Why I Want a Wife

Qualities of a good leader

Qualities of a good leader What makes a good leader of a country? A leader can be defined as someone who leads others. According to Greer, â€Å"a leader can be someone who is in charge or commands others in an organization or a country† (30). Leadership cannot be based solely on an individual’s responsibility. It is important to add that a leader is not just about politics. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Qualities of a good leader specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Thus, leaders can be found in every sector including sports, entertainment, and corporate sector among other areas. The argument about leadership focus on: what are the right qualities? What should the leaders do to strengthen these qualities? How are these qualities developed? This paper seeks to argue the qualities that ultimately define a good leader in a country. To answer the question on what makes a good leader appropriate, it is important to acknowledge that tr aditional qualities that have defined a good leader such as aptitude, strength, determination, and vision are not sufficient in today’s world. In this changing world, a leader- in addition to the listed qualities- needs a high degree of emotional intelligence. A look at history can reveal a number of highly skilled and intelligent leaders who took over leadership of their country only for them to perform dismally. Therefore, it can be concluded that finding the right leader is an art and science. Notably, â€Å"although leaders may share general qualities, each leader has a personal style of doing things. Some leaders are passive and analytical while others are very proactive and confrontational† (Daft and Lane 52). Another important thing to acknowledge is that a leader, especially in a country or state, will often face different situations that will often require different approaches. While pursuing diplomacy, the leader will be required to be a sensitive negotiator ; while consoling victims of a disaster, the leader will need to show empathy and comfort; when dealing with state enemies, the leader is needed to have a forceful authority. The general conclusion, in my opinion, is that, to be leader, intelligence, hard work, and vision are important aspects to consider. However, even with all these, a leader should have the emotional intelligence to be successful and sustain the leadership status that is made possible by the primary characteristics listed. There are various aspects of emotional intelligence that are critical to good leadership. According to Goleman, â€Å"they include self-awareness, enthusiasm and responsiveness. Others include group skills and self-regulation† (21). Researchers have carried out studies in the corporate world, and the results have shown that emotional intelligence is often what distinguishes the outstanding leader. Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get you r first paper with 15% OFF Learn More The first component I analyze is the aspect of self-awareness. This refers to the ability to have a deep understanding of one’s emotions, strengths, weaknesses, motivational factors. To be self aware means that one is honest with his or herself. It also implies that the individual is neither critical of others nor unrealistic. Further, individuals who are self aware can predict how different emotions will affect them and the performance of their work. For example, a leader who has self awareness may know that interviews with the press often make him or her nervous. Therefore, it is prudent to avoid such interviews and choose other methods of communication. The same self awareness can be applied when it comes to ideals and values in which an individual believes. It has often been said that a leader who does not believe in anything will fall for anything. Therefore, the leader with self-awareness will be able to turn down a n investor’s request to set up a big industry in the country if that investment will hurt the environment. Weak leaders who lack self awareness will accept to do something, but after two or three years down the line, they will rescind their decision. It can be noted that people who have self awareness are coherent and articulate. They are able to speak openly and precisely tackle the areas they are addressing. They are also able to describe themselves accurately (Northouse 154). The other component of emotional intelligence is self regulation. From the onset, it is important to acknowledge that emotions are part human life. Although humans cannot do away with emotions, it is possible to control and manage them. Self regulation is the ability to manage and control ones feelings in order to make one free from distractions. In this case, individuals should also be able to direct these feelings to a useful channel. For example, a leader may witness a shambolic presentation by m embers of his cabinet to a key investor. With the disappointment, the leader may feel the urge to kick a chair or bang the table which will bring a negative side of him to the investors. Therefore, self-regulation is the ability to apologize to the investor and carefully select the words that will authoritatively, yet humbly explain to the members of the cabinet the areas that will need to be corrected. Another example is when the leader of a country faces a threat of attack from another country. Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Qualities of a good leader specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More In such a delicate matter, one wrong move can cost the country in many ways. However, if the leader maintains calmness, does not panic, and can prepare the relevant stakeholders to deal with the problem, then the effect is different, and the damage can be controlled. Self-regulation is also a strong pillar of integrity. Thornton no ted, â€Å"on many occasions, people with integrity are often caught in decisions that lack integrity† (p.13). Although such leaders have integrity, they lack self-regulation, which often enhances integrity. An example is a leader who is faced with a crisis and has no solution for the crisis. In the heat of things, the leaders may decide to apply a solution that is outside the law. Thus, although the action may have been intended to help the country, lack of self regulation may lead the leader to undermine his own integrity. The third aspect of emotional intelligence is motivation. It is almost an unwritten rule that a good leader should have motivation. In this context, motivation refers to the urge to achieve. A motivated leader is one who is never contented with the status quo. They are always striving to do better things and doing them differently. Such leaders often raise the performance bar, and they keep track of the scores. In this case, a good example is Thomas Sank ara, the slain leader of Burkina Faso from Africa. Sankara became the leader of Burkina Faso at a time when the country was reliant on donor funds. Uncomfortable, with the status quo, he led his countrymen on an overdrive to practice farming to a level that had hitherto been unseen. The country was for the first time able to feed all its population without the aid from foreign countries. The same leader introduced a government policy requiring all top government officials to stop the usage of the extravagant Mercedes Benzes. Instead, government officials were encouraged to use the modest Volkswagen vehicles so as to save money for increment of teacher’s salaries. The fourth component of emotional integrity is empathy. The uniqueness of this component is that, unlike the aforementioned components, this component is very easy to identify and recognize. However, the modern world will rarely reward a leader in business or politics on account of empathy. In this case, the convent ional understanding of empathy is to be able to take other peoples feelings and give them priority as if they were one’s own. In this context, empathy refers to the ability of the leader to consider the interests of all stakeholders when making decisions. The last component is the idea of social skills. The two components are related as they are concerned with the ability to establish meaningful relationships with other people. A leader is always leading and managing people. Thus, a good leader should be able to get along with these people.Advertising Looking for essay on government? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More From the discussion, it is clear that, to lead a country, a great team is what will deliver great leadership. However, in every country, there is a leader. Some are led by a monarch, others by dictators, or others like the United States by a democratically elected leader. In monarchs and dictatorships, leaderships will tend to be highly concentrated around an individual. On the other hand, democracies allow power to be decentralized to other institutions like the parliament, judiciary and the executive. The common denominator is that, whether the power is decentralized or centralized, the leader or leaders of the country need to possess certain qualities to lead the country effectively. The argument put forward is that, apart from the conventional qualities, a good leader of a country should possess the quality of emotional intelligence. Daft, Richard, and Patricia Lane. The Leadership Experience. Mason, OH: Thomson/South-Western, 2008. Print. Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligen ce: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ. London: Bloomsbury, 1996. Print. Greer, Eddie. Dare To Lead: Continuous Learning Creates The Best Leaders. Professional Safety, 56.6 (2011): 30-31. Print. Northouse, Peter. Leadership: Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2010. Print. Thornton, Grant. What makes a good leader? 2008. Web. www.grant-thornton.co.uk/pdf/20-leadership-report.pdf

