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The Importance of Reflective Leadership in Business

• 05 Sep 2023

Effective leadership is essential to business success. As an organizational leader , you not only guide decision-making but create your company’s culture, retain its talent, and move it toward bigger, better things.

Your leadership style —the behavioral patterns consistent across your decision-making—influences your impact on your organization and team. One of the most beneficial styles to adopt is reflective leadership.

If you want to learn more about reflective leadership’s role in business, here’s an overview of its components, why it’s effective, and how to become a reflective leader.

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Reflective Leadership?

Reflective leadership involves self-awareness, introspection, and continuous learning and growth to make better decisions, enhance leadership skills , and improve team performance .

“Reflective leadership requires the continuous practice of reflection over time,” says Harvard Business School Professor Nien-hê Hsieh in the online course Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . “This allows you to regularly examine and re-evaluate your decisions and responsibilities to practice, broaden, and deepen your skills, and to apply this knowledge when analyzing present situations.”

Reflective leadership also enables you to help your team grow.

“Reflective leadership is about helping others on your team or in your organization,” Hsieh says. “It’s about helping them develop their own skills in awareness, judgment, and action.”

In Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability , Hsieh delves into the reflective leadership model , a framework for conceptualizing your responsibilities as an ethical leader.

The model has four components:

• Awareness: Recognize your legal, economic, and ethical responsibilities to stakeholders.
• Judgment: Consider biases and shared concepts that influence your decision-making.
• Action: Act on your decisions in an accountable, consistent way.
• Reflection: Reflect on all three components throughout the process to learn from past experiences.

“The reflective leadership model involves not only reflection on business decisions but also continuous reflection on your own personal beliefs, goals, and commitments,” Hsieh says in the course. “These aspects of self are often significant influences on your decisions and internal guides when navigating difficult situations.”

The Importance of Reflective Leadership

Before diving into the importance of reflective leadership, it’s critical to note the pitfalls of being an inadequate leader.

According to recruitment services company Zippia , 79 percent of employees leave their companies because they don’t feel appreciated by leaders, and upwards of 69 percent believe they’d work harder if recognized. In addition, only 33 percent report feeling engaged in the workplace.

Companies also lack focus on leadership development. Zippia reports that 77 percent struggle to find and develop leaders, and only five percent implement leadership development at all levels.

Since reflective leadership focuses on continuously improving and developing, it’s one of the more effective leadership styles. By regularly reflecting on your beliefs and values and incorporating them into your actions, you can make ethical decisions and enable your company to be more purpose-driven .

“Along with responsibility, leadership brings opportunities,” Hsieh explains in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . “These include opportunities to make ethical decisions where someone else wouldn’t, to influence others to do the right thing, and to make a positive impact on the world.”

Reflective leadership also helps you build authentic, supportive relationships with team members and create a workplace of ethics and accountability .

If you want to adopt a reflective leadership style, here are the competencies to develop.

How to Become a Reflective Leader

Be self-reflective.

Self-reflection is at reflective leadership’s core. According to Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability , you can practice self-reflection by:

• Reviewing, analyzing, and evaluating your decisions—in the moment and over time.
• Continuously deepening your awareness and self-knowledge.
• Developing a general framework for judgment.
• Improving your capacity for action and leadership.

Leading with self-reflection won’t just help you learn from past experiences but also encourage and enable your team members to adopt reflective mentalities.

Identify Your Commitments

Knowing your commitments is also essential to effective leadership.

“It’s important to identify and define your own commitments,” Hsieh says in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability , “both to set a baseline for what you will and won’t do and to evaluate and clarify your thoughts, opinions, and feelings when making decisions.”

To create that baseline, Hsieh recommends asking the following questions:

• What’s core to my identity?
• What lines or boundaries won’t I cross?
• What kind of life do I want to live?
• What kind of leader do I want to be?

By identifying your commitments, you can better guide yourself and your team.

Consider Your Accountability

Becoming a reflective leader also requires accountability to successfully execute on your values and implement them into action plans.

This refers to the reflective leadership model’s “action” step—putting your decisions into practice in a way that’s accountable and consistent with your responsibilities.

“When leading reflectively, straightforward action planning may not be enough,” Hsieh says in Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . “An accountable leader will go beyond just answering ‘How will we do it?’ to ask ‘How can I do it accountably?’”

Reflective Leadership Training for Businesses

By incorporating your values into your leadership style, you can learn from your experiences on a deeper level and develop into a better leader.

One way to gain the skills and frameworks to succeed long term is by taking an online course, such as Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability . Through a dynamic, interactive learning experience, the course provides the opportunity to apply the reflective leadership model to real-world business ethics challenges.

Are you ready to become a reflective leader? Apply to Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability —one of our online leadership and management courses —and download our free e-book on effective leadership.

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Home — Essay Samples — Business — Leadership — Reflective Essay On Being A Leader

Reflective Essay on Being a Leader

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Leadership Reflection Essay Examples

Self reflection leadership essay example, reflections on leadership, introduction.

When we talk about leadership, it’s not something that is practiced in the workplace but in fact it is in every little thing that exists around us. The phenomenon comes handy in any situation where a leader steps in and takes control. The place doesn’t matter; it could be your home, your office or any public place.

For those who think leaders are born, let me correct, leaders are made, with the ability and the credibility that people put their trust into. In this leadership reflection essay example I will be discussing my leadership strengths and the areas for improvement and growth.

Over the years, I have had the privilege of observing the concept of leadership in different contexts, which made me understand the traits that an effective leader requires. In this reflection essay I will be sharing my learnings and viewpoints on leadership drawn from observations and personal experiences.

Understanding the Nature of Leadership

As mentioned in the beginning of this reflection on leadership essay, leadership is not about imposing power over others. Practically, leadership is a complex blend of character, skill set and decisions that steer people towards one single goal.

Leadership is all about inspiring and influencing individuals that motivate them to complete certain tasks or achieve goals instead of coercing them. In my experience, leadership is a continuous journey to self discovery, its perseverance towards continuous learning and personal growth.

The Role of Vision

One of the most important aspects of leadership is to be clear about your vision and mission. The leader must thoughtfully come up with a vision that is in sync with goals of the team and the organization. If curated carefully, this vision acts as a guiding light towards a shared goal and purpose.

In my experience over the years I have witnessed leaders who have a focused vision are able to inspire others to follow their steps that ultimately lead to success.

Effective Communication and Empathy

To put your viewpoint across, effective communication is key especially when you are leading a team. The role of a leader demands clear communication of the vision, expectations and objectives so that he is able to be persuasive accordingly.

Many fail to understand that listening is equally important as communicating. It is extremely crucial for the leader to listen empathetically and comprehend so that he/she is able to address the concerns of the team.

During my learning experience in the role of a leader I found that when you listen to your team, and you are empathetic to their concerns you build trust, collaboration and people have a sense of belonging.

The Ability to Adapt and Resilience

Leadership is a concept that is variable and fits each to its own, there is no one leadership style that can be used for all. I can tell from experience that the role of a leader is quite challenging, where he has to face uncertainty, adapt to different situations and show resilience.

A good leader is the one who is flexible enough to steer through challenges, learn from the setbacks and have an optimistic approach towards inspiring teams. The ones who persevere through such challenges are able to pull through difficult times. So that makes flexibility, resilience and openness to new ideas as important qualities of a leader.

A Leader Show Lead by Example

The most important trait of a leader is to lead by example. Their role demands to practice the same values, attitudes and behavior that they expect from their team. This way, they lead by example and build trust and authenticity. Below mentioned are 7 ways you can lead by example:

• Polish Your Leadership Skills – One of the best ways to lead by example is by getting training and learning how to build your skills and mindset accordingly.
• Handle Conflict in a Constructive Manner – You cannot expect your team to handle conflicts if you are unable to do so yourself. Learn to address conflicts in a calm and productive way.
• Communicate Kindly and Respectfully: A conflict can only be managed well if the tone is respectful and kind, reflecting that you care about your team.
• Revert After Failure: Failure is natural in a business or personal life that can take place anytime a decision is made or risk is taken.
• Practice Ethical Leadership: Never let moral values like honesty, transparency, integrity, respect and fairness leave your side.
• Embrace Diversity: Create policies and procedures that make employees feel comfortable and welcomed. Keep an open mind and encourage different viewpoints.
• Take Care of Your Well-Being: If you are unwell, it would be difficult to lead the team in compromised health.

To sum it all, leadership is a continuous journey that continues for life. My reflections on these leadership reflective essay examples have led me to understand the complexity and depth of how this concept works.

