what is a leadership philosophy essay

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How To Develop A Leadership Philosophy (With Examples)

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Developing a leadership philosophy will help you become a better and more effective leader . There are several main leadership philosophies that most people follow to determine their leadership style. You might know of these leadership philosophies and decide to model your leadership off of them, or you naturally developed your leadership style, and it matches one of these methods.

No matter what stage of your career you’re in, what industry you’re in, or what your career goals are, knowing the leadership philosophy you follow is an important tool. In this article, we’ll go over how to develop a leadership philosophy, provide leadership philosophy examples, as well as some tips to keep in mind when writing your philosophy.

Key Takeaways:

A leadership philosophy depends on your personal values as well as environmental factors

Clarifying your leadership philosophy will make you a better leader.

Leadership philosophy examples include: solution-based leadership, democratic leadership, and transactional leadership.

To develop your leadership philosophy consider how you work currently, what your goals are, and examine leaders you admire.

What is a leadership philosophy?

How to develop a leadership philosophy, leadership philosophy examples, examples of personal leadership philosophies, why should you review examples of leadership philosophies, leadership philosophy faq.

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Leadership philosophies are based on several things, including character, beliefs, emotions, and principles. To create an outline of how someone acts as a leader, you can follow a leadership principle on a personal level, referring to how you are as a leader. This can also be mandated on a company or organizational level, meaning an organization encourages employees to lead in a certain way.

Leadership has different ways of approaching and tackling different situations. Each person views it differently and acts as a leader in different ways. Using leadership philosophies is a way to distill those differences and make sense of the ways people can act as leaders.

Though it seems technical or advanced, leadership philosophies are more like guidelines than rules set in stone. You can relate to multiple leadership styles and switch up your leadership since the philosophies don’t have to be adhered to. Think of it as a way to classify types of leadership and a method to help you frame how you approach leadership.

While they’re not formalized in nature, you should take time to consider your leadership philosophy and write it down. Sometimes a potential employer will ask to know your leadership philosophy, but it’s still mainly a tool for you. Taking the time to sit down, think, and write about your take on leadership can prepare you for tackling a leadership role in the future.

You can use it as a reference when you need to figure out how to approach a challenging leadership problem .

To develop a leadership philosophy, you should first figure out your leadership style, think about how you work currently, and think about what you want your future to be. Below is a more detailed list of how to develop a leadership style.

Find your leadership style. Along with leadership philosophies, leadership styles are important in understanding how you lead.

Think about how you work currently. To start, you should consider how you lead presently or how you’ve led in the past. Your most effective leadership philosophy will be one that feels natural to you, so starting with what you already do is a great start.

Think about your future. How do you want to be perceived as a leader? Thinking about the future of your leadership and skills is a good way to get on a path that will lead you there. Consider how you would like to lead in the future and how you want to work with your team.

Talk with other leaders. Getting advice from other leaders is a great way to think about your leadership values. Ask them about how they lead and what general principles they bring to all of their leadership roles .

Consider your goals . Think about where you want to be in the future and how you can get there. Your leadership goals should fall in line with your broader career and life goals, so make sure everything is consistent.

Think about your personal values. At the end of the day, leadership philosophies are extremely personal and reflect who you are. Turning to your values is a good way to incorporate your beliefs into the way you lead others.

Find leaders you admire. Just like looking at leadership philosophies can help you determine your personal perspective. Looking at the leadership styles of leaders you admire can help you find what you like.

Some examples of leadership examples include solution-based leadership and democratic leadership. You can deviate from these and develop something new, or you can choose to incorporate elements of one or a few in your personal statement .

There’s no wrong way to lead, and these are just a few common examples of leadership philosophies:

Solution-based leadership. You can look at a challenge as a problem or an opportunity to find a great solution . People who see it the second way can be solution-based leaders who look for good solutions instead of worrying about the problem at hand.

Democratic leadership. If you believe in hearing every voice in the room, democratic leadership might be for you. As the leader, you can consult everyone and weigh their opinions equally before making a decision. But, since you’re in charge, you can ultimately decide the next step.

Transformational leadership. Setting goals, finding paths to success, and working collaboratively with a team are central to transformational leadership. These leaders want to help their team grow and evolve as everyone works together.

Learning leadership. Some people like to approach leadership as an opportunity to learn. Instead of acting like a leader who got there because of their existing knowledge, they approach every situation as a chance to learn more and expand their horizons.

Laissez-faire leadership. If you like being hands-off and leaving people to do what they do best, laissez-faire leadership might be your style. Typically, these leaders act as a final “okay” or a resource for help when team members get stuck, but they don’t hover or force people to do things their way.

Transactional leadership. Sometimes people work harder when they know they’ll get something good in the end. This is the basis for transactional leadership, which uses rewards to motivate people to work toward a common goal. Think of things like bonuses , promotions, raises , and other rewards for employees who contribute to a project or goal.

Autocratic leadership. Almost the opposite of laissez-faire leadership is autocratic leadership, where the leader wants to oversee most, if not all, of a team’s work. People who are control freaks tend toward this style, but that’s not a bad thing.

Take a look over these personal leadership philosophy examples to see which one resonates with you the most. Note that your personal leadership style doesn’t have to adhere to the exact language of these examples. Instead, use them as inspiration for writing your own leadership philosophy.

Solutions-based leadership philosophy example

Challenges at work represent new opportunities for growth and development. I consider the long-term goals of our company and team, then reverse-engineer a plan for how to get there. I look forward to solving problems together by applying our collective knowledge.

Democratic leadership philosophy example

While it’s important to have clear guidelines and definitive goals, I believe that everyone on my team should have a voice in determining those guidelines and goals. Furthermore, I encourage a diversity of opinions on any topic and think that the best results come from people who have a say on what they’re working on and how they work on it.

Transformational leadership philosophy example

Failure to evolve leads to stagnation and eventually depreciation. New ideas are the life blood success. I motivate my team members with long-shot goal setting to encourage a belief in radical transformation. Additionally, I commit myself to providing the necessary tools and time to allow for my team to grow their skill sets.

Learning leadership philosophy example

Being a leader means being a jack-of-all-trades who can adapt quickly to new ideas. I approach new challenges as exciting opportunities to expand the skill set of my team and myself. I encourage my employees to explore extra learning opportunities outside of their normal responsibilities and provide resources for them to do so.

Laissez-faire leadership philosophy example

I trust my team to know how to do their jobs correctly. They’re experts who make great decisions and can solve problems on their own. I like to set big-picture goals and provide a vision that everyone can get behind, but I stay out of the way when it’s time for tasks to be carried out.

Transactional leadership philosophy example

My team responds to financial incentives more than anything else, so I use bonuses, commissions, raises, and promotions to motivate my team to success. I foster a competitive spirit that pushes everyone to reach for their highest potential. Finally, I make sure that the metrics I institute make sense and incentivize the right sort of behavior.

Autocratic leadership philosophy example

Decision-making takes too long and ends up with soft, difficult-to-apply polices when too many people are involved. I will make all of the important decisions and delegate a handful of other key stakeholders as decision-makers as well. Most employees will have to follow our examples and guidelines and trust that we’ll lead them to a successful outcome.

Reviewing examples of leadership philosophies will not only will you better understand the format of leadership philosophies when you review examples, but you’ll also get a chance to see how other people see leadership. You might find points you agree with or some that you hate, and they’re all valuable.

You can choose to model your personal philosophy after others or decide that you want to do the opposite of what someone else did.

Having access to other people’s leadership philosophies can help you formulate your own better than if you were on your own. Taking inspiration from others can help you decide how you want to be as a leader. It’s like thinking back to a leader you admire and trying to capture what you love about them in your own leadership style.

This doesn’t mean you should take your leadership style from someone else. It’s actually the opposite. You should strive to create a unique leadership philosophy that feels like your own, but of course, you can take inspiration from other people.

Why is a leadership philosophy important?

A leadership philosophy is important because it clarifies the objectives of a leader. A leadership philosophy is a framework which you can build off of. This helps provide consistency, that is a huge factor in good leadership. Knowing your leadership philosophy can also help during difficult times, especially in situations where you may need to either adjust or reinforce your leadership style.

What makes a good leader philosophy?

Regardless of philosophy, a good leader will help everyone produce their best work possible. To do this, a good leader must combine the skills of delegation, communication, structure, vision, decision-making, empathy, and inspiration. All of these skills combine to make a leader who can move their team to success.

Do I need a leadership philosophy?

Yes, if you are a leader, you should have a leadership philosophy. Not only will the philosophy provide you with direction or allow you to answer leadership-based interview questions , but it will also give you a great way to communicate with your team. By knowing your philosophy you can set clear goals and expectations.

What does a leadership philosophy look like?

A leadership philosophy is a belief system that helps guide your decision-making. Since leadership has different ways of approaching and tackling different situations, leadership philosophies will help people use their own personal viewpoints to lead. They are more like guidelines than a set of rules you have to follow.

PennState Extension – Tips for Developing a Personal leadership Philosophy

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Amanda is a writer with experience in various industries, including travel, real estate, and career advice. After taking on internships and entry-level jobs, she is familiar with the job search process and landing that crucial first job. Included in her experience is work at an employer/intern matching startup where she marketed an intern database to employers and supported college interns looking for work experience.

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Leadership Philosophy: Creating Your Own Leadership Approach

Key Takeaways:

• A leadership philosophy is a person’s approach to leading and interacting with others. This philosophy is informed by a person’s unique set of values and principles.
• A leadership philosophy is composed of four key elements: theory, attitude, guiding principles and behavior.
• Examples of leadership philosophies include delegative leadership, managerial leadership and learning leadership.

Table of Contents

What is a leadership philosophy, what are the key elements of a leadership philosophy, 10 leadership philosophy examples, why you should learn your leadership philosophy style, tips for writing a leadership philosophy.

Being a leader is a rewarding but challenging task. Not only are leaders required to make progress toward business goals, but they also need to ensure their team feels supported. Without a personal understanding of one’s core values and work style, achieving leadership success can be difficult. That is why it is critical for all of us to identify our leadership philosophies, regardless of our expertise or tenure.

Having a leadership philosophy can help ensure you stay true to your values and thoroughly understand the tools you may need to navigate challenges.

Below, we discuss the basics of a leadership philosophy and different examples. In addition, we highlight why it is critical to know your leadership philosophy and provide tips for how to write your own.

A leadership philosophy is the unique set of values, beliefs and principles that set the foundation for how a person leads and guides others. Defining a leadership philosophy can provide you with a roadmap and structure for successfully managing a team or organization.

The advantages of setting a robust philosophical foundation are clear and can be especially beneficial during challenging times. Moreover, a clear leadership philosophy can also help you make decisions, delegate responsibilities and manage team concerns. Because change is inevitable, leadership philosophies can and should evolve with time.

A leadership philosophy has four key elements: theory, attitude, guiding principles and behavior. These key elements can help you discover and build your leadership philosophy, which can guide your leadership style. Here is a brief definition of each element:

• Theory: This component is your idea of what leadership means and what it requires to be effective.
• Attitude: This element encompasses your mindset and demeanor regarding leadership. Think of this as your approach to interacting with team members.
• Guiding principles: Your guiding principles are the values you choose to influence how you lead others. Your moral compass drives your guiding principles.
• Behavior: Put simply, your behavior is the way you act and interact with others on your journey to achieve a goal or overcome a challenge.