The different views of marriage Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The different views of marriage - Essay Example The sonnets rank among the finest love lyrics in the English language. The subject of the sonnets – love and the beloved, their soft music and the occasional graceful turn of phrase earn them an elevated place in English literature. A bit more about the title of the sonnet collection, Mrs. Browning was not Portugese, but she was a pronounced brunette, which is why her husband referred to her as â€Å"my little Portugese†. When she compiled her love poems in book form, she remembered the nickname and gave them the title â€Å"Sonnets from the Portugese†. One of the sonnets, Sonnet XLIII, often called â€Å"How Do I Love Thee† is hereby reproduced: Mrs. Browning’s Sonnet XLIII has been called the greatest love lyric in English and many readers would agree. The spontaneity and extent to which the persona in the poem experiences the emotion of love is very clear and evident from the beginning. In the poem, she expresses the fact that love encompasses her whole being and her whole life. Looking into her biography, the reader discovers that she led an active child’s life until one day, in trying to saddle her pony, she fell and suffered an injury that made her a partial invalid for years. In 1816, however, she married the poet Robert Browning and went with him to live in Florence, Italy, where her health improved and where their only son was born. Apparently, marriage and a more cheerful outlook towards life agreed with her and did her a lot of good. Line 9 of the poem would attest to this: â€Å"I love with a passion put to use Not all marriages are as perfect and ecstatic as that of the Brownings. In an analysis of short story that ensues, â€Å"Story of an Hour† by Kate Chopin, the negative side of marriage is presented. On the outset, however, the reader is kept guessing (Is the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard, a happily-married

General Education Curriculum Access Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