Leadership is a lifelong journey, and my reflections on this subject have led me to appreciate its depth and complexity. It is not a destination but a continuous process of growth and self-improvement. Effective leaders are not born; they are made through experiences, self-awareness, and a commitment to keep inspiring and empower others.

As I move forward on this journey, I have learned to evolve as a leader. These reflections would work as a guidance manual. So far, I have learned that leadership is not a title or an authoritative state, it’s how we affect others lives in a positive manner.

Beyond a role, this is a great responsibility that I carry with great enthusiasm and strive to make a positive difference in the lives of people surrounding me.

It is a responsibility that I embrace with humility and enthusiasm, driven by a desire to make a positive difference in the world around me.

• https://www.betterup.com/blog/leading-by-example
• https://www.ipl.org/essay/Reflection-Paper-On-Leadership-PKERL7HESCFR  

Leadership Style Reflective Essay Example

Reflecting on leadership styles.

Usually, when one is integrating effective leadership styles into routine practice, there is a need to self-reflect to know your standing and then trying out different approaches to see which one clicks. But at the base, in this reflection on leadership essay I can confidently share that leadership is a concept that one can only develop through time and with continuous development.

In this leadership reflection essay example , I plan to explore the concept with a wideview and walk you through different leadership styles and share how they have impacted my growth and improved me as a leader.

Autocratic Leadership

During the initial phase of my career I realized I was more inclined towards the autocratic leadership style. Since it was so early in my career, I was of the view that being authoritative and decisive is what shapes up a good leader. Most of the time I would find myself making important decisions without keeping my team in the loop or seeking to ask for their advice.

As amazingly effective this authoritative leadership style was in numerous situations, I soon realized its limitations. It tampered with creativity, isolated my team and created an unwelcoming environment where open communication was discouraged because there was only one person in charge.

When I reflected on this style I realized that no matter how important quick decision making was in certain situations, it’s equally important to involve your team in the decision making process. This not only gets you to get creative ideas and different perspectives but also makes the team involved and gives them a sense of ownership.

Democratic Leadership

Once I realized that I need to include my team and give them a sense of ownership, I transitioned towards a more inclusive approach, the democratic leadership style. My team was very happy with this approach since they were more involved, and encouraged collaboration. I started getting some amazing ideas from my team and they too got comfortable in sharing their perspective.

While this leadership style empowered my team and promoted creativity, it had its own set of challenges. It would take a lot of time to reach a consensus and hence delay the decision making process slower. Also, it was difficult to reach a consensus everytime, with so many different perspectives.

So finally I realized that a democratic approach is viable only when you have sufficient time for the discussion and the team is equipped with the relevant expertise. It was necessary that a balance was achieved when it came to making the decisions in a timely manner and involving the team.

Transformational Leadership

My journey as a leader has been a great learning experience and I took each of the lessons to bring about a positive change. As I continued further on my journey of refining my skills, transformational leadership style caught my attention. This style is inclined towards motivating and inspiring individuals so that they can explore their full potential and achieve their best.

This approach included setting up a vision that was compelling to foster innovation and strive for personal growth. The biggest trait of transformational leaders is that they lead by example and bring about a positive change in the work environment where everyone works with full zeal.

When I started practicing this leadership style I found out that it encouraged both personal and professional development amongst the members of the team. But it’s not simple as it sounds, it requires full commitment to the vision and a high level of emotional intelligence to regulate your feelings and connect with people on a personal level.

Servant Leadership

My yearning to be a holistic leader brought me to a phase in my journey where I got an opportunity to explore servant leadership. With this style, you prioritize others’ needs over your own, reflecting an empathetic nature and practicing selflessness and humility. This style demands an active listening ear so that you as a leader are able to understand their concerns, address them and provide support accordingly.

I realized that servant leadership helped me create an impact on the team where I was able to build trust and build strong relationships with my team. Also, putting your team’s needs ahead of your own is something that requires a strong will power and a lot of patience.

To conclude, my leadership journey has been very explorational in nature where I got the opportunity to learn and experiment with my leadership styles, not once but several times. Along with highlighting my strengths and weaknesses in the leadership reflective essay examples in the initial phase of my journey I got to learn, unlearn and relearn a lot of things.

I got clarity that when it comes to leadership, there is no one size that fits all, it is multifaceted. In order to practice an effective leadership style it is important that the leader is flexible and can adapt to different styles according to different situations and different teams.

Furthermore, as I look back and reflect on my past experiences, I am looking forward to polishing my leadership skills and styles all the while seeking opportunities for growth and advancement. Also, I will try to integrate the best of the learnings on my style that I have come across so far.

I strive to be a leader who is quick to think on his feet and is able to make instant decisions. Also, I want to inspire and motivate individuals with my transformational approach and practicing servant leadership. I aim to be empathetic enough that I keep the needs of others above myself.

Eventually, leadership is a dynamic and overwhelming journey that leads to self discovery, growth, and persistent improvement.

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Reflecting on Leadership, Leading, and Leaders

• First Online: 18 November 2022

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• Carole J. Elliott 3  

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To develop responsible leadership practice for equitable organizations, societies require continuous critical scrutiny of the sociohistorical conditions that shape leadership. Critical HRD scholarship and practice accept a responsibility to question accepted leadership norms, and to propose alternatives to leadership practice that sustain asymmetries of power. Informed by the critical leadership studies literature, this chapter proposes the framework of People, Place, and Process as a critical lens that critical HRD scholars can adopt and adapt when researching leadership or developing leadership capacity in a range of contexts. The chapter concludes by proposing tools and learning practices that critical HRD scholars can employ to promote cycles of critical reflexivity helpful in challenging traditional assumptions and beliefs about leadership.

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Elliott, C.J. (2023). Reflecting on Leadership, Leading, and Leaders. In: Collins, J.C., Callahan, J.L. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Human Resource Development. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-10453-4_14

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Leadership Style: Reflection and Analysis Essay

Introduction, analysis of the results, explanation of the test results, the influence of chosen traits on my leadership style, test results.

The concept of leadership is an essential part of the modern world due to the fact that it is one of the key determinants of successful management. Therefore, it is critical to be able to properly assess and evaluate one’s personality and its corresponding leadership style. The main reason is that leadership can be expressed in various forms. However, it is also important for a potential leader to have the capacity to communicate his or her vision.

The test results suggest that as a leader, I possess a clear and precise vision for a company, but the biggest issue is that I might have trouble communicating my ideas. It also states that I should develop a specific set of communication skills, which will match my personality. In addition, I might lack self-assurance, which is crucial for any leader. Therefore, the main point of the test result is to encourage improving my communication skills.

According to the test results, my biggest strengths are that I have a clear vision, I am mentally resilient, I do not get distracted by staying focused, and I have a great deal of determination. In the traditional culture of organizations built on hierarchy and control, personal power was probably the most important argument for persuasion. Employees who do not believe in the goal set for them will work with enthusiasm, by force, following the orders of the boss. As far as upbringing is concerned, here, it is necessary to take into account that sympathy greatly affects human relations and interaction (Crawford, Dawkins, Martin, & Lewis, 2019). The more people like a leader, the more willing they are to persuade and influence, and this is one of the keys to effective communication.

Nevertheless, my weakest leadership and personality traits are that I do not excel at communicating my ideas, I might lack self-assurance, I can have problems in keeping employees motivated, and employees might not share my passion. In addition, it is absolutely essential to build trust and be competent. Even if they like a leader, people may doubt that he or she has enough experience, knowledge, or information that would add weight to your words. The ability to build trust plays a huge role in persuasion, influence, and effective communication. A leader should think about how much the interlocutor sympathizes and trusts him/her and his/her words.

Having a clear vision is a vital trait for a leader, thus, I will share it by communicating it through texts and images, because they do not directly require person-to-person interaction. My mental resilience will not only help me to stay focused, but it also can be used to make the company as resilient as possible. In addition, I, as a leader, who cannot get distracted, will remove all unnecessary distractions among employees and the workplace.

However, it is critical for me to develop strong communication skills in order to better communicate my vision and goal. My introverted personality can be used to my advantage by assigning personal meetings with my employees. Although I can have problems with keeping employees motivated, I can solve that by setting up an effective reward system in the workplace. My perceived lack of self-assurance can be eliminated by using my resilience during difficult times.

In conclusion, it is highly important for a leader to have a clear vision and to be able to communicate it to his or her followers. My greatest strength is my resilience, which means that I always stay focused on the primary goal. However, I have issues in transferring the given determination and motivation to my employees. Thus, I should use my strengths to cover my weaknesses by communicating with my key employees on a personal level.