There are many different leadership philosophy styles, including autocratic leadership, democratic leadership and solution-based leadership. Your choice depends on your unique leadership approach and code of ethics. Ahead, we will look at 10 different leadership philosophy examples.

1. Autocratic Leadership Philosophy

An autocratic leadership philosophy style, also known as authoritarian, is a management style where the leader takes complete control over all decision-making. This type of leader does not consider other perspectives when making decisions and delegates responsibilities to direct reports.

2. Delegative Leadership Philosophy

Delegative leadership, also known as laissez-faire leadership, is a philosophical approach that promotes delegation and sharing responsibilities. This type of leadership empowers all team members to make decisions, which fosters a sense of autonomy

3. Democratic Leadership Philosophy

The democratic leadership philosophy is supportive and innovative – the opposite of autocratic leadership. With this leadership style, a leader values the opinions of their constituents and makes sure that everyone’s voice is heard. While a leader may make the final decision, the deliberation process includes input from the entire team, where each member has an opportunity to share their thoughts and opinions.

4. Learning Leadership Philosophy

Leaders who make learning and teaching a top priority exemplify a learning leadership philosophy. With this style, leaders promote a culture of continuous learning that encourages growth. Leaders who use this approach typically make decisions based on data and evidence.

5. Managerial Leadership Philosophy

People with a managerial leadership philosophy style are good at seeing the big picture and identifying and solving challenges. Managerial leaders may adopt elements of other leadership styles, such as democratic leadership, transactional leadership and strategic leadership. These leaders have the ability to lead and influence others, while maintaining the organizational structure of the team.

6. Participative Leadership Philosophy

The participative leadership philosophy is a form of democratic leadership that sets up a team structure where all members are encouraged to speak their minds and engage in decision-making. Team leaders with a participative leadership style strive to ensure their direct reports feel they have a sense of autonomy. This leadership style works best in organizations where everybody has a defined role and does not need significant oversight.

7. Solution-Based Leadership Philosophy

Solution-based leadership prioritizes problem-solving. With this leadership philosophy style, a leader develops action plans with defined solutions and outcomes. To ensure success, solution-based leaders may delegate tasks to help a team identify and implement solutions.

8. Strategic Leadership Philosophy

Individuals who can envision and communicate a clear vision and long-term plan for a team or organization are strategic leaders and adopt this philosophy style. They carefully align an organization’s business goals with available talent, resources and processes. Successful strategic leaders are proactive and good at making thoughtful decisions.

9. Transactional Leadership Philosophy

Transactional leadership is a leadership philosophy approach that emphasizes a structured and results-driven approach. With this style, leaders set clear expectations for performance and reward team members based on their success. Typically, transactional leaders focus on immediate tasks, routine processes and efficiency.

10. Transformational Leadership Philosophy

The transformational leadership philosophy is often referred to as a hands-on approach to leadership. With this approach, a leader sets goals and challenges for their team. Transformational leaders also offer solutions, actively help team members and encourage direct reports.

Let’s Connect

Stay in- the-know, stay in-the-know.

Learning your own leadership philosophy style can help you become a more effective leader. When you know your leadership style, you better understand how you naturally lead and interact with others. This understanding allows you to adjust your leadership approach to different situations, which can increase your effectiveness. Ultimately, it empowers you to make informed decisions, foster better team dynamics and drive positive outcomes within your organization or group. Knowing your leadership philosophy also helps your team become more successful because you can make more informed decisions, facilitate healthier team dynamics and achieve progress.

To create your personal leadership philosophy statement, get started by identifying your leadership style, evaluating your current approach to leadership and thinking about your future leadership goals. Below is a simple plan to help guide you through writing your leadership philosophy statement.

1. Understand Your Leadership Style and Values

Learn about different leadership styles , and select the style that resonates with you. To narrow down your style, consider your personal and leadership values.

2. Reflect on Past and Future Leadership

Take the time to consider your prior leadership experiences. Ask yourself and take note of what you did or did not like about those experiences. Then, take stock of your current leadership tendencies, and think about how you would like to become a better leader in the future.

3. Seek Inspiration and Guidance

Network with other experienced leaders to gain insights into their approaches. Ask leaders that you meet what their values and philosophies are. Jot down valuable ideas that align with your values to help you form your philosophy. For more insight, research different leadership philosophy statement examples from leaders with an approach similar to yours.

4. Set Simple Leadership Goals

After you do research, define your long-term leadership goals. Narrow down your list by selecting one or two bigger goals to focus on. Review your values, and make sure these goals align with them. Consider asking your colleagues you work closely with for feedback on how they think you can improve your leadership skills . Their feedback may help you inform your goals.

5. Develop Your Personal Leadership Philosophy Statement

To create your philosophy statement, compile your core values and highlighted goals. Create a straightforward leadership philosophy statement that you know you will stick to. Continue to refine the wording until it accurately reflects your values.

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Mbe entrepreneurship & supplier diversity.

1. Provide technical expertise: offer subject matter and technical expertise to catalyze and support community initiatives 

E.g., tax/accounting experts to help MBEs file taxes

E.g., business experts to help MBEs better access capital and craft business plans to scale their teams and operations

Access to Capital (CDFI/MDI)

2. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

Systems and technology modernization – $10M-15M: Add/upgrade core banking systems, hardware and productivity tools, train frontline workforce on new systems & technology and hire engineering specialists to support customization and news systems rollout – over 5 years

Talent and workforce – $10M: hire and train additional frontline lending staff and invest in recruiting, training, compensation & benefits and retention to increase in-house expertise and loan capacity – over 5 years

Other capacity-building and outreach – $8M: hire additional staff to increase custom borrower and technical assistance (e.g., credit building, MBE financing options, etc.) and increase community outreach to drive regional awareness and new pipeline projects – over 5 years

Education/HBCU & Workforce Development

3. Offer more paid internships: signup onto InternX and offer 25+ additional paid internships per year to HBCU/Black students 

Digital Access

4. Issue digital access equality bonds: issue equality progress bonds and invest proceeds into SCI’s digital access initiatives

5. Fund HBCU campus-wide internet – up to $50M in donations or in-kind: Partner with the Student Freedom Initiative to deliver campus-wide high-speed internet at ~10 HBCUs across SCI regions

6. Be an advocate for SCI priorities: engage federal and state agencies to drive policy and funding improvements to better support SCI’s near-term priorities

E.g., Engage the Small Business Administration and Minority Business Development Agency to increase technical assistance programs and annual spend to better support Minority Business Enterprises (MBEs) with capital and scaling needs

E.g., Ask the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to include multi-dwelling unit connectivity in its new broadband connectivity maps and ask the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to allow non-FCC data in state broadband plans to unlock ~$285M in potential government broadband funding for 5 SCI regions

Directly Fund SCI

7. Invest directly into SCI (coming soon): provide funding for SCI to pool and invest in community initiatives that are most well-positioned for funding and can drive direct community impact.

Memphis, Tennessee

Lead community organization: The Collective Blueprint

Our ambition:

Increase the volume and value of Black-owned businesses – through corporate MBE spend and MBE startups & scaling

1. Scale technical assistance – $15M: fund* to expand technical assistance through business coaches and wrap-around services for 500+ MBEs over 5 years to help them scale from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue

2. Standup MBE fund – $15M: standup/scale MBE fund* to offer more flexible access to capital arrangements 400-500 MBEs over 5 years

 * Lead organization: The Collective Blueprint ; Contributing local organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): Community Unlimited , Women’s Business Center South , Epicenter , others

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.3x increase in MBE value & 20K+ new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$3B+

Modernize CDFI/MDI systems and tech as well as recruit and upskill talent to increase CDFI/MDI capacity and ability to inject more capital into Black communities

3. Provide loan guarantees – $15M: create a fund* to provide 80% loan guarantees over 5 years to encourage lender participation and inject more capital into the community

4. Conduct advocacy: ask US Treasury & Tennessee State to allow Tennessee CDFIs/MDIs to retain SSBCI capital & offer loan guarantees to boost loan issuance

5. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs** over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup a SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* Leading organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): Community LIFT , Memphis CDFI Network , etc.

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: Community Unlimited, Hope Credit Union, River City Capital, United Housing Inc, etc.

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~$330M+ in additional loans per year to support ~30K+ MBEs

Lower financial burden for Black students, increase number of Black college graduates, increase Black workforce and executive representation and their access to high-paying jobs

6. Standup training hub – $30M: fund* the establishment a world-class training hub that offers certificate-granting STEM and innovation programs in advanced manufacturing, health care, etc. to 10K+ youths

7. Fund SFI program – $7M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s  Income Contingent Alternative to Parent Plus to support ~15 Black STEM students per year forever at 4 HBCUs**

* Lead organization: The Collective Blueprint ; Contributing local organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): Greater Memphis Chamber and Workforce Midsouth

** Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs with STEM programs being considered: Le Moyne-Owen, Baptist Memorial, University of Memphis, Rust College

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 8K+ additional college graduates and 10K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$1B+ in economic growth

Increase accessibility, affordability and adoption of high-speed Internet

8. Accelerate digital access initiatives – $75M:  partner with local orgs* to invest in setting up internet connections / installing hotspots, offering laptops and supporting adoption (through government subsidy technical assistance and digital literacy) to connect ~135K homes to high-speed internet in the Memphis region

9. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~135K unconnected households 

 * Lead organization: The Collective Blueprint ; Contributing local organizations for community strategy include (but not limited to): CodeCrew

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~135K households connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$2B+ in economic potential

Houston, Texas

Lead community organization: Greater Houston Partnership

1. Scale team – ~$3M: hire 3-4 FTEs over 5 years for One Houston Together * to help companies increase MBE spend from ~2% to 5-10%+ as well as BIPOC workforce advancement and BIPOC board representation 

2. Increase MBE certification and scale technical assistance – ~$2M: partner with One Houston Together * and the Houston Minority Supplier Development Council (HSMDC) ** to certify additional MBEs, develop Minority Business Finder database tool and provide resources and services to help local MBEs scale and participate in Pathways to Excellence program

3. Commit to increase racial diversity in supply chain and procurement: increase MBE spend in Greater Houston region* to 5-10%+

* One Houston Together serves as lead (please contact if you are interested in funding these initiatives)

** Houston Minority Supplier Development Council (HSMDC) serves as a partner organization (please contact if you are interested in learning more about this initiative)

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.5x increase in MBE value & ~55K new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$12B 

4. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: Unity National Bank, Unity Bank of Texas, PeopleFund, Houston Business Development Inc, etc.

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~$330M in additional loans per year to support ~30K MBEs

5. Fund SFI program – $120M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s Income Contingent Alternative to Parent Plus * to support ~1.2K Black STEM students per year forever at 7 HBCUs**

* Student Freedom Initiative serves as lead (main contact if you are interested in learning more and funding this initiative)

** Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs with STEM programs being considered: Texas Southern University, University of Houston, Prairie View A&M University, Houston Baptist University, University of Houston-Clear Lake, University of Houston-Downtown, University of St Thomas.  