General Education Curriculum Access - Essay Example In the 2004 â€Å"reauthorization, another provision was added to take the monitoring process further† (p. 234) Districts with an overrepresentation of minority group members in special education must set aside 15 percent of their federal aid for students, particularly those in grades K-3, who need â€Å"additional academic and behavioral support to succeed in a general education environment,† according to the law (Andy and Beaker, 2001). The 2004 reauthorization also required states to allow districts to use a strategy called â€Å"response to intervention,† as a tool for determining if a child has a specific learning disability. Response to intervention, or RTI, involves early identification of students’ learning problems and the use of increasingly intensive lessons, or interventions, to address those problems before they become entrenched. The process has been credited as a factor in reducing the overall rate of students diagnosed with specific learnin g disabilities, which has been on a  steady decline  since 2005, Aruba (2001). ... Although parents often play an important role in securing special education services for their children, much of the responsibility of helping students with disabilities succeed in the classroom falls to teachers, Camacho and Perez-Quiroz (2002). No Child Left Behind and IDEA require special education teachers to be â€Å"highly qualified† in special education as well as in the subjects they teach. General educators, who typically have more experience teaching a specific subject area, must be able to work effectively with students with special needs, but they are not required to be highly qualified to teach students with disabilities† (Camacho and Perez-Quiroz, 2002). An experienced special education teacher typically has helped support the learning of hundreds of children with disabilities or other special needs. In order to be qualified for this work, she has had to undergo a rigorous certification process, which graduate generally includes course work at the undergrad uate and/or level in special education, depending upon the specific licensure requirements in her state (Andy and Beaker, 2001). Susan is a first grader with a wonderful imagination who loves listening to stories and quickly incorporates new words into her spoken vocabulary. Yet, while most of her classmates have begun to read fluently, she continues laboring over each word and her comprehension remains low. Susan is not a real student, but a composite of many students familiar to virtually every experienced teacher: the ones who appear bright and engaged but inexplicably founder when trying to learn some essential part of the curriculum. Determining whether a student like Susan has a specific learning