“Even if you have a clear vision for your company, it is not an easy task for you to communicate these plans in a way that excites others. Employees likely won’t put a great deal of effort into achieving goals for which they share little or no passion. The manner in which you communicate your vision is essential. For instance, if you present your ideas to others in a manner that sometimes lacks self-assurance, they likely won’t go over well. People who excel in this area are innovative visionaries who are confident in their ability to persuade and convince others. They consider it essential to make those they lead aware of, as well as part of, their vision.”

Crawford, J. A., Dawkins, S., Martin, A., & Lewis, G. (2019). Putting the leader back into authentic leadership: Reconceptualising and rethinking leaders. Australian Journal of Management, 1 (1), 2-9.

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A Reflection on Leadership based on my experience with the LEADER Project

Nov 2, 2012

Leadership is a quality that's innate in me. Whether it was in the playground at pre-school, the soccer-field growing up, student council in high school or various teams I am involved in at Ivey, a common theme has been my desire and willingness to lead. For a long time I thought this was because I enjoyed being in a position of control, a position of influence where I could shape the direction of a particular project or initiative. To some extent, this was the case; but I only recently realized that it was the desire to have an impact that I love most about being a leader. In fact, the ability to make an impact is how I would define leadership. Often times, leadership is seen as a title, a position that one is chosen for or given to make decisions and lead a group of people. These individuals are leaders, of course, as they're able to make significant impact on a large group of people; but we forget that leaders are everywhere in our society and more often than not they are leaders in an unorthodox sense. Whether they are artists, teachers, or musicians, many of them make an impact on their communities and those who choose to do so intentionally are leaders in their own right.

This is not to say that everyone can be a leader. I believe there are certain personality traits, skillsets and motivations that need to be present for effective leadership to take place. However, I believe leadership is a means to generating impact and I believe there are numerous individuals out there who do this on a daily basis who we would never consider as being leaders in the traditional sense of the word.

My LEADER experience has been paramount to me redefining my definition of leadership. I have personally been very fortunate to have had formal opportunities to develop my leadership skills and be provided with opportunities to exhibit it as well. This has given me tremendous exposure to new opportunities and only accelerated my growth as a leader. However, after visiting Russia I realized that such opportunities are unheard of in their communities. They don't have student councils, leadership institutes, summer enrichment programs or entrepreneurship incubators. These were all formal institutions that allowed me to practice and develop my leadership skills. This begged the question: is there a lack of leaders in Russia? Absolutely not. Many of the students I had a chance to work with were budding entrepreneurs with ambitious goals for solving critical problems in their communities. Several of them had already pursued various community service projects and some even had international experiences which they sought out on their own.

One student in our class, Julia, was particularly inspirational. She came from a very low-income family and was financing her tuition by founding an adventure sports startup. Specifically, she had partnered with a hot-air balloon pilot and began offering excursions to individuals in the nearby city of Samara. This was a brand new offering unbeknownst to a region that attracted little to no tourists. Despite this seemingly massive hurdle, Julia persevered with her vision and successfully ran this business over the course of the last two years. Since then, she has expanded their offerings to include mountain biking and hiking tours as well. This just goes to show the determination and commitment she made to her education and creating a service that genuinely added value in a unique way for her community. Julia didn't have mentors, venture capitalists or incubators to help guide her through this process. She did her own research, invested the little capital that she could afford and courage to take on this enormous challenge. Julia is a true leader.

Despite a lack of formal infrastructure in place to foster leaders in the traditional sense, many students were still forging their own ways of making an impact. This is what leadership is all about. I'm extremely fortunate and grateful for having the opportunity to experience this first hand. It inspires me to know that youth all around the world embody a passion for change, a desire to lead and a commitment to making an impact. LEADER is a phenomenal initiative that is supporting this dream and opening doors that otherwise may never have opened - for our students, the entrepreneurs, and for us, the LEADERites.

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Leadership and Management Reflective Essay

The development of leadership skills is very important because they help to achieve both personal and professional success. At the same time, often people faces difficulties with the development of their leadership skills and abilities. In this regard, it is important to focus on the development of an effective leadership style that can help an individual in their professional and personal development. The development of leadership skills should be an integral part of education of students because students should learn different leadership roles. The latter will help students to be flexible, while applying their leadership skills and abilities and they will be able to use the most effective leadership style. Thus, students will be effective leaders. As for me, I am currently inclined to use transformational leadership style, which I believe to be particularly effective in the health care environment where I am currently working in.

Today, the role of leaders is extremely important for the successful performance of various organizations. At the same time, the effective application of leadership qualities highly depends on the approach used by leaders to their associates and subordinates. Among the variety of approaches existing in the contemporary business environment, transformational leadership is one of the most popular and widely spread approaches, which is considered by many specialists (Northouse, 2001) as highly prospective. In this respect, it is important to underline that the transformational leadership has not only benefits but it may have certain risks which can threaten to the normal development and performance of the organization, where this approach is applied.

At the same time, through the development of positive interpersonal relationships with associates, the contemporary leader can implement the full potential of his or her leadership because associates, being highly valued by the leader, grow more confident in the leader and, simultaneously, they feel more responsible for their own performance. To put it more precisely, the associates do their best to maintain the positive performance in order to avoid changing the attitude of the leader and to feel valued by the leader (Dessler, 2004). In such a way, the associates are conscious of their importance to the organization and its leader.

Furthermore, along with the growing responsibility of the associates, their productivity and effectiveness of their work grow too that also produces a positive impact on the development and performance of the organization. In such a way, the transformational approach can be use effectively used in order to improve the relationship of the leader and his or her subordinates and to improve the performance of the organization.

However, it is necessary to remember about certain risks that accompany the implementation of the transformational approach. To put it more precisely, the transformational leader can face a problem of the adequate treatment of him or her as a leader. What is meant here is the fact that often transformational leaders are perceived by their associates as personalities above all, while their leadership position is treated as secondary compared to their personal traits (Hesselbein and Cohen, 1999).  As a result, the leader can undermine his or her authority as a leader, while his or her personal qualities become of the utmost importance for his or her relationship with the associates. Also, the application of the transformational approach may lead to the abuse of power. Using the transformational approach the leader can use his or her power to manipulate his or her assoicates, forcing them to do tasks as a personal service to the respectable leader. Alternatively, the associates can use their good relationship with the in their own interest to achieve personal goals. Such effects of the use of transformational approach may produce a negative impact on the performance of the entire organization.

Nevertheless, the aforementioned difficulties the transformational leader can encounter while applying the transformational approach, it is still possible to overcome all these problems through the use of various factors that can be applied in terms of the transformational approach. To put it more precisely, the transformational leader can have an idealized influence on his or her associates. In such a context, the leader is an exemplary model for his or her associates and it is up to the leader what model his or her associates learn. In other words, if the transformational leader does not abuse the power and shows a positive example than his or her associates are likely to follow this positive example and they are likely to follow his or her model of behavior in their professional work.

At the same time, it is important for a leader to keep distance between him or her and his or her associates in order to maintain formal relationship. In fact, interpersonal relations should be rather intertwined into professional relations than substitute them that will lead to the perception of a leader’s personal trait as superior to his or her leader’s trait.

However, in spite of all my efforts to use transformational leadership style, I still face certain difficulties with the implementation of this leadership style in my professional work. In this respect, I should say that I am inclined to the authoritarian leadership style and I have to cope with my internal inclinations to develop new, more effective leadership style. In addition, I am working in quite stressful environment that raises certain barriers to the development of the transformational leadership style. In fact, I have to cope with stressful factors to avoid conflicts with my colleagues and clients. In this regard, conflicts may be a serious threat to my leadership style.

Taking into consideration the aforementioned problems and barriers, I have developed the plan which, I expect, can help me to overcome all the difficulties I am currently facing. Firstly, I will focus on learning the conflict management strategies that will help me to avoid conflicts in my professional relationships. Secondly, I will need to change my leadership style and refuse from authoritarian elements in my leadership style. For this purpose, I will study transformational leadership style in details and probably I will ask for advice of a psychologist who can help me to change my leadership style. Finally, I will need to establish a system of control over my progress. I am mainly focused on self-control using the self-efficacy assessment. In such a way, I will define my efficacy in the change of my leadership style.

Thus, in conclusion, it should be said that the application of transformational approach may be very prospective for the improvement of the performance of the organization and organization culture, but it is important to apply this approach very carefully in order to avoid its possible negative effects. The transformational leadership style is particularly effective in health care environment and I believe that I will use this style effectively in my professional work. However, to change my leadership style effectively, I will need to implement accurately the plan I have developed above.