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 5K+ additional college grads & ~600 workers with senior exec positions / high-paying wages to drive ~$0.2B in economic growth

6. Accelerate SCI’s digital access initiatives – up to $80M in donations or in-kind: invest in setting up internet connections / hotspots, offer laptops/Chromebooks and support adoption (through government subsidy technical assistance and digital literacy) to connect ~145K homes to high-speed internet in the Houston region*

7. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~145K unconnected households 

* Community organization(s) being identified 

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~145K households connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$3B in economic potential

Greater New Orleans, Louisiana

Lead community organization: Urban League of Louisiana

1. Scale Black Business Works Fund – $10M: grow the Urban League of Louisiana’s Black Business Works Fund to support ~3K-4K MBEs over 5 years with emergency working capital needs to support/sustain ~$1B+ in annual revenues

2. Scale technical assistance – $20M: fund the Urban League of Louisiana , New Orleans Business Alliance , Thrive New Orleans and Propellor to scale bookkeeping, B2C payment, marketing support & subsidized rent to scale 200+ MBEs from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.5x increase in MBE value & 8K+ new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$2B+

3. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT teams to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: New Orleans Business Alliance (community convener), Liberty, TruFund, LiftFund, NewCorp, etc.

4. Subsidize internships & apprenticeships – $40M: fund the New Orleans Youth Alliance , YouthForce NOLA and the Urban League of Louisiana to place and help subsidize apprenticeships, internships and other work-based learning experiences for ~20K young adults in high-pay sectors (e.g., energy)

5. Fund SFI program – $12M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s Income Contingent Alternative to Parent Plus to support ~120 Black STEM students per year forever at 3 HBCUs*

* Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs being considered: Dillard University, Southern University – New Orleans and Xavier University of Louisiana

6. Scale career prep – ~$10M: scale the New Orleans Youth Alliance and YouthForce NOLA with 15-20 coaches over 5 years to equip ~20K young adults with skills for high-paying industries, job search & prep and subsidized transportation

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~2K additional college graduates and ~20K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$1B in economic growth

7. Accelerate SCI’s digital access initiatives – up to $35M in donations or in-kind: partner with New Orleans’s Office of Information Technology & Innovation and Education SuperHighway to invest in setting up internet connections / hotspots, offering laptops/Chromebook and supporting adoption (through government subsidy technical assistance and digital literacy) to connect ~55K homes to high-speed internet in Greater New Orleans region

8. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~55K unconnected households

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 55K households connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$1B in economic potential

Charlotte, North Carolina

Lead community organization: Charlotte Regional Business Alliance

1. Offer in-kind FTEs: provide 2-5 in-kind FTEs to the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (CRBA) over 5 years to convene corporate partners, assess their MBE spend, develop pipeline to increase MBE spend to 5-10%+

2. Offer technical assistance expertise: partner with the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (CRBA) to advise/mentor ~200 MBEs on capital/loan access to help them scale from <$10M to $50M+

3. Commit to supplier diversity: increase MBE spend in Charlotte region to 5-10%+

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 3x increase in MBE value & ~13K new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$2B+

4. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M : help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance; in-kind experts to also help build out the MBE ecosystem through CDFIs/MDIs, market CDFI/MDI offerings and programs and help draft final loan agreements to qualify borrowers between investment fund(s) and CDFIs/MDIs

* CDFIs/MDIs being considered (examples and not exhaustive): Security Federal Bank, Institute / North Carolina Community Development Initiative, Sequoyah Fund Inc, Self-Help Credit Union, BEFCOR, Aspire Community Capital, etc.

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: Security Federal Bank, Institute / North Carolina Community Development Initiative, Sequoyah Fund Inc, etc.

5. Fund SFI program – up to $10M: fund the Student Freedom Initiative’s HELPS program to support ~1.5K+ students per year at HBCUs* with emergency expenses – e.g., unexpected health costs, late rent payments, etc.

* Minority Serving Institutions / HBCUs in Charlotte that are being considered: Johnson C. Smith University, Johnson & Wales University – Charlotte, Charlotte Christian College

6. Provide in-kind staff: offer 2-5 FTEs to the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance (CRBA) over 5 years to track Black-/Brown-executive representation, convene corporate partners to develop executive pipeline and hiring plans and support corporate partners to increase representation from ~10% to 30%+

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 2.5K+ additional college graduates and 2.5K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$0.2B in economic growth

7. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~35K unconnected households

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): ~35K households get connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$700M in economic potential for Charlotte

Birmingham, Alabama

Lead community organization: Prosper Birmingham

1. Fund startups and give access to investor network – $70M: grow the Prosper Health Tech Fund – powered by Gener8tor – and offer venture capital technical assistance to scale 50+ startups from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue; near-term priority is to secure $4M in venture investment by end of May 2022

2. Fund technical assistance – $25M: fund Prosper Birmingham , Magic City Match , and Birmingham Business Alliance to establish/expand business advisory programs, renovate and subsidize retail/office space for MBEs and scale coaches & support services (e.g., digital footprint, B2C platforms, accounting & bookkeeping, recruitment, etc.) to help 100+ MBEs scale from <$1M to $5M+ in annual revenue

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 3x increase in annual MBE revenue & 8K+ new jobs, boosting Black community’s net worth by ~$2B+

3. Fund modernization & capacity-building and provide in-kind subject matter experts – $30M: help 4-5 CDFIs/MDIs* over 5 years modernize their core systems, hire and train staff, expand marketing and standup SWAT team of experts to conduct needs diagnostic, implement tech solution & provide technical assistance

* In partnership with National Bankers Association and Appalachian Community Capital ; CDFIs/MDIs being considered include: First Bancshares, Commonwealth National Bank, TruFund, Sabre Finance, Bronze Valley, etc.

4. Fund scholarships and hire coaches – ~$35M: scale Birmingham Promise fund to financially support 200-250 students per year over 4 years to increase college retention and graduation rates

5. Fund endowment – $2M: support 50 University of Alabama at Birmingham college students per year with housing to reduce their financial burden and increase college retention and graduation rates

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 6.5K+ additional college graduates & 35K workers with high-paying wages to drive ~$1.2B in economic growth

6. Raise community awareness & adoption of Emergency Broadband Benefit: increase door-to-door and community outreach in low-income neighborhoods to get households onto EBB to help connect ~35K unconnected households

Estimated impact (of all initiatives): 48K households get connected to high-speed internet to unlock ~$700M in economic potential for Jefferson County

What is your Leadership Philosophy? Guide & Examples in 2024

I recently read that we may be facing a crisis in leadership quality.

The DDI's 2023 Global Leadership Forecast shows that we're facing the lowest point of leadership quality in a decade. 

Only 40% of those surveyed said their company had high-quality leaders. 

At the same time, Paul Michelman, the Editor-in-chief of MIT Sloan Management Review, said , “The world does not lack for management ideas.” 

Thousands of books and articles tell you how to become a good leader.

But to be a good leader, you’ll need more than external guidance; you also need to search inside yourself. 

Having a leadership philosophy can help with this. 

Let’s start by understanding the concept.

What is Leadership Philosophy?

There are many ways to define leadership philosophy. 

I love how George Ambler, a former Senior Executive Partner with Gartner Executive Programs, describes it: “a set of beliefs, values, and principles that strongly influences how we interpret reality and guide our understanding of influencing humans.” 

“Leadership philosophy is a set of beliefs, values, and principles that strongly influences how we interpret reality and guide our understanding of influencing humans. It’s our philosophy, our understanding, and interpretation of leadership, that affects how we react to people, events, and situations around us.” - George Ambler, former Senior Executive Partner with Gartner Executive Programs.

A leadership philosophy is the guidance you give yourself on how to be a good leader. 

Writing a leadership philosophy helps you reflect on your values and the leader you want to become. 

When complete, the philosophy will be the compass for your decision-making as a leader. 

With that in mind, in this article, I will share the benefits of having a leadership philosophy and how to write one for yourself, with complete guides and examples!

Why is it Important to Have a Leadership Philosophy?

For the Leader

Having a leadership philosophy is helpful for any leader for several key reasons:

• A chance to reflect: To write a leadership philosophy, you will need to take the time to sit down and think hard about what truly matters to you as a leader.
• Guide decision-making: When facing difficult choices, having a leadership philosophy written down will help you make decisions that align with your values.
• Job promotion: When you can clearly state your leadership values with your management (and, of course, act accordingly!), there's a higher chance that they'll find you capable of a higher position (This even applies to people who want to become first-time managers ).

For the Team

A team will always benefit from a conscious and consistent leader with clear values and goals:

• Build trust: Leaders who can merge their personal values with their professional role receive greater trust from their team members. This is especially important in remote and hybrid work, where building team connections is often challenging .
• Deliver better results: Because trust is the foundation of great team collaboration, communication, and team dynamics .

The Difference between a Leadership Philosophy and Leadership Styles

Leadership styles are a well-studied subject, and you probably have come across or identified yourself with some of the most common leadership styles , such as authoritarian, democratic, laissez-faire, or transactional.

On the other hand, a leadership philosophy should be highly personalized . There are no categories to choose from, and you write your own leadership manifesto.

While leadership styles describe how a leader makes decisions and delegates tasks, a leadership philosophy tells you its owner's values, beliefs, and goals.

But with all those differences, there is one thing they have in common:

Both leadership styles and philosophies are fluid and change over time as the leader grows. 

Essential Components of Leadership Philosophy (+ Template)

If you're new to leadership philosophies and don't know where to start, below are some suggested components:

• Your definition of leadership
• Your core values in making decisions
• Your core values in managing people

When putting these components together, we can have a template like this:

As a leadership philosophy should be personalized to each person, I encourage you to customize the template as much as you want until it truly feels authentic to you!

If you don’t know how to fill out the blanks in the template, no worries. (For inspiration, consider visiting one of the top 2024 leadership conferences .)

In the next section, I will guide you in reflecting on your leadership journey and developing your ideas for your first leadership philosophy!

10 Steps to Write Your Own Leadership Philosophy Statement

The first three steps will help you reflect on your leadership values:

1. Think about the leaders in your life

Sometimes, it's easier to look into another person's behaviors than ourselves, so as a warm-up, think about the leaders you have encountered in your life. 

Some leaders you met may have positively influenced you:

• Who is a leader you admire? 
• What about them that inspires you?

Others may show you how not to be a leader:

• What is a negative experience you had with another leader?
• If you were them, what would you do differently? 

Try to note your answers to the above questions before moving to the next steps!

2. Reflect on your three developmental points

There are major events in our lives that shape who we are, our beliefs, and our values. So, in the next step, let's write down your defining moments in life, including:

• Two lows: Two significant challenges you have gone through.
• One high: A positive experience you hold close to your heart.

For each of these moments, think about how they have:

• Changed you as a person
• Influenced your leadership 

3. Vision the leader the future world needs

A leadership philosophy is not just about your past and present but also about your future. This makes it worth wondering, “What types of leaders does the future world need?”

In his insightful book Leading in the Digital World: How to Foster Creativity, Collaboration and Inclusivity , Dr. Amit Mukherjee points out the key attributes of a future Leader of Creativity:

• Have strong ethical principles
• Value knowledge, imagination, and fast learning
• A contributing member of creative efforts, not a facilitator
• Inclusive and empathetic
• Embrace different opinions
• Let information flow freely through their network
• Provide psychological safety to their team members

If you're a leader of a hybrid or remote team building a digital product, you may find the above characteristics highly relevant to you. 