Change Junctures in the Change Management Process

Change Junctures in the Change Management Process Critical change junctures in the change management process at Spectrum sun-Glass Company Introduction In the simulation undertaken, I am the Director of Product Innovation under the unit handling Research and Development for a company called Spectrum sun-glass Harvard (2012). I am very passionate about sustainability and would be very like the company to offer green products to its clients. At a recent company retreat, I tried sharing the discussion I had had with the Vice President of our biggest retail customer, Bigmart; in which he had intimated that Bigmart was about to require all their suppliers to, go through the Green Certification process. As I proceeded, most of my colleagues were displeased; with the Chief Finance Officer, Paul DArcy and the Vice President for Operations Luke Filer, coming out very strongly, against my proposal. I however received support from the Vice President (VP) of Sales and Marketing, Leslie Harris and Vice President (VP) for Human Resources, Mary Gopinath. As a compromise, the CEO appointed me as the head of a team from the different departments to develop a plan that is acceptable to all. As I lacked any formal authority, I had to rely on my personal credibility which was quite high at this point. 2.0 Section 1: 1st decision: Hosting a town-hall meeting in week 25 and the reasoning behind. To start with, I undertook a range of decisions to raise my personal credibility and increase awareness. For instance, in week 0-24, I had private interviews with colleagues (particularly those opposed to the initiative), I received support from a consultant, and I received the CEOs support, to mention but a few. However, the decision that most advanced my change management process, was the town hall meeting that I held in week 25. This town hall meeting alone moved the following individuals from the awareness to the trial stage: Andrew Chen, Walt James, Bob Ingram, Yao Li, Mark Robert, Anne Thompson, Louise Crysh and Dianne Mcnatt. The reasoning behind this decision was informed by Robert Ciadini as quoted in Cliffe, S (2013) who says that ; if one intends to persuade people, one needs to appeal to six human responses namely; people will follow through with commitments that they have made publicly, people will do things that they see people similar to them do, when people are uncert ain about certain things, they tend to look towards experts and other possible sources of information, people are more likely to accept proposals from someone that they like, people tend to respond positively to people who have helped them in the past and people value things whose supply is limited. The town hall meeting was therefore a perfect lever for me to use, as it enabled people to accept my proposal, if other people in the group were to accept. Secondly, it enabled colleagues to make a public commitment to my proposed change, than say, in the private interviews. In addition, the town hall meeting was a perfect opportunity for me to share my extensive knowledge on the issue of sustainability and why it is important for our company and future growth. In the face of uncertainty, my colleagues were then more likely to defer to me and agree to my proposal. Looking back, at the levers that I used, I should also have continued with personal interviews, particularly with the key opp onents of my plan. This strategy of co-opting antagonists is well elaborated in Pfeffer, J (2010), as a way of winning over opponents and giving them a stake in the process of change. Personally, this could also have involved making concessions to the CFO and the VP-Operations in private, so that they start to own a part of the plan. 3.0 Section 2: How I would implement the change action above in practice In practice, I would seek to utilize the levers provided in a concurrent fashion. Whereas, in the simulation, I could only hold a town hall meeting, for instance; I would in practice, seek to complement this with a public statement of support from the CEO. I would also look at having the consultants report delivered during the townhall meeting. In addition to these formal avenues for influencing my colleagues, I would seek out opportunities to help out colleagues. In this way, I would create an obligation on their part to reciprocate. This would therefore ensure that when they are called upon to support my proposal, they would feel conflicted, not to support it. Similarly, I would try to make every effort to get myself liked by colleagues, in very casual settings. This liking would them make it more likely, that they would support my proposal. I would focus less on the means, and focus more on the end. That is, I would be extremely flexible with the levers and concentrate more on the goal of having management agree to Spectrum-sun glass making green products. I would also seek to appreciate the arguments of my colleagues, in Finance and operations. To allay their fears about the financial and operational challenges of the new proposal, I would invite their contributions on how these can be addressed. I would be willing to accept these suggestions as it helps me attain my overall goal-albeit with certain changes. In addition to the personal interviews and town halls, I would also look-out and encourage opportunities for my colleagues to air their views and even reservations about my proposal. This would help me to understand the main issues that my opponents value and would then enable me to respond appropriately. 4.0 Section 3: 2nd decision/Juncture: Building a coalition of support in week 43 and the reasoning behind In week 43, I sought to build a coalition of supporters among the staff, as a way of trying to move the organization from the awareness to the movement stage of the change process. Not only did this decision, have no effect on the organization; it also resulted in a loss of my credibility as some staff were not enthusiastic about the idea. In making this decision, my assumption had been that there was then sufficient interest, in my proposal, among the team. In fact, this result (the failure to build a coalition of support) could be explained by the various theories about organizational culture. For example, Chatman, J, Eunyoung Cha, S (2003) posit that organizational culture is very powerful as it energizes and rallies employees around common perceived goals or objectives. The lack of interest by the employees of Spectrum sun-glass in joining a coalition of support could therefore be partially explained by the culture of the organization. This view is supported by, Goffee, R, Jone s, G (1996) who explains that organizations can be grouped on the basis of their cultures, as follows: Networked Organizations-in which there is a lot of informality, cliques and limited commitment to company goals, Mercenary Organizations,-in which decisions are made by top management and enforced swiftly throughout the organization, Fragmented organizations-in which there is limited solidarity and collaboration across departments and communal organizations, in which there is a lot of socializing at work and solidarity. Based on the above metric, I would classify Spectrum sun-glass as a Fragmented company where there is limited solidarity and collaboration across departments. Alternatively; and as explained by Prof Tim Morris in his lecture on leading through culture; company cultures can be assessed on five dimensions, namely; whether it has a single or multiple cultures, whether decision making is low or high consensus, whether there is an internal or client focus, whether the pe rformance orientation is high or low and whether there is internal cooperation or competition. Based on the above criteria; I would rate Spectrum sun-glass as having a single culture, high consensus decision making, client focus, a high performance orientation and internal competition. With the above information and in retrospect; I should not have sought to create a coalition in such an organizational culture, at the time I did. Instead, I should have concentrated on enabling change through consolidating and relying on my personal credibility, communicating my proposal and making the necessary emotional connection and training. 5.0 How I would implement the change action above in practice In practice, I would start by analyzing the existing organizational culture. I would then craft a very convincing slogan to motivate my colleagues to adopt my approach. For instance, Go Green, More Profits, and More Pay. To further promote interest in my proposal, I would create a sense of urgency, by making the slogan action oriented, Goffee, et al, (1996). As this is a fragmented and mercenary organization, I would also try to organize dialogues on my proposal in informal settings; like lunch, parties and so on. As these parties are enjoyable for those who attend, this tends to increase my likability and the social dynamic within the group. It would also be critical for me to create a place of psychological safety to ask questions about my proposal, to receive honest feedback, to discuss any reservations and errors of approach openly. In this way, I would reinforce the solidarity of the group and its ability to socialize Chatman, et al (2003). 6.0 Conclusion In the end, I was able through the use of the various levers to have eighteen adopters by week 56. This translated into a change efficiency ratio of 0.32, which is high. My change leadership skills (the mishaps, notwithstanding) ensured that I was able to convince a critical mass of managers to adopt the initiative on sustainability. This significantly improved the financial prospects of the company and my professional prospects. Bibliography Chatman, J, Eunyoung Cha, S 2003, Leading by Leveraging Culture, California Management Review, 45, 4, pp. 20-34, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 17 January 2017. Cliffe, S 2013, The Uses (and Abuses) of Influence, Harvard Business Review, 91, 7/8, pp. 76-81, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 17 January 2017. Goffee, R, Jones, G 1996, What Holds the Modern Company Together?, Harvard Business Review, 74, 6, pp. 133-148, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 17 January 2017 Harvard (2012) Change management simulation: Power and influence. Available at: http://forio.com/simulate/harvard/change-management/simulation/index.html#introduction (Accessed: 17 January 2017). Pfeffer, J 2010, Power Play, Harvard Business Review, 88, 7/8, pp. 84-92, Business Source Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 17 January 2017 Tim Morris (2016) Lecture Slide on Leading through Culture, Available at: https://weblearn.ox.ac.uk/access/content/group/1ed98592-bb15-4079-ad29 b1e4e73be816/Document%20Library/Lecture%20Slides/LF16%2010.1%20Organisational%20Culture.pdf (Accessed: 18 January 2017).