References:

Brown, D. C. (2003). Leading complex change. New York: Touchstone. Dessler, G.  (2004). Management: principles and practices for tomorrows’ leaders (3rd ed.). New Jersey: Upper Saddle River. Hesselbein, Frances, and Paul M. Cohen. (1999). Leader to leader . San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers. Northouse, Peter G. (2001). Leadership theory and practice , second edition. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc. Walton, Sam and John Huey. (1996). Sam Walton: Made in America: My story . Canada: Bantam Books.

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Reflective leadership  

Reflective leadership is something relatively new to me as a formal concept, I have over the years thought about my own personal leadership skills so maybe in hindsight I was being reflective? One of the best ways of describing reflective leadership is from a web article I discovered whilst researching this narrative.

“ Reflective leadership is a way of approaching the work of being a leader by leading one’s life with presence and personal mastery. Learning to be present, to be aware and attentive to our experience with people throughout the day is the focus of reflective leadership .” (Sara Horton-Deutsch, 2013)

It struck me that taking a personal leadership journey, one of self-awareness and self-challenge adds a whole new dimension to the way in which I have reflected on my leadership and engagement with colleagues in the past. I was reminded of situations where I had adopted a more direct approach where, on reflection, it required more collaboration; a bitter pill to swallow in many respects.

What interests me about being a reflective leader is it moves you from an “action bias” to a more reflective and collaborative approach one where you are constantly in a cycle of learning; effective leaders reflect on their past experiences and search for relevant, different insights before the decision making process. (Goker & Bozkus, 2017) Some of the questions you might ask yourself:

• What have I learnt?
• What were my feelings and thoughts as it was happening?
• How could I explain my experience?
• How could I make use of learning for my future actions?
• What is your opinion of way I felt and acted?
• How have I reacted and behaved?

“Reflective leadership can be considered as a way of approaching the work of being a leader by leading one’s life with presence and personal mastery . In other words, it requires learning to be present, to be aware and attentive to our experience with people in our daily life, and it regards leadership from the standpoint of human experience.” (Goker & Bozkus, 2017)

So the journey has to start with a series of self- assessments, in my own personal experience I often look forward, look back and ask myself, is where I am  where I want to be? If the answer is yes then great you must be a great leader…but I suspect, as is with my journey the answer and reflection meant I needed to improve.

The question remains: how is being a reflective leader linked to engagement? I think the short answer is it’s a critical part of the whole process. One model sticks out for me developed by (Taggart GL, 2005). ‘One of the first steps to reflective thinking involves identifying a problem, challenge, or dilemma. Next, step back from the problem and look at the situation from a third person perspective in order to frame or reframe the problem. Ask yourself: How might an outsider view this situation? This second step involves observation, data gathering, reflection, and consideration of moral principles. These aspects help to provide a mental picture of your thinking in an attempt to define the context of the situation.’

Reflective leadership coveys a sense and practical application of collaboration, it involves listening and learning from the experience and from others.

“As a reflective leader, share your reflective thoughts with others and invite them to consider things as well. Enter into relationships with others without presenting a front or pretense, but instead being self-aware, this type of real and genuine approach supports an even playing field and conveys that I value other persons and their contributions.” (Sara Horton-Deutsch, 2013)

I believe that engagement must start with reflection simply so that both parties or at the very least the leader in the conversation has the presence of mind to understand the discussion as a whole and listens without judgement or predetermination; mindful of their responses and open to the process whilst active and fully present in the moment. By considering your experience, their experience and reflecting before a decision, you help to build a collaborative environment and nurture mutual respect in that’s instance and hopefully, as you become a more reflective leader, those future opportunities to engage with your people.

Written by: Richard Louw, Senior Officer, Border Force and Virtual Content Team Volunteer

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Goker, S. D., & Bozkus, K. (2017). Reflective Leadership: Learning to Manage and Lead Human Organizations, Contemporary Leadership Challenges,. In Aida Alvinius (Ed.)Ph.D., Contemporary Leadership Challenges (p. Chapter 2). https://www.intechopen.com/books/contemporary-leadership-challenges/reflective-leadership-learning-to-manage-and-lead-human-organizations.

Sara Horton-Deutsch, P. C. (2013, February). Thinking it through: The path to reflective leadership. American Nurse Today, Vol 8 no 2. Retrieved from American Nurse TOday.

Taggart GL, W. A. (2005). Promoting Reflective Thinking in Teachers. 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press.

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Leadership Experience and Reflection

Introduction, leadership experience, personal reflection, reference list.

Within this reflective treatise, I intend to explicitly evaluate my leadership skills and behaviors. Specifically, I will concentrate on my strengths such as being a good participator and action-oriented leader. I will also reflect on the best strategies I should employ to improve my situational leadership abilities by balancing path and goal areas of my behavior and thinking. In the end, I will present an action plan of how I will endeavor to develop the areas I noticed needed some adjustments.

I am a friendly person and I enjoy hearing about the interests of other people by encouraging them to speak. I ask questions about myself and I enjoy creating a lively interaction environment. I have always enjoyed talking with people but I find myself interested in what they have to say when faced with a situation. I have found myself to be a good listener because I don’t interrupt people when they are speaking. Apparently, this has become one of my greatest strengths as a proactive participator. In several circumstances, I have tested my listening skills through continuous personal engagement in different leadership application environments.

For instance, as an aspiring leader, I have always found myself in different situations that require proactive participation in decision making to ensure that the end result is ideal. In one of such situations, I was able to guide a charged interactive meeting into an objective and result-oriented forum. In the end, I realized that my inner ability to accommodate different opinions without prejudice was very consistent.

In the Leadership Assessment Competency, my main weaknesses are coaching and instructing, developing external contacts, and helping the community. I haven’t had much experience with coaching and I need to work on being better at coaching. When it comes to developing external contacts, I am very friendly to others but I have some trouble with networking and staying in contact with people within my social cycle. Specifically, Tyson (2008) opined that the elements of dependency within conscious and unconscious tenets are critical towards understanding expectations and possible challenges (Tyson 2008).

I have discovered from Tyson’s theory that I am an abstract conceptualizer. This means that I learn by thinking, analyzing, and planning before I do anything. For example, when I was faced with the challenge of making a decision on whether to attend a certain peer group meeting or not, I had to think about it, analyze it, and then I felt comfortable to attend since the organizers were people I liked. This means that I am a very analytical person. My strongest skills are interpersonal; I am a good listener, I build strong alliances, and I am concerned about people (Devito 2006).

I identify with the path goal theory proposed by Tyson. This is a leadership theory that I want to continue to improve on and use as a leader in the future. The path-goal theory is about how leaders motivate subordinates to accomplish goals (Tyson, 2004). It is based upon the expectancy theory, using the expectancy beliefs such as, “if I try harder I will perform better”, “if I perform better rewards will follow”; instrumentality belief, and “I value the rewards available”.

According to Payne (2006), leadership motivates when it makes the path to the goal clear, easy to reach, provide coaching, remove obstacles, and make the work itself personally satisfying. I have used this leadership theory in the past as a leader at my church by rewarding youths in my bible class who have studied the passages assigned to them. I have rewarded them with food, gift cards, and used positive reinforcement. I have found these rewards to work well. The strength of this theory is that it “reminds leaders of their purpose, which is to guide and coach employees as they move along the path to achieve a goal” (Devito 2006, p. 34).

Basing on the leadership practice inventory (LPI) assessment that I have undergone during the performance of different duties on a daily basis, the practice enabled me to develop the following three personal competencies. First, I should be a role model. I need to develop self-confidence by elucidating my own individual values. I should set good examples by conforming to the shared values of the community. Secondly, I need to enliven a common vision.

Indeed, I should visualize the future through perceiving to achieve pleasant and excellent possibilities (Tyson 2004). In addition, I should interact with various people to achieve common objectives that are important in group activities. Thirdly, I should learn through challenging inspirations. In fact, I should struggle to get opportunities and whatever I need in life as a way to develop and grow positively.

Moreover, other people like to take risks in order to learn through experimentation. According to McShane and Travaglione (2005), learning is made possible by making mistakes. These elements were possible since I was able to balance my Psyche ID and Superego as discussed by Bass (2008). As an aspiring leader, I found this experience very instrumental in balancing the expectations and my private thoughts into a pattern of continuous ability to remain focused.

The series of dynamics that interacted between my inner self and the environment in the phase leadership mode experienced a metamorphosis as the unconscious choices began to take shape when I started the process of learning how to practice change a tire. Since I was the leader, there were a lot of expectations from my family members to provide motivation and inspiration (Tyson 2008). As a result, my role was firmly established and I was able to connect the vision, mission, and values of the family members to the individual values and needs. This gave us a better picture of the purpose and how each member can contribute to that purpose (Burns 2008).