So, which ones would you emphasize in your leadership philosophy?

Steps 4 to 7 will guide you to come up with the answers for the blanks in our leadership philosophy template:

4. Define leadership in your own words

The first sentence of your leadership philosophy is your definition of leadership. What does it mean to lead? 

The answer may depend on your leadership style:

• For democratic leaders , you may think leading is to guide your team members to a common goal by listening to and combining everyone's perspectives.
• For transformational leaders , you may consider leadership as motivating and inspiring your team members to achieve their full potential.
• For delegative leaders , you may think to be a leader is to trust your people to do their best work and let the group make decisions without much involvement. 

5. What are the achievements you want to be remembered for?

Amit's book states that the average manager spends two or three years in each position, with the 2022 US Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting up to 6 years.

What achievements do you want people to remember about you after those years? 

What are the goals you want to achieve as a leader?

These goals can be work-related, such as:

• Leading the team to achieve a certain KPI ( key performance indicators )
• Restructuring the team in a way that makes it more efficient

Or they can be more people-oriented, like:

• Upgrading the skills of all team members
• Building a positive team dynamics

6. Your core values when making decisions:

No matter how new your company's product or service is, you're impacting others' lives through your product or service. 

You want to ensure you always have the correct guiding principles when making decisions. 

What are your core values that relate to your team's product or service?

They can be:

• Honesty: To always tell the truth to your customers
• Inclusivity: To design for disadvantaged minorities
• Curiosity: To always learn new things and question what you have known
• Responsibility: To build products that genuinely do good for people and for the planet
• And many more!

List of Core Value Words

7. Your core values when managing people

Now, let's turn towards your team:

What are the fundamentals of creating an effective relationship with your team? 

For example, you may say:

• Respect: To treat your team members the way you want to be treated
• Care: To show that you care beyond words and make decisions with compassion 
• The belief in the best in people: To forgive your people and not hold on to their mistakes

Here is an example of more management values .

After you have a draft of your leadership philosophy, you can go to the last three steps:

8. Seek feedback

No matter how well we know ourselves, there will be things we can't be completely objective about.

Before you complete your leadership philosophy, send it to your mentors, close friends, or team members for input.

The feedback may not be easy to read, but it will improve your philosophy.

Remember that you don't have to change everything according to people's feedback. After all, this is your philosophy.

9. Perfect your leadership philosophy and share it with your team 

You can keep your leadership philosophy private, but sharing it with the team offers great benefits:

• Firstly, you create a better understanding between you and your team members.
• Secondly, your team may find you more authentic and trustworthy .
• Thirdly, your people can remind you to act according to your words. 

Before you share your leadership philosophy with the team, check the common issues below:

• Using too many buzzwords may be deemed insincere.
• Be aware of the current atmosphere within the team to ensure you share at a suitable time.
• Be careful when using phrases like “I promise to” because many things may not be within your control.
• Ask yourself what you want your people to think and feel after reading your leadership philosophy.

10. Review and revise from time to time

Your leadership philosophy is alive and constantly changing, just as you are!

So look back at your philosophy occasionally and edit it over time.

To give you more guidance, take a look at the leadership philosophy examples below:

Leadership Philosophy Examples

Below are three leadership philosophies examples based on our template.

Please note that we keep the goal part of these philosophy examples general as it depends on you and your team’s vision.

A remote manager of a startup

In this leadership philosophy example, we see a startup manager forming their personal leadership philosophy.

As a startup manager, you may want to emphasize the design thinking process: ideation, prototyping, and feedback.

Besides, to develop a unique product, your core values may include words like “curiosity” and “originality.” 

I believe to be a leader is to inspire my people to do their best work and assist them along the way.  My goals are to achieve unconventional ideation, rapid prototyping, and a fast feedback loop with my team.  On the journey to accomplish those goals, I believe curiosity, social responsibility, and originality should be the guiding principles for my decisions.  Most importantly, I want to always treat my people with understanding, respect, and trust.

A fully remote manager of a tech company

In this leadership philosophy example, a remote manager contemplates how they want to support their team from a distance.

Since team communication and collaboration are often the challenges of hybrid and remote teams, you can make them the focus of your leadership philosophy.

I believe to be a leader is to ensure my people know how to do their jobs well and that they can grow while doing it. My goals are to achieve seamless collaboration, great team dynamics, and high-quality work outcomes with my team.  On the journey to accomplish those goals, I believe honesty, inclusivity, and creating real value should be the guiding principles for my decisions.  Most importantly, I want to treat my people with kindness, cultural sensitivity, and respect at all times.

Manager for creativity in building a digital product

Is your goal to foster creativity in your organization?

Then, you may find this example, inspired by the book Leading in the Digital World: How to Foster Creativity, Collaboration and Inclusivity , helpful.

I believe to be a leader is to maximize the creative capacity of my team to build a responsible and competitive digital product.  My goals are to achieve a fast flow of exchanged information, a pool of diverse perspectives, and high productivity together with my team.  On the journey to accomplish those goals, I believe ethical values, an emphasis on speed, and continuous learning should be the guiding principles for my decisions.  Most importantly, I want to treat my people with inclusivity, empathy, and respect at all times.

Write Your Own Leadership Philosophy

Having a leadership philosophy will remind you of the leader you aspire to be and guide you when making difficult decisions.

Our world is constantly evolving, and more research tells leaders what they should be every day.

Still, having a clear philosophy about good leadership will help you stay calm and determined in the sea of information.

more research tells leaders what they should be every day

As Donald McGannon said, "Leadership is not a position or a title. It is action and example." I fully agree.

Leadership Philosophy: Frequently Asked Questions

What is a leadership philosophy.

A leadership philosophy is a set of beliefs, values, and principles that influence how a leader interprets reality and guides their interactions with others.

It acts as a personal manifesto for making decisions and leading people, reflecting the leader's vision, goals, and core values in both decision-making and people management.

Why is having a leadership philosophy important?

For leaders, it allows them to reflect on their values, guides decision-making, and can assist in career progression.

It ensures consistent and value-driven leadership for teams, fostering trust and improving performance.

How does a leadership philosophy differ from leadership styles?

While leadership styles focus on how leaders delegate and make decisions, a leadership philosophy is deeply personal, outlining a leader's values, beliefs, and goals.

It's more about the leader's inner guiding principles than their outward managerial methods.

What are the essential components of a leadership philosophy?

Key components include a personal definition of leadership, the leader's goals, core values for decision-making and managing people, and any additional principles that guide their leadership approach.

How can I write my own leadership philosophy?

Follow these steps to write your leadership philosophy:

• Begin by reflecting on influential leaders in your life, your personal experiences, and the kind of leader the future world needs.
• Define your leadership in your own words, outline your goals, and identify your core values in decision-making and people management.
• Customize a template to fit your authentic self, seek feedback, and be willing to revise your philosophy over time.

How often should I review and revise my leadership philosophy?

Leadership philosophies should evolve as you grow as a leader.

Regularly reviewing and updating it ensures that it remains aligned with your current beliefs, values, and your team's and organization's needs.

Can I share my leadership philosophy with my team?

Sharing your leadership philosophy with your team can enhance understanding, authenticity, and trust.

It allows your team to align with your values and reminds you to act according to your principles.

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Leadership Philosophy: Examples and Tips for Developing Your Own

Muhammad Arif Hossain

Administrative Expert and Creative Writer

Leadership philosophy is the guiding set of principles and beliefs that shape a leader’s approach and behavior in their role. It serves as a compass, steering leaders through challenges and decisions. A strong leadership ideology not only influences the leader’s actions but also inspires and motivates those around them. However, examples of leadership philosophies vary widely, as each leader has their own unique beliefs and ways of thinking. Some may prioritize transparency, collaboration, and empowerment, while others may emphasize innovation, accountability, and resilience. This piece of writing will explain everything you need to know about leadership philosophy including leadership philosophy examples and tips for developing a personal leadership ideology.

What is a Leadership Philosophy?

A leadership philosophy is a foundational framework similar to a strategic guidebook that guides a leader in their professional journey. It is a set of principles and values that describe a leader’s way of working. It functions as a compass, providing direction and coherence to decision-making processes. Basically, a leadership philosophy reflects the most important ideas that guide how a leader works with their team.

Developing a leadership ideology means thinking about your own values, what you’ve been through, and how you naturally lead. This helps you decide the best way to guide and motivate others. It affects how you talk to your team, make choices, keep them motivated, and deal with problems. A well-defined leadership philosophy helps leaders stay true to their core values, communicate effectively with their team members, and inspire others to achieve common goals.

Finally, a leadership philosophy is a set of beliefs, values, and principles that guide a leader’s behavior and decision-making process. It is an essential tool for shaping organizational culture and driving success in any leadership role.

8 Leadership Philosophy Examples

Leadership comes in various shapes and styles, and understanding different leadership philosophies can be significant in sharpening one’s own approach. Leadership philosophy examples include democratic leadership, autocratic leadership, laissez-faire leadership, managerial leadership, strategic leadership, transformational leadership, transactional leadership and participative leadership. Let’s dive deeper into them, each with its unique characteristics:

1. Democratic Leadership Philosophy

In the democratic leadership model, decisions are a collaborative endeavor. This approach values the input of team members, creating an environment where diverse perspectives contribute to decision-making. Democratic leadership promotes inclusivity, enhancing team engagement and cohesion. This style often results in motivated teams, driven by a sense of ownership and shared responsibility.

2. Autocratic Leadership Philosophy

Autocratic leadership centers decision-making authority in the hands of a single leader. Decisions are made independently, ensuring a streamlined process. Although autocratic leadership can be helpful in fast decision-making, it might lower team involvement and restrict creative contributions. It is a pragmatic approach in scenarios where clear directives are imperative.

3. Laissez-faire Leadership Philosophy

The laissez-faire approach accepts a hands-off style, granting team members significant autonomy. This philosophy encourages creativity and individual initiative but demands a highly skilled and self-motivated team. Laissez-faire leadership, when executed effectively, can create a culture of self-responsibility and innovation within the team.

4. Managerial Leadership Philosophy

Managerial leadership emphasises organizational structure, resource efficiency, and systematic coordination. This approach also ensures accountability and optimization, providing a well-structured framework for the team to achieve organizational goals. It is particularly effective in scenarios demanding streamlined processes and clear directives.

5. Strategic Leadership Philosophy

Strategic leaders focus on long-term vision and planning, aligning organizational strategies with evolving circumstances. Moreover, this approach focuses on being flexible and thinking ahead. It focuses on long-term success by trying to predict and adjust to external changes. Strategic leadership is crucial for organizations navigating complex and dynamic landscapes.

6. Transformational Leadership Philosophy

Transformational leaders inspire and motivate team members to surpass perceived limitations. This philosophy encourages innovation, personal growth, and a positive organizational culture. Additionally, transformational leadership creates an environment where team members feel empowered to contribute their best, driving creativity and a shared commitment to organizational goals. It is particularly effective in growing a culture of continuous improvement.

7. Transactional Leadership Philosophy

Transactional leaders operate on a system of rewards and punishments tied to predefined expectations and performance metrics. This structured approach ensures clarity in roles and expectations, promoting accountability and adherence to established standards. Transactional leadership is effective in situations where clear guidelines are necessary for task accomplishment.

