The Resolute LeaderJaseudia Killion

PADM 7607Public Management and Leadership

Leadership Style PaperMarch 3, 2014

The Resolute Leader

According to the 8 Dimensions of Leadership, there are eight categories in which

a given person can be categorized by taking an assessment. These eight dimensions are

Energizing, Pioneering, Affirming, Inclusive, Humble, Deliberate, Resolute, and

Commanding. The assessment is completed using the DiSC model which has four basic

quadrants in which the eight leadership dimensions fall-Dominance, Influence,

Conscientiousness, and Steadiness.

The Disc Model

The DiSC model is further broken into two axes: The North-South Axis and The

West-East Axis. The North Axis leaders tend to enjoy fast paced work environments and

are more outspoken. The South Axis leaders tend to be more cautious with decision-

making and are more reflective (Sugarman, Scullard, & Wilhelm, 2011).

The West Axis leaders tend to ask more questions and are more skeptical

especially when it comes to new plans or ideas. The East Axis leaders are more

accepting of new plans or ideas and are warmer, friendly (Sugarman et al., 2011).

The Resolute leadership style falls in the middle of The North-South Axis,

straddling the fence. This means this leader may possess characteristics of both axes:

preferring fast paced environments and being more outspoken than the style to is

immediate left-the Deliberate leader, while also being cautious and reflective like the

Deliberate leader. Along The West-East Axis, the Resolute leader is definitely

questioning and skeptical of anything new. Resolute leaders also tend to be more

objective, possess higher standards for self and others, and love to solve problems. The

resolute leader is one who is willing to speak up, asking questions to gain a better

understanding of anything new. This leader loves efficiency and tackles challenges

directly (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Strengths

Competitive: A competitive streak allows the Resolute leader to accomplish tasks

and goals because she always wants to be the best. A fear of being inadequate

fuels this competitive spirit (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Problem Solver: Problems are just another challenge or opportunity to fix

something for this leadership type. Being results driven makes problem-solving

fun for the Resolute leader (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Ability to Identify Weaknesses: Because of natural skepticism a resolute leader

has the ability to identify potential problem areas or faults with any plan or idea

(Sugarman et al., 2011).

Holds Others Accountable: Because of such high standards for oneself and

others, Resolute leaders tend to hold people accountable for their actions,

especially failure (Sugarman et al., 2011).

High Standards: Resolute leaders, because of their location on the axis, maintain

a balance between speed and quality. These leaders hold all things and people to

a higher standard tending to find those incompetent who don’t meet these

standards (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Outspoken: These leaders often speak up when there is something they don’t

understand or when they feel that tough questions need to be addressed. These

leaders are very direct when giving feedback (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Overcomes Obstacles: Resolute leaders love to tackle challenges head on and see

them as a great way to push forward. Obstacles often drive a resolute leader to do

her best job (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Separates Emotions from Issues: These leaders often take out all feelings in a

professional setting, and try to be more objective focusing on the issue at hand.

Taking out emotions allows the Resolute leader to be more objective with

decision making (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Weaknesses

Some of the Resolute leaders best qualities can also be negative. Some qualities can

present some limitations on a Resolute leader which are examined below:

High Standards: Since when is holding someone to a high standard a bad thing?

Well when one feels that her standards are the only ones of importance. Resolute

leaders hold others to standards and ideas of what a resolute leader thinks is right,

easily labeling those who don’t meet standards as inadequate or incompetent. In

fact, Resolute leaders have ideas about how things “should” be or how people

“should” behave that are often unfairly projected onto others (Sugarman et al.,

2011).

Naturally Skeptical: Being naturally skeptical can cause a Resolute leader to shut

out any new ideas or stifle the innovations or inputs of others in a setting.

Resolute leaders must remember that at times there are several ways to get the

job done, and must learn to choose battles when being picky about the process.

Different strokes work for different folks (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Separates Emotions from Issues: Resolute leaders don’t actually like displays of

emotions in the professional setting. This can make a leader unapproachable. One

has to remember that people are tied to issues and to try showing some

compassion. This can also make a leader not be much of a cheerleader or

enthusiastic when others do need this to continue in a professional setting

(Sugarman et al., 2011).

Fault: Judging from this paper, it is obvious that the Resolute leader loves to find

fault in anything. (Hence the weaknesses being more in depth than the strengths).

It can be difficult to find the good in something when one is predisposed to being

disgusted or disappointed. Constantly brining out the negatives without

acknowledging the positive gains can make poor morale in the work place

(Sugarman et al., 2011).