Expressing loyalty is a noble act showing a sense of worth and gives meaning to life. However, it is not an easy task; it comes with lots of challenges as some people are naturally rebellious. I learned that in spite of the prodigious challenges leaders go through; they can still inspire loyalty and effort in their team since they trust that the decision made by the leader is in the best interest of the group at heart (McShane & Travaglione 2005). This motivates the followers to work hard knowing that the achievement will be bigger than them. It also creates a culture in the group because members feel they have shared values and beliefs (Tyson 2008).

The knowledge is promoted by the ART model proposed by Tyson (2004) to explicitly review the link between task and role as enshrined in the tenet of authority. To inspire loyalty and effort, I learned that I have to be a good communicator. I have to seek opportunities to communicate. At the same time, I attempted to increase the volume and frequency of communication. Having in mind that 90% of communication is not about what you say but how you say it; I was able to communicate with passion, humility, and enthusiasm in line with leadership aspirations (Bennis and Goldsmith 2003).

Being in a position to offer personal authority is often motivated by past and present experiences, situational factors, and skills within the structure of a group. Using simple words such as ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ has a great impact to inspire the team. Maintaining eye contact, having a relaxed body, and using a warm tone of voice does have an immense impact on the team members. As a leader, I can never be egocentric since it is not about me but about others.

I have to listen to everyone since this encourages them and I also gain great ideas and insight as well (Feist and Feist 2006). In expectations management, I learned that one has to remain consistent by matching his or her words and actions. As opined by Nelson-Jones (2005), beliefs should match with actions as well as my results. With consistency, everyone will see what you believe in. Every person has to be clear about his or her beliefs and make them known. At the same time, they have to remain disciplined and accountable to their own values and guiding principles (Nelson-Jones 2005). This aspect has greatly inspired my ability as a good listener.

I discovered that leadership has to be clear in the job description so that every subject knows the expectations for every day. In order to be successful, I have to proactively prepare personal insight to ensure that the outcome matches any expectations. These should then be communicated with regards to what is supposed to be done and setting out clear guidelines to be followed in order to limit space for vagueness or the contradiction of roles. This would show that the rules and regulations set down apply to everybody including me. This indicates that a good leader is consistent (Nelson-Jones 2005).

LPI assessment is important because it enables a person to perceive how people evaluate his or her leadership skills. Actually, LPI has helped me to be an effective team player. This is a self-assessment strategy that enabled me to inquire about people’s opinions in order to compare their suggestions with my perspectives as a way to improve my personality and leadership skills (Hellriegel & Slocum 2011). For instance, during the role allocation stage, I managed to control the tension and possible conflict that was growing within me since I am rarely interested in the technical parts of any task. I decided to take this part since the conscious and subconscious choices within my personality were well balanced (Sockeley-Zalabak 2011).

As opined by Tyson (2004), past experiences may have a direct influence on the roles of an individual. I learned that LPI assesses human acts that people utilize when interacting with different peoples (Tyson 2004). This assessment is helpful especially for leaders who intend to know how they influence people and how to communicate effectively. In addition, leadership skills are normally influenced by situational and personal experiences. First, I have to build an attitude of encouragement is important in a group (Tyson 2008). Actually, people should appreciate and encourage positive contributions. Secondly, I have to share objectives since they guide a person to embrace desired outcomes while discouraging unfavorable attitudes.

Personal experiences are based on three aspects. First, my past experiences influence people to be aware of which human acts have a positive outcome. Secondly, my personal attitude usually influences people on how to interact with me. Lastly, my self-esteem enabled me to develop inner strength in carrying out various actions (Arslan & Staub 2013). I was able to apply the principle of self-assessment when making general statements to minimize ideological variances. As the weeks progressed, my management approach was maturing at a slower rate than my participatory leadership style since my subconscious mind had placed the management approach within the tenet of experimentation (West 2006; Nelson-Jones 2005).

As opined by Greenleaf (2002), a challenging experience normally compels a person to examine his attitude. Indeed, an individual will attempt to improve his approach to resolve a challenge (Greenleaf 2002). I only realized the steady consequence of my leadership approach in the stage of accomplishing the unit synergy testing exercise. I discovered that it is possible to change toxic followers through interpersonal assessment. The interpersonal assessment examines human acts that people utilize when interacting with different peoples. This assessment is helpful especially for leaders who intend to know how they influence people and how to communicate effectively (Wren 2005).

Self-leadership psychology theorists overtly argue that cognition alters task orientation behavior. Specifically, the discursive approach in explaining and exploring shared and coordinated actions on roles and channels through which an individual’s framework functions in the exchange of information formally is of great essence towards understanding task orientation level (Hacker & Tammy 2004). Despite task orientation being rated as a high self-leadership assessment strategy, my action planning is of the essence to create a solution-oriented task and strategy implementation secession for quantifying task orientation levels as I discovered during the assignment activity review (Fishbein 2007). Thus, I was able to achieve synergy since I offered efficient leadership.

Adopting the model of development processes, my task orientation leadership skills on an individual task management level encompassed actual and expected outcomes. Through designing personal task management model levels, my task orientation module was activated towards developing dependence of interest attached to an activity, creating proactive relationships, and monitoring their interaction with physical and psychological health.

Eventually, this paid off since I learned to appreciate the essence of tolerance and the need to stay active when interacting with other people consisting of different personalities (West 2006). I should improve on excessive independence and intra and interpersonal communication since the two influence the level of task orientation with the third party (Kidd 2006). In fact, I find it difficult to challenge some people for their habit of showing up late for appointments due to the fear of being rejected.

As the weeks progressed, my basic assumptions of people were replaced by an interactive process which was characterized by a mature exchange between the containers (members) and the projector (leader) to steer the valence in line with Bion’s work group model (Tyson 2004). In order to achieve transformational leadership, it was vital for me to recognize the presence of the vice of postponing activities. This should be followed by creating a strategy to address the possible causes of indecisiveness. Through prioritizing and proper scheduling of activities, it was easy for me to manage this leadership module (Eriksen 2009).

At present, I am implementing transformational leadership strategies and have been successful in time management and limiting unpleasant detractors such as lateness, diverted attention, and discussion of private issues during meetings. I have been successful in self-reward creation (Wren 2005). However, the main challenge was to identify an independent reviewer of personal transformational leadership initiatives since I sometimes failed to make sure that other people are committed to a course of action.

I discovered that situational leadership engages in an active process of learning through promotion, facilitation, and rewarding collective learning results in the practical arena. The three building blocks of situational leadership include learning intrapersonal performance; supportive learning environment, concrete learning processes, and practice leadership that reinforces performance (Baxter 2014). Through using the diagnostic tools, I was able to assess the areas of personal situational leadership that require urgent improvement moving the person closer to an ideal leadership sphere (West 2006).

Self-initiative in situational leadership plays a significant role in setting up the leadership environment for situational occurrence management from external factors (Hui-Wen et al. 2010). My self guided approach is based on collaborative procedures that involve designing specific leadership experiences to organize situational management goals on how to monitor automatic response; recognize the relationship between these responses and cognition ways to test the validity of the relationships, and measures to apply to substitute the distorted thoughts with more realistic situational redress (Andreadis 2009).

Since research methods focus on the development of a range of skills that are designed to help the individual to cope with a variety of life situations, they remain indispensable to the personal initiatives I had internalized in practicing a proactive balance in self situational leadership management within the conscious decision-making process to remain active (West 2006). Despite the commitment to direct my skills towards proactive leadership, I had to deal with the challenge of balancing personal perceptions and realities that exist in task management. I have realized that I have the valence of leadership in LPI since I was able to handle personal fears.

I have been successful in applying the three types of leadership styles involving a realization that a challenge exists, the transformation of this challenge into a development goal after which implementation step concludes by developing a solution to the challenge. However, there is a need for improvement in keeping my situational management parameters within the goals and duties at hand (Avolio 2010). Common hurdles in leadership management include internal and external influences that slow down productivity and the ability to proactively handle challenges of the assignment (West 2006).

Therefore, it is factual that productive leadership is directly and positively proportional to the productivity level exhibited in an individual. In my view, it is important to minimize these hurdles to promote and encourages goal achievement within a set plan. I am currently monitoring counterproductive behavior as the negative parameter which limits leadership productivity as a result of these hurdles. Generally, this unsolicited behavior is often associated with ineffective performance (West 2006).

In order to understand the impacts of productive and counterproductive leadership on performance and productivity, my strength has been the ability to establish the scope and characteristics of each behavior module associate with leadership huddles (Casimir & Waldman 2007). However, the strategy requires a systematic and periodic review of the parameters of professionalism, organization, respect, optimal performance, and discipline.