8. Participative Leadership Philosophy

Participative leaders involve team members in decision-making processes, valuing shared responsibility. Collaboration is fundamental to problem-solving and goal-setting. Therefore, this philosophy enhances team engagement by giving members a sense of ownership in the decision-making process. It fosters increased commitment, collaboration, and a cohesive team environment.

12 Tips for Developing a Personal Leadership Philosophy

Developing a personal leadership philosophy requires profound self-analysis and strategic planning. Here are 12 helpful ideas to get you started building a strong and inspiring leadership philosophy that fits your values and helps you achieve lasting success:

1. Reflect on Your Values

Initiate this transformative process by engaging in a reflective examination of your core values. Dive deep into the principles that define your moral and ethical compass. Consider the ethical underpinnings that guide your decision-making as a leader, ensuring alignment with your personal beliefs.

2. Assess Your Strengths and Weaknesses

Undertake a comprehensive self-assessment, not only to identify your strengths and areas for growth but also to understand the spirit of your leadership style. Recognize the distinctive qualities that set you apart as a leader and confront your vulnerabilities with a genuine commitment to personal and professional development.

3. Set Short-Term and Long-Term Goals

Uplift your leadership aspirations by delineating clear and tangible goals for both the short and long term. Envision the transformative impact you aspire to make, not just on a day-to-day basis but as a visionary leader charting a course towards enduring success.

4. Craft a Vision Statement

Infuse your leadership philosophy with inspiration by crafting a vision statement that summarizes your profound aspirations. Look into the details of how this vision resonates with your values and the organizational culture you seek to cultivate. Envision the ripple effect your leadership will have on both individuals and the collective.

5. Identify Leadership Principles

Explore the essence of effective leadership by identifying the fundamental principles that resonate with your core values. These principles, more than mere guidelines, become the ethical foundation upon which your leadership decisions stand, shaping the very fabric of your leadership identity.

6. Apply Leadership Practices

Translate identified principles into tangible and actionable practices that permeate every facet of your leadership. From daily interactions to strategic decision-making, these practices should embody the very essence of your philosophy. Ensure a seamless integration of theory into the practical realm of your leadership.

7. Seek Feedback

Promote a culture of continuous improvement by actively seeking constructive feedback from a spectrum of sources. Welcome the diverse perspectives of peers, mentors, and team members as catalysts for refinement. This ongoing feedback loop becomes an invaluable tool for honing and evolving your leadership philosophy.

8. Commit to Lifelong Learning

Acknowledge the dynamic nature of leadership and commit unwaveringly to a journey of lifelong learning. Dive into the ever-evolving pool of ideas, trends, and best practices in leadership. This commitment ensures a perpetual state of adaptability, keeping your philosophy relevant in the face of evolving professional landscapes.

9. Lead by Example

Develop a culture of trust and accountability within your organization by consistently exemplifying the behavior and values you expect from your team. Beyond setting standards, explore the nuances of how your actions influence the organizational ethos, becoming a living testament to your leadership ideology.

10. Communicate Transparently

Grow a culture of clarity and understanding by transparently communicating your leadership philosophy to your team. Go beyond articulating expectations; dig into the foundational principles that govern your decisions. Transparency becomes the bridge between articulated philosophy and tangible workplace culture.

11. Monitor Progress

Institute a rigorous system for the periodic evaluation of your progress toward established leadership goals. Reflect not just on achievements but also on the challenges encountered. This introspective journey allows for a deeper understanding of your evolving leadership approach.

12. Be Open to Revising

Welcome a mindset of continuous improvement, acknowledging the dynamic nature of a leadership philosophy. Be open to revising it based on outcomes, experiences, and the evolving needs of your team and organization. This adaptive approach ensures the sustained relevance and effectiveness of your leadership ideology over time.

Final Thoughts

In the culmination of this exploration, we emphasize that developing a personal leadership philosophy is a dynamic journey of self-discovery and intentional growth. Your values serve as the compass, guiding ethical decisions, while acknowledging strengths and weaknesses fosters continuous improvement. Having clear goals and a vision gives you a path to follow. Turning your beliefs into actions shows that your leadership ideology makes a real difference. Welcoming feedback, committing to learning, and leading by example cultivate a culture of trust. Transparent communication, progress monitoring, and openness to revision form the pillars of a resilient leadership ideology. Remember, the essence lies not just in articulating your philosophy but embodying it in every leadership facet, forging a path of purpose and transformation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Developing a personal leadership philosophy is crucial as it provides a guiding framework for your leadership decisions. It helps align your actions with your values, sets clear goals, and fosters a consistent and authentic leadership approach.

Absolutely. A personal leadership philosophy is dynamic and can evolve based on experiences, outcomes, and the changing needs of your team and organization. Being open to revision ensures its continued relevance and effectiveness.

Leading by example establishes credibility and promotes a culture of trust and accountability within your team. Your actions speak louder than words, influencing the organizational ethos and setting standards for excellence.

Yes, transparent communication is essential. Clearly articulating your leadership philosophy ensures that your team understands your expectations, values, and overarching vision, fostering a unified and collaborative workplace.

Regularly evaluating progress involves reflective assessment. Consider achievements, challenges, and areas for refinement. This ongoing monitoring allows for an adaptive leadership approach based on real-time experiences.

Aligning your leadership ideology with organizational goals involves understanding the broader mission and values. Ensure that your ideology complements and contributes to these goals, creating synergy between your leadership approach and the organizational vision.

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Leadership Philosophy: A 6-Step Guide On Finding Your Leadership Style

Published: September 25, 2023

As a leader, how do you manage others? Do you prefer to bring in others for help? Or do you lead with an iron fist? Do you want to empower others to make decisions? Or do you view yourself as the rule-maker?

You may have a general idea on how you lead — but by developing a leadership philosophy, you can build a guide that improves your overall leadership abilities and acts as its foundation.

Table of contents:

• What is a leadership philosophy?
• Why care about leadership philosophy?
• How to write a leadership philosophy
• Leadership philosophy examples

What Is a Leadership Philosophy?

A leadership philosophy is a framework that contains principles and beliefs on how you interact, impact, and guide others. It brings together lessons and preferences learned from leading others into a structured system.

A leadership philosophy helps you better understand and articulate your style of communication, emotional intelligence, decision making, problem solving, and more.

Many create a statement to accompany their leadership philosophy: Some prefer short and precise ones, while others create whole explanatory documents. This depends on the level of detail you want to put into your leadership philosophy.

Why Care About Leadership Philosophy?

A leadership philosophy can help you cultivate consistent, high-quality leadership — an element of management missing across many companies. In fact, 77% of organizations regard their leadership as lacking. Employees concur: 78% say their leader lacks a strong vision for their organization.

Maintaining a leadership philosophy brings a number of benefits, such as:

• More consistency: A leadership philosophy acts as a guide, which makes your actions and beliefs more consistent.
• Greater transparency: By sharing your leadership philosophy with others, you can ensure they know how you manage people and projects.
• More self-awareness: Writing a leadership philosophy requires self-reflection, giving you greater insight into yourself.
• Faster decision making: Making decisions, especially high-stake ones, can feel paralyzing. A leadership philosophy expedites this process by providing an explicit description of your values, ethics, and beliefs.

How To Write a Leadership Philosophy

1. Identify your values

Your values and beliefs as a person should serve as the foundation of your leadership philosophy. So, to start, identify what you believe in. Do you value quick decision making, or do you take your time? How do you view learning?

Consider the following leadership traits you can jot down for yourself:

• Collaboration
• Flexibility
• Emotional intelligence

Many values exist and they depend on what you care about. Consider picking a few attributes you value most, and use them as the starting point of your leadership philosophy.

2. Write down who and what inspires you

After determining your personal values, consider who and what inspires you in life. Do you admire the work of a business owner or celebrity? Do you find yourself wanting to mimic another organization’s ethics?

Write down people, organizations, newsletters — anything that inspires you. You can use this list as a reference when crafting your own leadership philosophy.

3. Reflect on previous leadership experiences

Reflect on times when you’ve lead in the past, such as:

• School assignments
• Extracurricular activities
• Work projects

Ask yourself: How did you lead? What went well or bad? Did you enjoy it? If you could go back, how would you do it differently?

Write down your answers and reflections to these questions. Examining your previous experiences will help you identify evidence on the kinds of leadership styles you either enjoy or dislike.

4. Figure out your leadership style

Putting everything together, you now have the tools to identify your leadership style. The International Institute for Management Development (IMD) lists the following as the most common leadership styles.

Transformational Leadership

A transformational leader focuses on change, people, and the future. As the name suggests, transformational leaders prioritize significant change by inspiring followers to reach their full potential.

Delegative Leadership

This leadership style emphasizes a hands-off approach. Delegative leaders create tasks and assignments for their followers, and give them the initiative to complete them — trusting their employees to do their work with little supervision.

Authoritative Leadership

Authoritative leaders act as they want their followers to act. They take on the role of a mentor and provide personal guidance to each of their followers. Authoritative leaders assume a hands-on approach, as their style of leadership necessitates building relationships with each of their followers.

Transactional Leadership

Transactional leaders manage within a structured organization, complete with rewards and punishments. They create incentives for their followers to complete tasks and perform their job. Transactional leaders establish clear responsibilities for each employee, explicitly aligning their effort with rewards and punishments.

Participative Leadership

Participative leaders engage their followers in collaborative problem solving and decision making, with reduced emphasis on individuality in favor of teamwork. These leaders encourage and empower employees to present their ideas, take initiative, and operate as leaders within the team.

Servant Leadership

Servant leaders prioritize their followers’ needs over their own. They develop close-knit relationships with their followers, regardless of their position in the organization. Servant leadership focuses on making ethical decisions considerate of every individual in the organization.

5. Ask others in your network for advice

You now have a strong sense of your leadership style. Next, ask others in your network — such as former co-workers, mentors, or employees — for advice. How do they view you as a leader? What feedback do they have for your leadership style?

Asking others tunes you in to parts of your leadership you may not fully recognize. According to a Gitnux report, 50%-70% of people have a large blind spot that impacts their leadership and relationships.

6. Make your leadership philosophy clear and actionable

You can now assemble all your research and thoughts into a leadership philosophy. Remember to make each part of it clear and actionable, whether it’s one sentence or one page. To do this, consider:

• Writing short, succinct sentences
• Including example actions
• Explaining how you handle problems

Again, you do not necessarily need to build out an extensive leadership philosophy for it to work. This also depends on your leadership style — a shorter philosophy leaves room for flexibility while a longer one creates structure.

Leadership Philosophy Examples

Everyone’s leadership philosophy is unique — so your style of leadership may not directly match the six aforementioned types. However, you can take bits and pieces you like from each to form your own leadership style. For example, you may like the structured nature of transactional leadership and the ethical aspect of servant leadership.

Creating a leadership philosophy statement can keep you on track and make it easier for others to understand your leadership style.

Leadership philosophy statement

“I hope to significantly transform my team and how they do work. I will speak with them about their motivations and ensure projects align with both their goals and the organization’s.

On a monthly basis, I will check our key performance indicators (KPIs) and benchmarks to ensure we’re maintaining progress toward our future goals. I will ensure our team remains flexible by adjusting our goals as needed, thereby making us resilient to change.”