The Resolute Leader and Me

At first, when reading about the Resolute Leader, I could not help but laugh at

some of the depictions of this leadership style. I kept asking myself,

“Am I really that bad?” The word “bad” is used because I feel that in society, these

attributes are not seen as negative for a male leader. Yet, for a woman to possess these

same qualities, she can easily get the “Bitch” label. In fact, I’m not stranger to it. I know

this is supposed to be my default style, something I go to most of the time. I could very

well possess attributes from the other DiSC styles, but I just don’t see it. This was a

100% accurate depiction of my style. From the positives to the weaknesses, I definitely

saw myself.

The good news is that I knew my strengths and weaknesses before this assessment

and has been working on them for years in the professional setting. I struggle the most

with emotions and dismissing people as being incompetent. So I try to find ways to give

people a small amount of praise every once in awhile or share some small talk. The

problem is that I cannot find myself able to do this with people that I don’t like or

consider incompetent. I’m still working on this. Usually on professional evaluations, I

receive positive marks when it comes to achieving my goals and being professional. The

problem is that usually I am seen as “unapproachable” or “too direct” which causes

problems with other women in the workplace because I often offend the ones who don’t

share my style, or I butt heads with women who share my leadership style in the work

place.

The Resolute Leader and My Career Goals

My career goal is to obtain a management position with a non-profit or

government agency that involves one of the areas of my interests: victim advocacy, foster

care reform, or decreasing the local infant mortality rate. The specific position I am

looking for is a program analyst or executive director.

An executive director within thee non-profit world could definitely use the

qualities of a Resolute Leader to be successful. Any of the strengths for a Resolute leader

could make an agency a success. The problem areas are the weaknesses of a Resolute

Leader. The non-profit world is more about relationships and collaborating than ever. In

the South, I have found this to be especially true. Over the years, I have pushed myself to

be more personable and have more tact when it comes to delivering feedback. I’ve had to

take a personal interest and let in emotions when dealing with others in the non-profit

world, which exhausts me at the end of the day. I have become better at “faking it” over

the years.

As for becoming a program analyst, my default style is more suited for this

position. I would not have to be as tactful or personable with others when delivering

feedback and evaluations. I can have standards for people, which are expected. Yet, I

don’t want to ruin morale or have contributed to high turn over because of my

weaknesses. So, still I would need to work on being a cheerleader and highlighting small

achievements along the way to be successful in this position.

Plans for Development

Greatest Weakness

Based on my DiSC profile, the greatest weakness that I need to work on is my

struggle with emotions; this impedes my ability to interact with colleagues and

contributes the insensitivity that is commonly associated with the Resolute leader. As I

mentioned previously, I struggle with displays of emotions from colleagues and myself

often labeling displays of emotions as being unprofessional or unwarranted (Sugarman,

Scullard, & Wilhelm, 2011). I often dismiss people based upon displays of emotions and

label them as being incompetent. After much self-reflection, the DiSC assessment, and

several evaluations at work, I know this is a major problem area for me, and is one that I

struggle to overcome.

The Affirming Leader

I am not the type of person who enjoys reading “self help” books. In fact, The 8

Dimensions of Leadership is about the only one that I’ve ever read and enjoyed. It all just

seems so subjective, and I just don’t care too much for the opinions of others when it

comes to the topic of me. Finding a book worth reading and that would help me work on

my weakness was a difficult task. Most leadership and management books often

encourage the Resolute leadership style while not focusing on the negative aspects of it.

During my search I went back to The 8 Dimensions of Leadership and focused on my

polar opposite-the Affirming Leader. Some of the Affirming leader’s strengths are

optimism, giving praise, friendliness, being considerate of others’ emotions, being

approachable, and the list goes on and on in the opposite direction of me (Sugarman et

al., 2011).

Lessons that can be learned from this Affirming Leader are as follows:

Consider Others’ Emotions: It’s difficult to celebrate a victory if your morale is

has been shredded during the process. Ignoring the emotions of others when

delivering information or focusing on the negative aspects of what they do,

doesn’t allow a person to appreciate the win (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Rewards Aren’t Always Monetary: Not everyone comes to work because they are

on a mission to defeat some challenge or overcome an obstacle. Some people

don’t get satisfaction from just a paycheck. In order to be happy at work and do

positive work, people have to feel appreciated. Let people know how much they

are valued and explain the purpose of their work (Sugarman et al., 2011).

Accept Limitations of Others: No one is the best at everything. Affirming leaders

don’t have high expectations for everyone, nor do Affirming leaders expect

everyone to do things the Affirming leader’s way. Affirming leaders accept what

people can or can’t do, while encouraging them along the way (Sugarman et al.,

2011).