Unfortunately, these indicators are difficult to quantify. Therefore, my productive leadership behavior stresses the need for active cooperation between personality and the roles assigned in the planning and execution of the set targets for the assigned roles within the parameters of situational leadership, task-person orientation, and transformational leadership (Chen, Tsui, & Farh 2002).

Despite task orientation being rated as a high self-leadership assessment strategy, my action planning is of importance to create a solution-oriented task and strategy implementation secession for quantifying task orientation levels (Powell 2005).

Through designing personal task management model levels, my task orientation module has remained active in developing dependence of interest attached to an activity, creating proactive relationships, and monitoring their interaction with physical and psychological health. Eventually, it has paid off since I have learned to appreciate the essence of tolerance and the necessity to stay active. However, I should improve on excessive independence, intra, and interpersonal communication since the two influence the level of task orientation with the third party (Lipgar 2006).

Specifically, transformational leadership identifies a range of problematic situations an individual faces in his or her social environment and generates multiple alternative solutions to those problems. I had to lay a series of procedures that are necessary to achieve desired results rather than postponing response strategies. I have been successful in time management and reducing unpleasant distractions. I have been successful in self-reward creation.

However, the main challenge was to identify an independent reviewer of personal transformational leadership initiatives (Cardenas & Crabtree 2009). I would suggest an improvement in the urgent matrix for duties since it doesn’t remain constant in different situations (Kouzes and Posner 2002). My situational leadership has engaged an active process of learning remaining active, focused, and result-oriented in accomplishing different duties. I am a motivator towards situational leadership management (Wren 2005).

Conclusively, the learning experience and group assignment reaffirmed my leadership skills and ability to manage group dynamics. Apparently, the theories discussed confirm that I am a focused, task-oriented, and participatory leader. However, I need to make adjustments in my situational management parameters within goals and duties at hand since reflection reveals that I not consistent in this area.

I need to be more realistic and accommodative to ensure that I remain sober when handling different situations related to leadership development. In order to make this improvement, I have proposed to enroll in a self-awareness class to acquire the basic skills required to make decisions under pressure and in dynamic environments.

The class will run for the fourth month. During this period, I will create a successful benchmarking blueprint by evaluating my performance through the creation of controlled experiments for testing my performance under pressure. I expect to improve the parameter of situational leadership management after four months of training. I will determine the success of training upon the results at the beginning and the end of the fourth month period. I am hopeful that the adjustment progress will be satisfactory.

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Reflective Essay about Leadership

Every community leader has a responsibility to create a welcoming and safe atmosphere for individuals to explore and observe what goes on in their community. They must embrace the duty of leading and transmitting the right image required for community growth and sustainability. Seeing this happen in my community persuaded me that I would be one of these individuals. Community leadership focuses on what a person can do to build and maintain a supportive culture, a thriving environment, and a vision that helps people flourish.

My story is significant in my journey as a member and leader of my community. My view of community involvement includes not just myself as a leader, but also the community as a role model to other communities. I think that I am a little component of my community that is striving to improve it in order to improve other communities. I consider it not just a matter of making my community a better place, but also a matter of making the world a better one.

Community leadership, in my opinion, may take many different shapes. I think that anyone can be a community leader, and that being a leader does not need you to be flawless. As a community leader, I contribute through sharing my thoughts and serving as a role model for others. Participating in my school's pilgrimage and starvathon to raise money for many other communities that have lost everything, starting fundraisers for the needy, assisting disabled children in everyday routine activities that they are incapable of performing alone, assisting a family member in developing a smoking cessation plan, enlisting the support of family and friends, and being a good person overall are all examples of this. Yes, I feel that these things benefit my community, but they also benefit the world as a whole, which is my main objective.

By doing the little things that not everyone thinks about, I am able to make my community a more inclusive and sustainable environment. This includes asking people to identify themselves by sharing their pronouns, highlighting different stories from my community, displaying members of my community, and collaborating with other community leaders and organizations to convey my varied viewpoints. Every community, in my opinion, should be highly welcoming since everyone is unique, and the community in which you live should embrace that. A sustainable community, in my opinion, manages its cultural, ecological, and financial capital to fulfil present demands while also ensuring enough resources for future generations. Strong communities, in turn, are the foundation of a peaceful and healthy planet for humans, which relates back to my core objective of improving the world.

My community involvement, I feel, demonstrates initiative and innovation by establishing myself as an useful team member and role model. Not waiting for someone to tell me what to do, thinking on my feet and taking appropriate action, being proactive rather than reactive, appearing flexible, confident, and courageous, helping my community innovate, progress, and overcome competition, and spotting and taking advantage of opportunities that others may pass by are some examples of what I do to take initiative. I can demonstrate self-confidence and show that I am willing to put in the hard effort necessary to improve my community by taking initiative in my neighborhood, which aligns with my fundamental principle of making the world a better place. 

I've come to the conclusion that community leadership entails the ability to lead a group of individuals toward a common purpose. By using many of the examples I've provided, I'm able to accomplish this. Leaders inspire individuals in the community to work together to achieve common goals. Every example given above, in my opinion, pertains to helping others and inspiring others to do the same. I believe I am in this position due of the efforts of other community leaders.

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Essay: Leadership in Adult Nursing (reflective)