“I trust my team as much as I trust myself. I will determine the strengths and weaknesses of my team and give them assignments and projects based on that assessment. I will provide guidance and answer questions when necessary, but will empower my team to take initiative.

I will ask my team for feedback on my management style to avoid micromanagement, and for their ideas in regular brainstorming sessions.”

“I will act as a mentor to my team, guiding them to our goals and ensuring I build personal relationships with them. I will create a clear and agreeable mission for our team and will serve as a visionary they can follow.

I will provide frequent feedback and ensure each member feels heard in the organization. I will motivate and create enthusiasm within my team.”

“I believe in leading within a structured environment to best motivate and encourage my team. I will create appropriate incentives, such as cash bonuses, to reward high performance, and consider reasonable punishments to ensure team members maintain expected performance.

I will write down clear responsibilities for each team member, ensuring each one understands their tasks and expectations.”

“I want to empower my team to collaborate with me as equal partners. I will encourage our team to view themselves as a unit rather than a group of individuals, by reducing individual incentives in favor of team-based rewards.

I will host regular brainstorming sessions for employees to present their ideas. I will take all ideas, regardless of who they come from, seriously and with respect.”

“As a leader, I aim to prioritize the needs of the organization over any individual needs — including my own. I will build personal relationships with my team members by hosting regular one-on-one meetings and communicating with them as partners rather than followers.

I will ensure I understand how organizationwide decisions impact members by asking for their input. To that end, I will make decisions that benefit the entire team, even if it negatively impacts me as an individual.”

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Tips for Developing a Personal Leadership Philosophy

Source: https://pixabay.com/photos/books-library-reading-education-2606859/

A leadership philosophy has been defined as "a set of beliefs, values, and principles that strongly influence[s] how we interpret reality and guide our understanding of influencing humans" (Ambler, 2012, p. 77, as cited in Speranza & Pierce, 2019). A leadership philosophy promotes communicative actions and helps a leader develop the capability and capacity cultivate the best human potential.  Reflecting on 10 questions related to personal leader development that we shared in first article ( Preparing to Engage in Leader Development of the Developing the Leader in You series) will help you to better prepare to write a personal leadership philosophy. Below we will discuss why a leadership philosophy is important and provide you with tips that will help you to write your leadership philosophy.

Why a Personal Leadership Philosophy is Important

A leadership philosophy is a "personal roadmap" that translates your beliefs, values, and principles. A leadership philosophy is a foundation for ethical decision-making. Moreover, it guides person's life and work-related concerns.

Tips for how to Develop a Personal Leadership Philosophy

We adapted some strategies from Leadership Paradigms' (2009), Ziskin's (2015), and Speranza and Pierce's (2019) works.

• Consider who your role models are. How did your role models impact the development of the leader in you?
• Consider the life events that impacted your leadership style.
• Identify the leader qualities you are proud of.
• Determine what is impeding your leader development (i.e., knowledge, people, resources)
• Reflect on your success in past. How efficient are you at living out your beliefs in your daily life?
• Consider the SMART goals you set. Determine how you will incorporate these goals into your leadership philosophy. See our previous article .
• Reflect on your vision of teamwork and team success. Do you see yourself as a team coach? What does teamwork mean to you?
• Think about different styles of leadership . What leadership approach fits your values, beliefs, and principles? For example, servant leadership, transformational leadership, or others?

Deierlein (2015) recommended the following essential components of a personal leadership philosophy:

• Your core values (includes your purpose)
• Your work style (includes your communication style)
• Your expectations
• Behavior you will not tolerate
• Your professional priorities
• How you want to receive feedback

Be creative when developing your leadership philosophy. Use essential components of the leadership philosophy recommended by Deierlein (2015) as a start. Add additional components that reflect your values, beliefs, and principles.

We hope this article helped you to begin developing your own personal leadership philosophy. For more resources related to this topic, please contact us.

Deierlein, T. (2015). Why you should have a written leadership philosophy .  Leader to leader ,  2015 (77), 13-18.

Leadership Paradigms, Inc. (2009). Developing a personal leadership philosophy.

Newlon, K. (2017) Leadership in teams and in community organizations (COMLDR 4430) Course. Columbus, OH: The Ohio State University.

Speranza, C.R., & Pierce, A. (2019). Development of a personal leadership philosophy: an experiential and reflective opportunity in the graduate classroom .  Journal of leadership education ,  18 (3), 167-175.

Ziskin, I. (2015).  Three: The human resources emerging executive . Hoboken NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

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Individual Leadership Philosophy Essay

Introduction, aspects of my personal leadership philosophy, works cited.

My leadership philosophy is guided by the most appropriate values, competencies, and principles. I have been focusing on specific abilities that have the potential to support my personal and career goals (Doltu 168). I have constantly interacted with my classmates since the beginning of the resident phase of the Basic Course. By so doing, I have acquired new competencies that make me a team player. Such abilities will also make it easier for me to interact with different team members. I will also guide them to achieve their leadership goals. This discussion gives a detailed analysis of my leadership philosophy.

To begin with, I always believe that I am a competent leader who can produce positive results. Within the past four years, I have acquired specific skills that can make me a competent leader. My leadership philosophy is characterized by specific values and attributes. I always embrace the power of transformational leadership (Wiltshire 4). The leadership approach makes it easier for me to collaborate with my followers in order to achieve the best results. I possess effective competencies such as decision-making, critical thinking, and problem-solving. My philosophy is characterized by the best values such as integrity, authenticity, humility, wisdom, and service (Webb, Darling, and Alvey 9). These values make it easier for me to support the needs of my followers. My belief system is founded on the understanding that all people are equal. This means that they must be treated equally. I always use this belief system to guide, support and empower my teammates.

As well, my interaction with different classmates has proved helpful. For instance, the interaction has equipped me with new skills that have become part of my leadership style. I have learned how to collaborate with different individuals. The practice has also encouraged me to be committed to the needs of my teammates and followers. I have also developed new values that will continue to support my leadership objectives. The experience has also made me courageous. I have developed new communication skills such as effective listening, courtesy, and trust (Stone, Conley, and Luo 34). I have also understood why successful leaders empower their followers using the best incentives and resources. These skills, values, and attributes will make it easier for me to interact efficiently with my teammates in the future.

The other important observation is that leadership is an ever-changing approach. It is usually guided by new situations and experiences. This knowledge explains why I will always acquire evidence-based concepts and ideas to improve my leadership philosophy. I am planning to interact with successful leaders and managers in the future. I will also read numerous publications, books, and articles on leadership. This learning process will equip me with new concepts that can make me a competent leader (Ricketson 12). I will interact with more friends and workmates. I will also lead my teammates in order to achieve their potentials.

In conclusion, my leadership philosophy is guided by powerful values such as humility, courage, and authenticity (Hatala 5). I always focus on the most desirable moral theories in order to act ethically. The class materials and interactions have widened my leadership skills. Such skills will play a significant role in supporting my future career and personal objectives. I will also acquire new skills that have the potential to improve my leadership philosophy.

Doltu, Daniella. “The Contribution of Philosophy and Psychology in the Ethical Decision Making Process.” AGATHOS: An International Review of the Humanities and Social Sciences 1.1 (2013): 163-174. Print.

Hatala, Lillas. “Integrative Leadership: Building a Foundation for Personal, Interpersonal and Organizational Success.” Leadership Journal 1.1 (2012): 1-9. Print.

Ricketson, Rushton. “A View of Leadership: The Following-Leader Philosophy of Leadership.” The Following-Leader 1.1 (2013): 1-17. Print.

Stone, Glenn, Cynthia Conley and Yibing Luo. “Alternative Perspectives on Leadership: Integrating Transformational Leadership with Confucian Philosophy.” Open Journal of Leadership 3.1 (2014): 30-38. Print.

Webb, Laverne, Jeri Darling and Nanette Alvey. “Multicultural Leadership Development in the 21st Century.” EnCompass 1.1 (2014): 1-20. Print.

Wiltshire, Eileen. “Transformational Leadership: What’s Your Motivation?” Leadership Advance Online 1.22 (2012): 1-7. Print.

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Perspectives: Go quickly, start now: a personal leadership philosophy

Context is everything. I write this against a backdrop where leadership, its presence, its manifestation, its absence and its consequences are in the spotlight both in my home country and across the world. For me, leadership is political, situational, contextual and personal. On a personal level I have functioned as a leader working within the complexity of global health for many years. Irrespective of the technical specialty in which I work, my focus has always been on organisational change (improvement) and influencing the behaviour of others. Change in this context is predicated to a large part on managerial leadership and support, and these elements have been described as critical for successful organisational performance and the implementation of quality improvement ( Roebuck, 2011 ; Ryan, 2004 ). Indeed, if I consider my current context, then accelerating progress towards the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the ultimate health-related goal of universal health coverage (UHC) requires leadership – a key structural attribute of a functioning health system – ‘If the top is not interested, it will not happen’ ( Koegler, 2011 ).

If I were to summarise my leadership story in a Tweet, it would be something like this: #graduatenurse #healthvisitor #infectionpreventionist #MBA #national #international #president #director #charitablework #author & #consultant. My own approach to leadership is influenced by my journey and by other factors including the academic literature, a library of leadership books and the individual leaders that have inspired me on the way. My story started with a nursing degree in the last century. That then progressed to my first ward, a novice nurse with a surprisingly bold voice, convincing those more senior to me to let me lead on the development of a nursing philosophy. Bringing colleagues on board, using a typewriter to print the co-developed philosophy (co-developed with staff and patients and their families), proudly framing and displaying it at the entrance to the ward. This is nothing special and I know that many colleagues will have executed similar things, particularly of my generation – but it’s my story and it’s the foundation for everything that happened next. I remember challenging colleagues on the rituals I saw all around ( Elliott et al., 2015 ). I quite literally digested the book by Walsh and Ford (1989) and probably recited it in my sleep. All of this I’m certain I undertook with annoying zealousness, but I think it set me on a path, a journey, and was a little bit of leadership bursting to get out. I didn’t realise it but I was challenging injustices and championing patient-centered care and the true value of nursing. And I was doing so in a position of being an outsider, at that time, and on that ward in the north of England, I was ‘the only graduate nurse in the village’. It was a stigma of sorts and I think it affected how I developed. I learned a lot.

Jump forward a few years and I’m a specialist nurse, an infection preventionist, in a big tertiary referral centre in the UK, managing a team. Another fork in the road and I decide to study for a master’s in business administration (MBA) rather than pursue further studies related more closely to the technical aspects of microbiology and infection prevention and control (IPC). This was perceived as a strange decision by some of my peers, but I was excited to learn more about how organisations functioned and the role of leaders therein. I wanted to be an effective (nurse) leader. Another decade passes and I find myself working at the World Health Organization (WHO), one of very few nurses (still the case although there are slightly more now than then) and in a relatively senior position, working alongside medical doctors. I lost count of the number of times my name plate in a meeting stated ‘Dr Storr’. I learned not to apologise for not being a doctor. On numerous occasions I was on the receiving end of a look of horror when I corrected senior medical colleagues at big international meetings to explain I was in fact a nurse. Anyhow, none of this stopped me moving forward, and over time my work has evolved to its current focus on supporting low and middle-income countries in building stronger health systems. It has also included a quest to lobby for IPC to be taken seriously beyond its echo chamber – a work in progress – trying to influence policy makers, those working in disease silos. And ultimately trying to position IPC as a fundamental component of quality care, to build a case for IPC as something that’s relevant to the SDGs, particularly goal 3.8 on UHC and quality ( Storr et al., 2016 ). All of these things have fed in to how I have developed in all aspects of my professional life and in particular as a leader. They have shaped my leadership philosophy.