What lessons from the Affirming leader in mind, I decided to focus my attention

on books that support the Affirming leadership style.

Winning by Jack Welsh

My search for books that support the Affirmative Leadership style resulted in me

finding Winning by Jack Welsh. Jack Welsh is a successful, former CEO, and author.

This book is all about- you guessed it, winning. This book really puts into perspective the

importance of having positive relationships with people at work while still sticking to the

plan of achieving a goal. This appeals to me because it is for the sake of being successful

and helping the company, which in turn helps the world. Welsh explains that each

company has a social responsibility to win and be profitable. This is achieved through

happy people. Happy people allow a company to make profits, which in turn impacts the

community in a positive way. People are what is important about a business and

successful leaders recognize this. Some key characteristics of successful leaders are as

follows:

Engage Employees: Welsh explains that 20% of employees are the best and need

to be told how valuable they are, and rewarded through various means. The

bottom 10% of employees are not so good and cannot be helped, so these people

need to know bluntly that they are not a good fit for the organization. The middle

group of employees should be told where they stand, told how they can become

part of the top 20%, and encouraged to achieve that goal. Leaders get this done by

getting to know employees personally and through evaluations. Good leaders

know their employees and have a relationship in which employees know exactly

where they stand and should be able to tell leaders how they feel. The door for

community should be open both ways. It is as simple as greeting someone or

smiling down the hall (Welsh & Welsh, 2005).

Energize Employees: Leaders should promote innovation and breed success in an

organization. Leaders should carry around fertilizer and water to help people

grow. Innovation cannot happen if a leader does not allow employees to come up

with different ideas about how to get things done. If the strategy isn’t successful,

people should not be punished for it. Instead there was probably something that

went wrong with the execution. This gets people excited about work and makes

them feel they are part of changes so that they can embrace change. Great leaders

give employees a since of hope and opportunity which is good for the company as

a whole. Celebrate small battles along the way to the big victory (Welsh & Welsh,

2005).

Putting It Into Perspective

I’ve always thought that showing emotions, offering praise along the way, etc.

were all jus too unprofessional. I was not open to seeing things from another perspective.

I did not want to cater to someone’s feelings, so I needed a perspective that would show

me the importance of emotions and relationships from a viewpoint that I could

understand. Welsh’s book showed me the importance of building relationships with

employees in a way that does not seem unprofessional. His rationale showed me that

reason behind showing emotion and drawing closer to employers for the sake of

achievement. That appeals to the Resolute Leader in me without me having to completely

comprise myself. Using that information coupled with knowing the strengths of the

Affirming leader motivate me to actually make a change. The specific action steps I can

take are:

1. Identify strengths and weaknesses of each employee from my perspective and

their own.

2. Show people they are valued through praise and compliment them on their

strengths.

3. Show them ways they can build upon their weaknesses. Now that I have

completed this DiSC assessment, I can actually be honest about my own

weaknesses with employees to promote a verbal exchange.

4. Encourage them to do better and grow. Also take into consideration suggestions

or encouragement they may have for me. This creates an open exchange.

Reflections

I have had an opportunity recently at work to put some of these action steps into

motion. I am on the planning committee for an event that my organization is having this

fall. During committee meetings, I was very open to ideas from people on the committee.

I encouraged everyone to identify their strengths and weaknesses, while group members

agreed or disagreed with the results. Each member was able to see herself from another

perspective, but also get some praise. Members let the other know how valuable they

were through praise and recognition for strengths. We suggested people work in two

areas: one that showcased their strengths, and other area was a weakness. This way each

person was able to get some assistance from others and was allowed an opportunity for

growth. We discussed the tried and true way of planning the event, and we opened the

floor for new ideas from members. Meetings have been much more productive, short, and

positive than last year during the planning process because of this change in the

committee attitudes. I learned how to relax and try not to do everything. I feel more

confident in the committee and have loosened my reins.

Summary

This entire final semester has been all about self-reflection. I have never really been

interested in self-reflection or even talking about myself. I just don’t think it is in good

taste; however, this semester has allowed me the opportunity to find fault with myself.

This assessment was dead on when it identified my leadership style and weaknesses. By

recognizing my faults and not focusing on the faults of others, I am able to improve

myself. I am taking advantage of this opportunity to grow professionally and personally

before I move forward with my post graduation career goals.

Annotated Bibliography

Sugarman, J., Scullard, M. and Wilhelm, E. (2011). The 8 dimensions of leadership. Inscape Publishing.

Welch, J., and Welsh, S. (2005). Winning. New York, NY: Harper Business.