Leadership Philosophy

Leadership is best executed when motivated by love: love for mission, love for others, love for God. For me, this has been a continual journey of learning, growing, humbling myself, and standing strong when called to do so.

I’ve been fortunate to provide strategic direction and leadership to teams globally and locally in arenas ranging from media production, non-profit work, and education.

My leadership philosophy continues to provide a grounding for my vision and purpose.

I will allow other leaders to challenge me, and circumstances to test and grow my philosophy. I will be adaptable and recognize when others are better suited to lead, and I should follow. If I’m following and called upon to lead, I will not allow fear to stop me.

Leaders must uphold values, ethics, and moral standards. My leadership will be marked by character, integrity, honesty and authenticity. I will uphold values and actions that celebrate the dignity and justice of others. I’ll celebrate ethical behavior and not tolerate lying, cheating or ill will toward others or self. If these instances occur, I will encourage growth from the experiences, while finding the balance between operating in mercy and grace toward others and myself. However, I will employ wisdom that will serve the greater good.

I value a servant-leader approach and will lead in ways that are centered on serving others for the greater good. As a servant-leader, I will:

  • value humility in my approach with others,

  • value open and honest communication,

  • commit to serving the greater good,

  • prioritize the needs of others before self,

  • surround myself with wise counsel,

  • commit to grow in my understanding of the needs of others, and

  • expect others to give only what I myself have given or will give

Leadership is a practice that involves community. As a leader, I will stay committed to building and fostering a safe culture and community that is inclusive, and encourages shared meaning. I commit to

  • maintaining safe atmospheres for building consensus,

  • engaging in dialogue to better understand those who I serve and serve with, and

  • hold myself accountable in action and thought to mentors and those who serve beside me.

I will be a leader who is transformational in my thoughts and actions. Valuing a transformational approach, I will

  • grow in and show passion for the mission at hand;

  • stay well informed of the issues and rely on empirical evidence to guide efforts;

  • encourage and motivate those around me to use their gifts, talents, and, passions to serve the mission;

  • set expectations for myself and those who I lead;

  • challenge systems and structures to operate in ways that better serve the mission;

  • challenge and equip followers to contribute their best and grow in their ability to lead;

  • share knowledge and understanding that celebrates the use of creativity;

  • celebrate faith, not fear; and

  • look for the possibilities.

As a leader, I will recognize my weaknesses and my need to refresh, and gather strength. I will rely on my faith in God as an anchor and guiding force. I will commit to maintaining a healthy balance in my will and emotions and to keeping my mind centered. I will choose to love others, be joyful, celebrate freedom, find opportunities to give, and share these values with other.

Leadership Toolbox

Five theories ground my leadership philosophy.

Servant Leadership

Robert Greenleaf expressed that “the great leader is seen as a servant first, and that simple fact is key to his greatness” (Greenleaf, 1977, pp. 19). The servant leadership theory maintains that leaders and followers who adhere to a servant-centered philosophy seek to understand their environments. At the same time, they search for improvements in systems and processes. These leaders recognize prophetic voices, voices of wisdom, which speak to the zeitgeist, or spirit of the age, and provide insight into courses of action. Servant leaders: 

  • serve before leading and elevate others’ needs above their own while elevating the vision, passion, and values that drive the mission; 

  • challenge societal injustices and produce followers who lead change, serving the greater good;

  • pursue personal growth and understanding.

I value leadership styles that emphasize the importance of humility among leaders and service toward others. In my leadership style, I will apply the theory of servant leadership.

Greenleaf, R. (1977). Servant leadership. [DX Reader version]. Retrieved from http://www.american.edu/spa/leadership/application/upload/Greenleaf,%20Servant%20Leadership.pdf

Path-Goal Theory

Robert House’s Path-Goal Theory of leadership explains how leaders best identify followers’ needs and motivations. According to the theory, leaders’ expectations impact followers’ performance.

