles. Bhagat Singh was effective because there was a need for a leader like him for the youths who were equally angry at British and did not know who to follow as there was only one other major movement going on, Non-violence movement by Mahatma Gandhi. The situation and followers both needed his style of leadership and that is why Bhagat Singh was so effective and potent as a freedom fighter.