My leadership philosophy is therefore underpinned by what I consider to be my purpose in the world of work. It may sound grand, but as I’ve developed I seek to be a powerful force for good in global health, to influence others to make healthcare safer, more equitable, and of a higher quality for all people with no one left behind. In particular it’s influenced by the work of Heifitz ( Heifitz 1994 ; Heifitz et al., 2009) and the notion of ‘adaptive leadership’. I became familiar with this work from personal interactions with Peter Pronovost – a ‘thought leader’ in the field of healthcare quality and safety. Intrigued to learn more I bought the books and set about reflecting on how this translated into my day-to-day reality. Heifitz and colleagues explain that adaptive leadership is concerned with mobilising people to tackle tough challenges and to thrive. My approach is also based around the central idea of a leader as a principled, authentic visionary – one who inspires others by acting as an exemplar. At its core are integrity, humility and empathy. It also draws on a number of theories including transformational leadership ( Boal et al., 1988 ; Boerner et al., 2007 ), performance-oriented or charismatic/value-based leadership ( House et al., 2004 ) and more recently authentic leadership that has attempted to overcome some of the criticisms of the former ( Michie and Gooty, 2005 ). Boal et al. (1988) describe the impact that transformational leaders have on the behaviour of others ‘lift(ing) ordinary people to extraordinary heights’. Transformational leaders act as role models, are respected and trusted, promote self-efficacy and provide meaning and challenge to the work of their followers ( Boerner et al., 2007 ). They galvanise followers around a vision of a better future ( House et al., 2004 ). It’s the vision part of this style of leadership that I like – transformational leadership per se coming in and out of fashion (and not without its critics). Lilley (2017) got it spot on when he said that leaders are ‘visible, have a vision and share it often’. So if I had to write my own vision statement it would be something like this. My vision is to inspire others through my actions and beliefs as an ethical humanitarian, in particular to empower others to believe in their capability to surpass their wildest expectations and to see their power as agents of change and improvement in a healthcare context, to improve the quality and safety of healthcare. My overriding purpose is to continue to be abundant, to engage others in realising dreams through inclusivity, togetherness and always with an eye on pursuing equity and social justice.

As well as having a personal vision, in recent years I have been stimulated by some studies of leadership, sat down and considered my own core leadership values, and these also inform my approach to leadership. My values in particular are influenced by recent literature on the cultural elements necessary for sustaining high quality compassionate healthcare ( Dixon-Woods et al., 2014 ) and the criticality of understanding one’s own values and emotions ( Michie and Gooty, 2005 ). My five core values are as follows: (a) I believe in social justice and that a single individual can shake the world gently (quote adapted from Mahatma Ghandi); (b) I believe in tolerance and respect for others in the pursuit of equity in healthcare – everyone is worthy of being cared for with compassion as a human right – no one left behind; (c) I believe in the power of collective action and teamwork, grounded in trust, in the pursuit of effective, safe high-quality healthcare; (d) I believe in ethical humanitarianism (actively engaging in the promotion of human welfare and social reform); finally, (e) I believe in humility, the power of listening and the capability continuously to reflect on one's actions ( Quinn, 2004 ), balanced with inner strength and belief, as a prerequisite for self-improvement.

I end this reflection with a more recent leadership experience that solidified all of the theory I had been carrying around within me. I have always wanted to challenge and change things in a positive way; especially the status quo. As a younger, more novice nurse perhaps looking back I was too zealous but I don’t regret a thing. Shake it up. Make people think. We should never stop doing that. More recently I was president of a 2000 member-strong charity – the Infection Prevention Society (IPS) of the UK and Ireland. I headed up its board of directors and this role for me was all about the realisation of the power and influence of leaders as agents of positive change. I realised I could work with the board and the members to help transform the organisation and I did this for a short time. In this time, I tried to support the society to become, and be perceived as, a force for good. It was a wonderful experience of putting into practice some of my leadership principles. In particular, this experience was about moving quickly, and drawing on all of those academic change management principles I’d digested over the years. The presidential role lasts 2 years (with 2 years as vice president). Time was limited and acting slowly was not an option – we had to create that sense of urgency (Dixon Woods et al., 2014; Kotter, 2007 ). We had to convince the members that change was vital for survival. First, we asked a series of questions: what was the overriding vision and mission of the society, what had it achieved in the last year and where was it heading in the next 5 years? The answer to this was simple – no formal vision and no formal plan. Under my influence the board simultaneously invested time listening to all members – what did they want? They told us, and over the coming years we listened. It was that simple, but it took a certain kind of leadership. The approach has been written up and makes interesting reading ( Storr et al., 2012 ). Here are some snippets. To win over the unconvinced a number of things took place – the survey acted as a catalyst to generate the evidence for change. It helped to craft a manifesto, a mantra, a script to sell the need for change. I convinced the board and the members that we had to ‘reinvent’ the society starting with co-developing a fresh new brand starting with a new logo. I implemented a weekly communication with all members, directly from me, that is, a personal touch. I started monthly drop-in sessions for members to connect directly with myself and the board. For me, success hinged on making the president role come to life – to be a visible, listening leader. We co-developed core values for the board to act on, as the standards that would drive all of our actions and nurture a previously absent (in my mind) sense of accountability to the members. I personally tried to lead by example. To engender in all members the unique influence they had over the million and a half people who worked in health and social care in the UK and Ireland, and therefore ultimately over the people who accessed healthcare – to make it focused on the impact we had on patient’s/people’s lives. I knew that success would be the execution of the strategy and its sustainability beyond my 2-year tenure – setting the stage for the next president and the next and so on, to give a solid long-term purpose to the board’s work.

What I learned from this experience were three things. First, that respect and reputation go a long way in convincing others of the need for change. Part of my success was that the board believed in me and they believed in me because I had a track record. Second, that the belief of the board (and ordinary members) gave me the courage to grasp the opportunity to transform the organisation – they made me feel that anything was possible. Third, that a mandate for change is critical – gathering evidence and listening to people made the difference between success and failure. To the virgin leader, what I have to teach is simple – it’s all about the planning. But paradoxically, I would also emphasise that it’s equally important not to be too rigid and ‘over plan’. Hold on to a small number of what you consider critical things you want to achieve and be prepared to listen and change direction. I did come across a number of organisational constipators who resisted change at all cost. I listened, but I let those around me drive the change forward using the momentum that had been generated through the manifesto/mantra and the member feedback.

The belief of others was ultimately what made the change possible and successful. If someone else believes you can do something, even though you may doubt yourself – that can make all the difference between stopping and carrying on. The belief of others coupled with your own inner passion for change is a perfect combination for success. And my own belief and how I sold this was critical. I built a compelling case for change and articulated that case in a calm and systematic manner – I developed a script and stuck to it. I made it clear that the benefits of the change were that as a successful society we could change people’s lives. Indeed, this emerged from the vision that was co-developed across the organisation.

Ultimately, what I’ve learned over the years is that to make an IPC programme work, in the largest, most highly specialised hospital or in a small remote rural health post, requires leadership. In particular it’s about making sure that we can influence the right people to make the right things happen. Communication is key to this. To make an impact and to change people’s lives, whatever model of leadership we aspire to, must be translated into leadership actions – ‘the messages that leaders send about their priorities are communicated more powerfully through their actions than their words’ ( Dixon-Woods et al., 2014 ). Informed by Covey (2004) and Bradberry and Greaves (2009) I reflect on my leadership approach at least each year, and even have a structured action plan to help me develop further as a leader with strong emotional intelligence. A clear, time-bound plan has helped instill a sense of urgency that guides and supports how I live out my leadership philosophy in the real world. As Berwick (2004) articulates perfectly ‘go quickly, start now – delay is waste’.

Acknowledgements

Special acknowledgements to the inspirational Dr Ann-Michele Gundlach, Assistant Professor – Adjunct, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health who deepened my understanding of the principles and practice of principled leadership.

Julie Storr originally studied for a degree in nursing at the University of Manchester before specialising in infection prevention and control (IPC). She is co-founder and director of S3 Global and currently supports a number of WHO teams (e.g. quality, water, sanitation and hygiene and antimicrobial resistance). She is on the steering group of Healthcare Information for All (HIFA), a trustee of Peoples-Uni and an honorary adviser to the Tropical Health Education Trust.

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• Storr J, Loveday H, Kilpatrick C, et al. (2012) Disney, engagement, action: the Infection Prevention Society’s strategy from development to launch . Journal of Infection Prevention 13 : 4–10. [ Google Scholar ]
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5 Most Valuable Leadership Philosophy Examples to Understand

• by Louis Carter

Use our tools, guides, and processes to develop, assess, and become even more successful in living your leadership philosophy. We have helped over 42,000 accomplished leaders become more effective through our leadership philosophy process.

A strong leadership philosophy is key to successfully running a team, organization, or business. When your leadership style is rooted in a strong set of values and principles, you’ll remain committed to your goals, and you’ll be more likely to motivate and inspire your employees on a regular basis.

Odds are good you already understand this. That doesn’t mean you confidently know how to develop your leadership philosophy statement. Thoroughly understanding how to cultivate a philosophy that provides a foundation for consistent success is often naturally challenging.

It has to be. By studying examples of leadership philosophy, you’ll more clearly understand what you must do to develop your own. First, however, it’s important to accurately know what a leadership philosophy consists of.

Creating, Living, and Becoming Your Leadership Philosophy

I am the CEO and founder of Best Practice Institute, partner to Newsweek for the Top Most Loved Workplaces, trained organizational psychologist, and voted a top 10 organizational culture expert globally by peers and clients.

We have built leadership philosophies, top cultures, and leaders in companies ranging from the Pentagon, United Nations, and US Department of Justice to Fortune 500 companies such as Pfizer, Volvo, Walmart, Bank of America, CVS Healthcare, BlackRock, Corning, and many more.

Join other 42.000 accomplished leaders who have become more effective and successful as a result of our programs.

Building your leadership philosophy is essential to stay current, brandable, and effective in your current or next job. If you want to succeed to the next level, you need to see how others perceive you around the corners and adjust your philosophy continuously to become even more effective.  This process cements your circle of advocates, direct reports, clients, and bosses because your stakeholders will be in charge of making you an even more successful leader or provider of services – instead of seeing you as an adversary.

Our process is guaranteed to be successful because it defines your philosophy and uses the power of stakeholder input to ensure you get support in your leadership position or job.

You will succeed as long as you do the process, follow up with stakeholders, and commit to living the leadership philosophy. Ultimately, you are as successful as your actions around your new leadership philosophy.

The $29, Do-It-Yourself guide includes:

• Instructions on how to define your leadership philosophy.
• Sample leadership philosophies.
• Developing your own leadership philosophy google worksheet. 
• The Daily leadership goal tracking google worksheet.
• The Feedback worksheet gathers and measures feedback from various stakeholders. 
• The Leadership Philosophy tracker to ensure you successfully implement and improve your leadership philosophy and stakeholders’ perceptions.