Teletubbies Essay -- Teletubbies Toddler Learning Education Essays

Teletubbies Who (or what) are the "Teletubbies?" Many people are familiar with this relatively new cultural phenomenon, but for those who are not, they are rather hard to describe. They appear on a PBS television program designed for toddlers. One newspaper writer has described them as "four roly-poly futuristic rugrats." They are brightly colored, alien-like technological babies, complete with baby talk and giggles. They live in a hilly, pastoral land, full of flowers and bunnies and sunshine, as well as technological gadgets, such as their caretaker/vacuum cleaner named Noo-Noo. They each have their own personalities and favorite toys, and they have taken America, as well as much of the world, by storm. PBS contends that the television series "is designed to encourage curiosity and to stimulate imagination" in young children: to help them learn. The creators of the program, which began in Britain, conducted research with children, nursery school teachers, and linguists. The co-creator and writer, Andrew Davenport, has a degree in Speech Sciences. "Teletubbies" makes use of bright colors, music, repetition, and a slow pace, because this is how young children learn, according to the current research on education. Michael Brunton, in an article in Time, said that "people are missing the point" when they criticize the repetition and hear the baby-talk of the teletubbies. "Teletubbies is in fact closely modeled around the latest theories of speech that identify patterns of movement, a sing-song voice,...repetition and social interaction as key building blocks." These views have been widely publicized, as has been the idea that young children learn the most, and most rapidly, befor e the age of three. PBS also... ...eir tummies come from--the devil? The show's repetition and music, and use of objects that are familiar to children seemed to be the key. My son was very attentive during all 3 episodes. He said, "girl" and "book", "bucket" and "rabbit", and "baby" as the cute sun with the baby face in it came on. The show uses things that are common in the world of children, and they are confident in themselves when they recognize these things. My son would look at me and smile as he recognized each object and said each word. Ok, so by the 3rd episode my husband went to wash the dishes. By the 3rd episode my 2 year old wanted to stand right in front of the television. After 1 1/2 hours of watching the "Teletubbies," my husband asked my son, "Are you brainwashed yet. I think I am. I feel like having some tubby custard." This is about as harmful as the teletubbies get.

How to Write a Marketing Research Proposal

Step 1 Determine why the research is taking place. A market research proposal must explain the purpose of the research. The abstract at the beginning of the proposal will explain the goals of the research as well as any theories the research is attempting to prove. Step 2 Identify the information needed for the research. Explain the type of research information that is necessary to serve the purpose identified in step one. For example, if the research is on television viewing habits, one type of information needed is the kind of shows being watched as well as the audience that is watching. Different demographics often have different viewing habits, so identifying the information you need is a critical part of the market research proposal. This information is a necessary component in the first third of the proposal. Step 3 Explain the research methods that will be used. You know what information is needed; now detail how you will find it. Will you use a poll? What other measuring tools will you use? Step 4 Explain the cost of the research. The cost is going to influence those making the decisions. Each recommendation you make should include a specific cost breakdown as well as a rating of the importance of that research tool in relation to the others. For example, if you can obtain the same information through two different methods, you should include cost, validity and reliability scales for decision-making. Step 5 Conclude the market research proposal with a summary and recommendation. While the bulk of the proposal should explore all options, the summation should include your recommendations and assessments of all the available options. 6. Step 6 Edit for structure. Be sure to format the market research proposal with an executive summary (abstract/introduction), background (information and research), and a definition of the research or the problem you seek to resolve with the research. Be sure to include objectives, research methods (how information will be gathered and analyzed) and method of reporting.