Chapter One: What Does it Mean to be a Leader?

Derailment

A phenomenon in which a manager with an impressive track record reaches a certain level but goes off track and can't advance because of a mismatch between job needs and personal skills and qualities.

Vision

A picture of an ambitious, desirable future for the organization or team.

Paradigm

A shared mindset that represents a fundamental way of thinking about, perceiving, and understanding the world.

Leadership

An influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that reflect their shared purposes.

Agile Leadership

Giving up control in the traditional sense and encouraging the growth and development of others to ensure organizational flexibility and responsiveness.

Relational Theories

How leaders and followers interact and influence one another. Leadership is viewed as a relational process that meaningfully engages all participants and enables each person to contribute to achieving the vision.

Contingency Theories (Situational Theories)

Leaders can analyze their situations and tailor their behavior to improve leadership effectiveness.

Trait Theories

Leaders have particular traits or characteristics, such as intelligence or energy, that distinguishes them from nonleaders and contributes to success.

Influence Theories

Leaders influence people to change by providing an inspiring vision of the future and shaping the culture and values needed to attain it.

Management

The attainment of organizational goals in an effective and efficient manner through planning, organizing, staffing, directing, and controlling organizational resources.

Behavior Theories

The behavior of leaders that and what they do rather than who they are.

Great Man Theories

The belief that leaders (who were always thought of as male) were born with certain heroic leadership traits and natural abilities of power and influence.