The theory proposes that leaders’ behavior provides satisfaction to followers, or a pathway for followers’ future satisfaction. The theory also suggests that leaders’ actions motivate and provide followers with support needed for future success. The assumption of the Path-Goal theory is that leaders fulfill expectations such as:

  • recognizing followers’ needs for outcomes

  • providing followers with incentives for goal attainment

  • offering followers coaching and skills development

  • equipping followers to clarify their expectations and

  • eliminating potential frustrations to followers’ success.

Path-Goal theory supports my philosophy that leaders have a responsibility to draw the best from those they are leading. To move others toward achieving a common goal, leaders should serve as an example for what is possible. As a leader, I will apply this theory to provide clarity, direction, and supportfor those on my team.

House, R. J., & Mitchell, T. R. (1975). Path-goal theory of leadership. Washington

University Seattle Department of Psychology. Distributed by National Technical Information Service U.S. Department of Commerce. Retrieved from http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA009513

Level-5 Leadership

Jim Collins describes Level 5 leaders as those who are marked by humility and passion for the success of their mission. These leaders are mission-focused. They are willing to see future generations of leaders carry on the success that they have begun.

  • Humility and modesty. Level 5 leaders possess modest dispositions and employ humility when leading.

  • Fanatic discipline. These leaders are highly disciplined and committed to whatever needs to be done to accomplish the task at hand.

  • Looks out and in. Level 5 leaders credit external factors and contributors for their successes, but look inwardly to assume personal responsibility for their shortcomings and actions.

  • Build for the future. Level 5 leaders invest in the success of future leaders.

Collins’ frameworkoffers a foundation for leaders to build future successes upon.  His model offers a theoretical basis that is other-focused and promotes humility, personal responsibility, and discipline, for present and future successes.

Collins, J. (2001). Level 5 leadership, Good to great (pp. 17-40). New York, NY HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Transformational Leadership

Theorist James Burns (2003) described transformational leadership as the act of equipping  uniting  followers to work as one toward common goals.  Transformational leaders define the values and guiding principles for the people they lead. They inspire followers, leading them toward enacting change (Burns, 2003).Transformational leaders make changes to the nature, character, and structures of systems. This leadership is marked by several factors.

  • Language (Inspirational Motivation). Language is motivational and inspirational, infused with faith and passion.

  • Shared Vision (Idealized Influence). Followers are united with a shared vision. . Knowledge Sharing (Intellectual Stimulation). Transformational leadership celebrates knowledge sharing to spark creativity.

  • Identifies and Empowers (Idealized Consideration). Leader s,equip followers  to overcome environmental challenges for the greater vision.

(Ghasabeh, Soosay & Reaiche, 2015)

Transformational leadership draws a strong connection between leading with the heart and leading with the head. As a leader, I understand the combination of both of these elements to be integral for successful leadership.

Burns, J. M., (2003). Transforming leadership: A new pursuit of happiness. New York: Grove Press. Retrieved from http://bit.ly/1MSv0XV

 Ghasabeh, M. S., Sossay, C., Reaiche, C., (2015). The emerging roles of transformational leadership. The Journal of Developing Areas 49(6), 459-467.

Kantor’s Four-Player System

David Kantor’s Four-Player System addresses the collective behavior of groups in consensus building. His system brings  understanding to speakers’ positions within group dialogue and how their use of language forms speech acts (Kantor, 2012). The theory assumes that participants may engage in one of four key positions and may alternate roles as dialogue unfolds.

  • Movers inspire or initiate action through advocacy or opinion.

  • Followers support the stances that movers have initiated.

  • Challengers oppose proposed thoughts or actions.

  • Bystanders neither agree nor disagree but  place themselves on the outside of the action and reflect on their future position.

These roles are not strong or weak, correct or incorrect. Rather, they are interdependent behavioral functions present in group dynamics that are integral to consensus building.  As a leader, I recognize the value of respecting individual expression and the role this expression plays within group dynamics, including facilitating dialogue, and building consensus.

Kantor, D. (2012). Reading the room: Group dynamics for coaches and leaders. [Reader version]. Retrieved fromhttp://bit.ly/1MvDftE

Leadership