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Introduction Leadership is a process which involves individual activity to state desire objective and vision in a situation, providing support and motivating other people to attend set goals (Swearingen, 2009). Danae et al. (2017) believe that leadership is broadly recognised as a key aspect of overall effective healthcare. Therefore, nurses require strong leadership skills to accomplish various tasks to improve care quality. In this assignment, I will cross reference six experts (see appendices) from my professional development portfolio related to the four domains of standards of competence for preregistration nursing (NMC, 2010). Additionally, I will address each domain using Rolfe, Freshwater and Jasper (2001) reflection model, which is composed of three stages ‘what’, ‘so what’, and ‘now what’. This model is suitable to link practical experiences with theory, it helps to improve clinical practice and identify further learning opportunities; which will be addressed by formulating a S.M.A.R.T action plan (Doran, 1981). Domaine 1: Professional values What? Appendix 1 shows aspects of the professional values that I need to address. It contains mentor’s comment about patient advocacy skill. During my Nursing Practice 5 (NP5), I looked after a 56-year-old disabled woman with Spina Bifida who was alert and orientated, unable to move on her own, but, had clearly expressed her need to be moved every two hours to avoid another pressure ulcer as she had one before. This was not respected by health care assistant taking for excuses “the ward is very busy, she is not the only patient”. I regret I didn’t advocate for her. Furthermore, appendix 2, which is the leadership framework self-assessment tool demonstrates aspects of personal quality that I need to review. These are related to the (NMC, 2010) instructing nurses to take all reasonable steps to protect people who are vulnerable or at risk from harm, neglect or abuse. So what? Professionalism means practice through the application of the Code (NMC, 2017). In the UK, nurses must act as advocates for their patients, challenge poor practice and discriminatory attitudes and behaviour relating to the care of vulnerable people, (NMC, 2015). This is supported by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) stating that speaking on behalf of another is an integral part of the nurse’s role (RCN, 2008). Moreover, The International Council of Nurses emphasises the need for nurses to respect the rights, values, customs and beliefs of individuals and families, and to advocate for equity and social justice in resource allocation and in access to health (ICN, 2012). Such endeavours are central, as illness nearly always increase levels of patient vulnerability and dependence (Marquis and Huston 2012). Emphasizing the fact that nurses should influence the way care is given in a manner that is open and responds to individual needs (RCN, 2015). Unfortunately, there have been cases where nurses have failed to provide fundamental care to patients. The report into the failing at the Mid Staffordshire Hospital identified poor leadership coupled with clinical staff accepting standards of care that should not have been tolerated (Ellis and Bach, 2015). More recently, Care Quality Commission (CQC) has issued a Warning Notice requiring some trusts to improve safety, patient consent and overall leadership (CQC, 2017). This accentuates the role of leadership in prioritising patient safety and in listening to and learning from patients (storey and Holti, 2013). Stressing the need for nurse leaders to be self-aware and recognise how their own values and principles may affect their practice (NMC, 2010). Leaders encourage teamwork by appreciating individuals’ contributions and ideas; this creates needed behaviour, such as shared respect, compassionate care, attention to detail, between team members (NHS Leadership Academy, 2013), and create a motivating work environment (Adair, 2002). Therefore, the quality of leadership has a direct impact on the quality of service provided at all levels. The leader’s obligation is to create an environment in which good people can provide good care (Engard, 2017). Pointing out personal attributes of nurses that help to enable advocacy like flexibility, empathy, self-motivation, professional commitment, sense of responsibility, and the ability to cope with stress (Choi, 2015). Reflecting on the above scenario, transformational and transactional leadership can both play a role in the negotiation of a win-win situation. Transformational leadership is defined as a leadership approach that causes changes in individuals and social systems. It is about having a vision of how things should or could be and being able to communicate this idea effectively to others (Ellis and Bach, 2015). Whereas transactional leadership is based on contingent rewards and can have a positive effect on followers’ satisfaction and performance (Tomlinson, 2012). Transformational leadership plays a more critical role in the present scenario. it can motivate and inspire healthcare assistant and have a more significant impact to change both their thinking and behaviour Jie-HuiXu (2017), thus, allowing them to reach their potential and deliver sustainable changes to care. Now what? Now I should strive on developing and sustaining my engagement in patient advocacy by the end of NP7. In my Ongoing Achievement Record document, I will work with my mentor to complete competency 1.2. called: Understand and apply current legislation to all service users, paying special attention to the protection of vulnerable people, including those with complex needs. I will actively seek mentor, patients, family and others health professionals’ feedback and reflect on when I have been involved in patient advocacy during placement and review this with my mentor at mid- and end-point review. Domain 2: Communication and Interpersonal Skill What? Communication and interpersonal skill are vital parts of collaborative working (NMC, 2010). I reflect on communication using Situation, Background, Assessment and Recommendation (SBAR) mentioned in appendix 3, which is a reflective writing during placement 5. In a surgical ward, during routine observation of a patient who had undergone a cystectomy, I noticed that the patient was spiking in temperature (38.5) although NEWS score was 1, I immediately informed my mentor who directed me to blip the doctor in charge of his care. While communicating with him I was unable to give a clear response to questions about the patient’s condition. Even though he reassessed my patient immediately, I regret I didn’t use SBAR tool, because it could have helped to communicate clearly and prevent any potential delays. Appendix 1 in the section ‘working with others’ further shows that I need to improve my interpersonal skills. These relate to part of the NMC (2010) stating: nurses must use a range of communication skills and technologies to support person-centred care and enhance quality and safety. So what? Bach and Grant (2010) state that good communication and interpersonal skills are essential characteristics of high-quality nursing practice. The NMC (2010) also said that all nurses must use the full range of communication methods, including verbal, nonverbal and written, to acquire, interpret and record their knowledge and understanding of people’s needs. Emphasizing the use of communication tools like SBAR. SBAR is a tangible approach to framing conversations, especially critical ones that require a nurse’s instant attention and action. It promotes the provision of safe, efficient, timely, and patient-centred communication (Chaboyer et al., 2010; Day, 2010). Moreover, SBAR can be used for multiple forms of communication. It can be a change-of-shift report (Pope et al., 2008; Thomas et al., 2009), or can be applied to written communication (Perry, 2014). In addition, SBAR helps nursing students and recent graduate nurses organize their thoughts prior to calling physicians, to save time, reduce frustration, and improve overall communication (Pope et al., 2008). Furthermore, the use of SBAR communication tool temporarily flattens the hierarchy perceived in most healthcare settings, resulting in more effective channels of communication between healthcare providers (De Meester, Verspuy, Monsieurs, & Van Bogaert, 2013). According to Hackman and Johnson (2013), leadership is first, and foremost, a communication-based activity. Depending on the circumstances, a leader should try to be more authoritarian, democratic or laissez-faire (Mitchell, 2012); or should focus the communication on the tasks or use a more interpersonal style (Hackman and Johnson 2013). Reflecting on the scenario related to this domain, an assertive, clear and focus communication using SBAR format would have provided a brief, organized, predictable flow of information improving critical thinking communication skills and patient safety (Olin, 2012). It can be argued that it is hard to serve as an effective leader without effective communication (Hackman and Johnson 2013). This is agreed by Perry et al (2014) stating that effective commutation is a central attribute of clinical leadership. Clinical leaders can influence their colleagues with effective communication skill such as good listening skill and extremely good at explaining things at the right level that can be understood by followers. However, it is important to note that each clinical leader has a preferred style of communication that would not necessary works every time. Hackman and Johnson (2013) recommend choosing a leadership communication style that will work best according to the situation and the level of knowledge of followers. Now what? During next placement (NP7), I will strive to change communicating SBAR in a more professional, concise, clear, in a timely manner when communicating with the multidisciplinary team to improve patient outcome. I will actively seek feedback from my mentor and other professionals at mid- and end-point reviews. I will also change my preferred communication style from passive aggressive to an assertive communication style. For that, I will use the communication style questionnaire at the beginning then altered my behaviour during the first part of the placement, then repeat the questionnaire at mid-point and ask for feedback to my mentor base on the comparison on two questionnaire results and base on her observation. And repeat this again by end-point. Domain 3: Nursing Practice and Decision Making What? Here I reflect on nursing practice and decision making, see appendix 4, which is an end-point mentor comment during NP3 showing that improvement is needed in this domain. This is underpinned by appendix 5: a reflection done at the beginning of NP6 when I looked after a patient with hypoxic brain damaged who had a seizure. On my entry into his room, I found the patient unconscious, I took the decision to clear his airway before pressing the emergency bell which could have jeopardised patient safety. This is related to the NMC (2010) stating that nurses must be able to recognise and interpret signs of normal and deteriorating mental and physical health and respond promptly to maintain or improve the health and comfort of the service user. My behaviour pointed out the need to enhance my skill and knowledge in this domain. So what? Judgement and decision-making are important facets of healthcare for nurses (Traynor et al., 2010). Judgement is defined as weighing up different alternatives; while decision-making involves choosing a specific course of action to follow between alternatives (Lamb and Sevdalis, 2011). Hence, (Undre et al., 2009) define efficacious judgement and decision-making as skills that go beyond clinical knowledge and technical competence, highlighting the fact that nursing judgement and decision-making contribute significantly to the safety and quality of patient care (Traynor et al., 2010). However, several studies have high-pointed that when given the same information, and undertaking the same decisions, nurses will make consistently different judgements and decisions (Thompson et al., 2008; Thompson and Yang, 2009). Differing judgement and decision indicate different types of reasoning, in situations where time is not constrained, newly qualified nurses will make structured judgments with a rational-analytical decision. For those situations where time is limited, information is perceptual, and the nurse has some perceived expertise, it is appropriate to use intuition as the basis for judgement (Hammond et al., 1987). Thompson et al (2008) suggest that the key to successful reasoning is to adapt reasoning to the demands of the task. However, such adaptive reasoning by nurses is sometimes absent. Thus, good decisions and judgements are not independent to the cognitive process but can be influenced by how information is prioritised and the nurse’s ability to identify and respond to vital aspects of the clinical situation (Pearson, 2013). Thompson et al (2013) state that recent studies have shown positive benefits associated with the introduction of Computerised Decision Support Systems (CDSS) to support nursing decisions. Hence, helping to promote patient’s safety and improve their outcome. Reflecting on the scenario related to this domain, future decisions making process, whether they are based on normative, prescriptive or descriptive theory must include clinical expertise, patient value and best available research evidence (Sackett, 1996). because evidence by itself, does not make the decision, but it can help support the patient care process. In the same order, Marquis and Huston (2015) suggest that to be effective as a leader, one needs certain skills for making decisions, such as self-awareness, fairness and transparency which are skills also needed in decision making. This is supported by Thompson and Dowding (2009 p5) affirming that “One of the distinguishing features that mark out exceptional nurses is their skills in judgement and decision making”. Decision making is considered important leadership skills and is recognised by Sofarelli and Brown (1998) as qualities associated with transformational leadership. Now what? I have realised that decision making, particularly in nursing, is vital as it influences patient safety and outcomes (Ellis and Bach, 2015). It has been mention earlier that experience is a factor that affects decision making. To gained experience in judgement and decision making, I will use every opportunity during NP7 to practice evidence base in nursing practice and decision making by always based my decision on useful information sources like clinical guidelines, protocol and policy and patient preference. After what I will actively seek feedback from my mentor and others healthcare professionals and of course to patients to check their satisfaction about their involvement in the decision-making process about their own care at mid- and end-point reviews. . Domain 4: Leadership, management and team-working What? My leadership, management and team working skill are measured in appendix 2 and appendix 6 which are both leadership self-assessment tools. The first one showing aspects of my leadership that needs to be improved and the second one showing my leadership style which is “guiding” needing improvement to become more empowering. These are further supported by appendix 4: mentor end NP3 comment. During the leadership module, I took part in several group activities, which enabled me to understand team role importance and that there is no leader without followers. This part relates to NMC (2010) stating that nurses must work independently as well as in teams; be able to take the lead in coordinating, delegating and supervising care safely, managing risk and remaining accountable for care given. So what? Tomlison (2012) states that self-assessment helps individuals to appreciate their qualities, strengths and weaknesses thereby, enabling better transformational leadership. Bass (1985) found that transformational leadership contributes to individual performance and motivation. Whereas transactional leadership (Burns, 1978) is short-lived, and task-based, with the leader intervening with negative feedback when things go wrong. Adair (2002) proposed a three-circle model of strategic leadership, with the circles being the needs of the task, the individual and the team. This is a democratic model of leadership matching the NMC code, where Individuals and groups are involved in decision-making processes concerning their work (Adair, 2002). Management skills are as important as leadership skills in addressing some failings like those identified in the Francis report (Kerridge, 2013). Kerridge suggests they are closely linked, effective management and leadership both require putting first thing first. The King’s Fund report (2011) concurs, defining leadership as the art of motivating people toward a shared vision and management as getting the job done, suggesting that the exercise of leadership across shifts could be extended to management practice; pointing out that every member of healthcare team has some management and reporting functions as part of their job (Baker et al., 2012). Lord Darzi (2008) said: ‘Leadership is not just about individuals, but teams’. A successful leader will see each person as an individual, recognising their unique set of needs, as not everyone will perform at the same level (Hackman and Johnson 2013). This rejoins the description of team role by Belbin (1996) as he described a team role as ‘a tendency to behave, contribute and interrelate with others in a particular way’. Suggesting that Belbin assessment would be an ideal way for a team to examine: the roles they play, how these fit in with the team and the contribution of roles to the team (Frankel, 2011). Therefore, it would be advisable that team members use the questionnaire to helps identify individuals’ preferred roles, their manageable roles and their least preferred roles within the nine teams’ roles as described by Belbin in-order-to improve the success of teamwork. Nurse leaders need also to be able to respond to an ever-changing healthcare environment (Frankel, 2011). The literature suggests that leadership, effective communication and team working are among the most important elements for planned change (Schifalacqua et al., 2009a). Kurt (1951) identified three steps of change: unfreezing, moving and refreezing. This work was modified by Rogers (2003) who described five phases of planned change: awareness, interest, evaluation, trial and adoption. Another change theorist, Ronald Lippitt (Lippitt et al., (1958), identified seven phrases. Mitchell (2013) advises that Lippitt’s work is likely to be more useful to nurses because it incorporates a detailed plan of how to generate change and is underpinned by the four elements of the nursing process: assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation. Now what? To improve my Leadership, management and teamwork skills, I will use the first week of my MP7 to observe my mentor and nurses in charge leading some shifts, then, I will seek clarification on grey areas of my understanding and ask to have my own patients. This will enable me to practice leading others, managing patients and working with the multidisciplinary team. I will actively seek feedback till mid-point review, then, I will lead and manage my mentor whole set of patients under her observation and correction whenever needs arise till end-point. This will help me to move toward an empowering leadership style. Conclusion I have learnt that: a good leader or manager remains grounded in the values, beliefs and behaviours that guide professional nursing practice; understanding your role and that of other will nurture clear communication thus improving the success of the team; safe decision-making must be evidence-based; and effective leadership fosters a high-quality work environment leading to positive safe climate that assures better patient outcomes.

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Reflecting on Sudan’s Civil War One Year Later

Amel Marhoum works for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. Before the war transformed Sudan’s capital, Khartoum, into a battlefield she lived there with her family. Starting on April 15, 2023, during the last days of Ramadan, heavy gunfire and shelling trapped countless families, including her own, in their homes with dwindling supplies of food and water. A year later, every segment of Sudan’s population, from pastoralists in rural areas to the country’s once thriving urban middle-class have been impacted. This is Amel’s reflection on how the war has changed her, her country, and her work.

Before the fighting truly began, there were indications in Sudan that a minor conflict was brewing, but not a full-fledged war.   I still feel like it is a dream—or more-so a nightmare. I keep thinking tomorrow I’ll wake up and things will be fine. But things are not fine. 

April 14, 2023  felt like a normal Ramadan night. We had our  suhoor   (early morning meal before sunrise)   and hours later the war erupted. That Saturday morning, April 15,  I was sleeping, which tells you just how peaceful and calm the day started out.

I was not prepared for what happened next. The sudden sounds of heavy artillery, airstrikes, and shelling were unimaginable. I had never heard sounds like this in my life.

As a Liaison Officer at UNHCR, I’m the kind of person who’s quick to react and take action. I could make only a few phone calls to relatives, friends, and colleagues before there was no connection. This was one of the big challenges at the time—not knowing what was happening to people. Equally challenging was helping colleagues find cash, fuel, and buses so they could leave Khartoum. I even remember thinking how much of a miracle it was when the UN convoy arrived at the city of Port Sudan on April 24. People were scrambling to leave any way they could.

A week later, as the most senior national staff member, I was put in charge of UNHCR’s office in Sudan. The phone didn’t stop ringing. We were a team of six, and our role was to help our staff and refugees move out of hotspots to safer zones—a difficult task because, in our area, the shelling was very heavy. My colleagues were terrified. Some needed money to movetheir children to safety, and some were stuck in areas where we couldn’t reach them. Every day, we would wake up and find that our neighbors’ houses were gone, and people were dead. 

I thought the fighting would last for a week or two, a month maximum, if it even dragged on in the first place. But then there was no food or water, and we were seeing more soldiers in the streets. We reached a point during the fourth week when we really had to leave—and fast.

Read More: Sudan’s Dangerous Descent Into Warlordism

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On the road to Madani, 85 miles southeast of Khartoum, I saw only destruction and death. I can never forget this—it’s like a horror film, but it’s one you can’t switch off. At one point, where we were held at gunpoint, saying our last prayers. But then the soldiers let us go.

On our journey, we reached the house of a family. We didn’t know them, and they didn’t know us. They insisted we stay with them—they brought us food and made the beds for us. In their house was the first time I felt at peace enough to sleep properly.

I set up the UNHCR office in Madani in early May, and then moved to Port Sudan a month later to establish [another]. Later I moved to Ethiopia to support UNHCR teams on the border with Sudan to receive arriving refugees. 

The lives of Sudanese refugees in the countries they’ve fled to are very tough now. Some of us have left without documents. We are without a home, and some have been left with nothing. But as long as there are people who, despite their own worries, are willing to accept us, there is hope. I saw this generosity with the Ethiopian people – their willingness to accommodate Sudanese refugees, despite their own challenges. They opened their borders and accepted us. But it also requires the support of the whole international community and us humanitarian workers. 

I feel I have aged so much this past year. This experience has changed all of us in Sudan. But I still have hope and confidence—in myself, in my family, in my team, in my work, and above all, in my country. 

Sudan is a country that has tremendous resources. I believe this generation and future generations can perform miracles with the right support. 

We can rise again and become better than when we started. This is what keeps me going. — As told to Sara Bedri

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Common App announces 2024–2025 Common App essay prompts

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We are happy to announce that the Common App essay prompts will remain the same for 2024–2025.

Our decision to keep these prompts unchanged is supported by past research showing that overall satisfaction with the prompts exceeded 95% across our constituent groups - students, counselors, advisors, teachers, and member colleges. Moving forward, we want to learn more about who is choosing certain prompts to see if there are any noteworthy differences among student populations and incorporate feedback into future decisions.

While some schools are beginning discussions with juniors and transfer students about college options, it's important to clarify that this doesn't mean students need to start writing their essays right away. By releasing the prompts early, we hope to give students ample time for reflection and brainstorming. As you guide students with their planning, feel free to use our Common App Ready essay writing resource, available in both English and Spanish .

For students who wish to start exploring the application process, creating a Common App account before August 1 ensures that all their responses, including their personal essays, will be retained through account rollover .

Below is the full set of essay prompts for 2024–2025.

• Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.
• The lessons we take from obstacles we encounter can be fundamental to later success. Recount a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience?
• Reflect on a time when you questioned or challenged a belief or idea. What prompted your thinking? What was the outcome?
• Reflect on something that someone has done for you that has made you happy or thankful in a surprising way. How has this gratitude affected or motivated you?
• Discuss an accomplishment, event, or realization that sparked a period of personal growth and a new understanding of yourself or others.
• Describe a topic, idea, or concept you find so engaging that it makes you lose all track of time. Why does it captivate you? What or who do you turn to when you want to learn more?
• Share an essay on any topic of your choice. It can be one you've already written, one that responds to a different prompt, or one of your own design.

We will retain the optional community disruption question within the Writing section. Over the next year, we'll consult with our member, counselor, and student advisory committees to ensure we gather diverse perspectives and make informed decisions.

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