What is a Leadership Philosophy?

Studying personal leadership philosophy examples is a valuable activity. The philosophy you eventually cultivate for yourself shouldn’t necessarily be a perfect mirror image of the examples you consider. You need to remember that a leadership philosophy needs to be personal and unique. This is because it needs to be authentic. If you try to lead based on someone else’s philosophy, you’ll be less effective.

A leadership philosophy is essentially a belief system that guides your decision-making. It consists of your core principles, perspectives, and values. When you define what they are, and use them to shape a leadership philosophy statement, your behaviors and decisions will remain consistent.

You can simplify this idea for yourself by thinking about a leader as if they were a parent. Strong parents don’t want to be inconsistent in the way they raise their children. They understand they’ll be more effective if their approach to raising children always reflects their genuine beliefs and values.

The same concept applies to strong leadership. Those you lead will have more respect for you if they can clearly see you make decisions based on core principles that don’t change simply because circumstances have changed.

Personal Leadership Philosophy Examples Worth Studying

1. relational leadership philosophy.

It’s easy to become the type of leader who distrusts other people. This is particularly true in business. Regardless of your industry, achieving the status of a leader and helping your company grow requires embracing your competitive nature to some degree.

Unfortunately, some leaders become so competitive that they start to feel they can’t trust others. They become suspicious of everyone else’s motives. They may even consider their own employees to be potential threats. Thus, they may lead ineffectively, behaving too defensively to make the right decisions in all situations.

Other leaders adopt a different approach. They make the decision to “love” everyone they encounter on a regular basis. This love is not the type of love they would feel for a romantic partner, but it is similar to the love one feels for relatives and close family members. It requires a surrender to feel empathy for the other person, and do their level best to come to resolutions by regulation emotions.

Consider this example of leadership philosophy as you develop your own ideas about how to be an effective leader. Treating your team members (and even your direct competition) with care and respect can be very helpful in a number of ways – and is more of a relational  leadership style .

For instance, perhaps an employee who was once enthusiastic about their role has become clearly disengaged in recent months. A leader whose philosophy is rooted in defensiveness and competitiveness might assume this employee has turned against them for some reason. As a result, the relationship will suffer, and the worker may seek employment elsewhere.

On the other hand, someone who leads with love in a more relational leadership style would take the time to ask themselves what factors may have contributed to this employee’s lack of engagement. They can then more effectively determine what steps they must take to correct the issue. This yields very practical benefits. Engaged employees are more productive, and more likely to remain loyal to an organization.  

2. Positive Future Vision Leadership Philosophy

Do you believe everyone has the potential to succeed in certain major capacities? Or do you think some people are simply more naturally talented than others, and only a few exceptional individuals can truly thrive in their careers and lives? If you begin with this positive view of the unlimited potential of every individual then you likely are exercising a positive future vision leadership philosophy.

Determining how you feel about this can help you determine your overall leadership philosophy. For instance, a leader who naturally assumes some people will always lack the potential to truly succeed will often overlook strengths in both their employees and themselves. However, a leader who is optimistic about everyone’s potential will constantly be on the lookout for qualities and traits they wish to cultivate in themselves and their team members.

Leading with an optimistic and positive vision of the future improves your chances of leading a successful team. Focusing on everyone’s innate potential gives you more opportunities to leverage the unique talents of your employees.

This belief is summarized in a famous quote from Henry Ford: “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right.” Thinking you and everyone around you can succeed may be an ideal leadership philosophy principle worth keeping in mind.

3. Co-Creator Leadership Philosophy

Your own personal leadership philosophy needs to be relatively consistent. It won’t help you make the “right” and most consistent decisions if it’s always changing. One way to ensure that you can remain strong in your leadership and vision, while also being agile enough to hear and incorporate the ideas of others is to be a co-creator leader.

Being a co-creator leader means you set the vision of what you are trying to accomplish and create consistent exercises for your people to make the vision come to reality by coming to THEIR own conclusions on how to get their with YOUR guidance. Starting by doing the exercise on your own is a great way to show your commitment to your vision and the exercise itself. Be sure to be as direct as possible about what the exercise is.

For example, if you want specific and simple financial projections that implements your vision around “customer-first” then the exercise should specify, “Create a simple, financial project that is simple and elegant for customers.” Then provide an example. Any adjustments to what you are provided should be given in the form of feed-forward – or advice, so they can be successful in your exercise.

Be sure to facilitated the exercise within a short period of time – don’t wait a week. If you can, do it in real time, and provide real-time feedback as to how they can do it better and meet your expectations.  If it is spot on, then you have achieved one of the dreams of a co-creator – an amazing team who are smarter than you are!

It is crucial to remember that the way in which you approach your day-to-day operations likely will change over the years.

This has become quite clear in the digital transformation age. The rise of new technologies has disrupted numerous industries at a faster pace than ever before. Leaders across these industries have had to adapt in order to stay competitive and effective.

Not all have been successful in doing so. Those who have managed to change with their industries tend to be the types of leaders who assume everyone including themselves has the capacity to continue learning new skills over the years. They also tend to be leaders who perceive constant learning as its own virtue.

Being a Co-creator as a leadership philosophy has major value in fields where disruption is common. You can’t expect the way you and your team members operate to remain the same throughout your entire career. Change is inevitable. If your leadership philosophy is rooted in the belief that constant learning is both important and possible, you may adapt to these changes with relative ease.

4. Solutions-Oriented Leadership Philosophy

All leaders encounter challenges. This is true in all industries. The way in which you think about these challenges will play a major role in your potential for continued success.

Leaders who believe challenges represent stressful problems often become pessimistic. Every time a new challenge arises, they lose energy. Over time, this leads to frustration. Sadly, if you’re stressed and frustrated as a leader, you’ll struggle to motivate your team.

Other leaders feel almost enthusiastic about challenges. They don’t focus on the problems. Instead, they focus on challenges as new opportunities to develop unique solutions. They also understand that being forced to develop new solutions helps them and their team members cultivate new skills that will be applicable later.

For example, when the United States committed to sending humans to the moon, the scientists who tackled the project set up a major challenge as a major opportunity. Yes, they struggled, but the solutions they developed over the course of the Apollo program helped them achieve other major goals later on.

You may not be responsible for sending a person to the moon. However, your work will involve challenges. Consider inspiring yourself and your team members to overcome them (and grow) by focusing on solutions instead of problems.

5. Humor-based Leadership Philosophy

This final example of leadership philosophy may seem to be less valuable than the others listed here. Don’t make the mistake of dismissing it! This personal leadership philosophy example can in fact be much more helpful than you might initially assume.

Again, challenges are unavoidable. When they arise, it’s not uncommon for team members to lose enthusiasm for their work. It’s easy to be excited and optimistic when everything is going right. During times of struggle, it’s equally easy to start losing faith in one’s own abilities.

You need to guard against this. Your team will be much less effective if pessimism and cynicism are allowed to fester. That’s why it’s important to cultivate a working environment in which people feel joyful and at ease. In other words, you need to cultivate a working environment in which laughter plays an important role.

Hunter “Patch” Adams  is the perfect example of a humor-based leader. He uses humor and compassion to lead medical departments, and also create his own non-profit Gesundheit Institute to provide palliative care to patients with terminal illness.

As he told me in a personal interview , “There’s no place where loving, compassion, fun, creativity, understanding, generosity are not needed in the world. It can benefit every single environment, from churches and prisons, to hospitals and legislative halls, to city streets and elevators. There’s no place where I haven’t done it that it hasn’t obviously added something.”

That’s not to say you shouldn’t take challenges seriously. On the contrary, your team can only thrive if you approach problems with the understanding that they need to be addressed. And, when these challenges present themselves, you need to find ways to prevent unnecessary stress from creeping in. Leading with a sense of humor and levity will help. When your team members see that you don’t allow problems to worry you, they’ll also be less worried.

6. Thought Leader – Founder Philosophy 

In leadership, a seldom-spoken philosophy has become taboo within the circles of influence. It challenges the prevailing notion that leaders should refrain from positioning themselves as heroes or showcasing their remarkable abilities. Figures such as Jack Welch, Steve Jobs, and Elon Musk are made into villains for their endeavors to save the day through their brilliant ideas, unwavering work ethic, high expectations of their employees, and unapologetically claiming credit for their extraordinary visions for the future. 

While I fully comprehend the importance of acknowledging and recognizing the efforts of one’s team, particularly when they deserve such accolades, it is equally imperative to credit oneself and effectively market one’s strengths. 

As the host of the Newsweek Leader Show and a Social/Organizational Psychologist conducting extensive research studies, I have had the privilege of interviewing and surveying thousands of leaders. Curiously, I have yet to witness a single leader publicly and unreservedly taking credit for their achievements. Only in private, away from the cameras and recording devices, do these leaders share heartfelt sentiments about the collective success resulting from their team’s hard work, unwavering determination, grit, and focus. They have wholeheartedly dedicated their lives to their vision, products, and services, often prioritizing work over personal and family life. However, it is essential to remember that they consciously chose this path. So why do we persistently cast them as villains?

Allow me to reference the words of Ben Folds, who aptly stated, “The Music isn’t always good for the life.” Ben Folds, undoubtedly one of the greatest musicians of all time, devoted his time to what he loved. Should he be condemned for this passion? 

As a social/organizational psychologist, however, tread on the thought leader philosophy carefully. Most people on their deathbed I have read about say they would instead have spent more time with friends and family than in the office. Balance is essential. Love is vital – even if what you love is often your work. 

Embracing the Thought Leader-Founder philosophy demands unwavering focus and determination. It necessitates a profound love and passion for one’s work and business. It signifies that when an essential task presents itself, the leader-founder ensures its completion, regardless of obstacles. Accountability becomes a laughable notion to these individuals because they embody it and transcend it, holding themselves to standards that surpass most people’s imagination. They live and breathe their work, not because they are workaholics or imbalanced, but because they genuinely love what they do.

Writing Your Leadership Philosophy Statement

You should feel empowered now to take ideas from each of these leadership philosophies and be an alchemist of your own! Take these base metals and merge them into one leadership philosophy YOU can define.  Brainstorm the name of your leadership philosophy – what would you call it?

Based on your personal experiences why did you come to the conclusion of your new leadership philosophy?

Leadership philosophies are intensely personal and specific to your conditions and circumstances. Your leadership philosophy must authentically reflect your actual values and the situations of different employees .

However, by considering examples when writing your own leadership philosophy statement, you’ll have a much better understanding of what questions you should ask yourself to develop a philosophy that’s true to your beliefs .

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Home — Essay Samples — Business — Leadership — Personal Philosophy of Leadership

Personal Philosophy of Leadership

• Categories: Leadership

About this sample

Words: 526 |

Published: Jan 30, 2024

Words: 526 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

Definition of leadership, the importance of leadership, my personal philosophy of leadership, leadership in practice, developing leadership skills, challenges and ethical considerations in leadership.

• https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2020/05/29/what-makes-an-effective-leader/#10fcf637367f
• https://www.apa.org/monitor/2017/02/cover-humility
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnbaldoni/2014/12/28/3-essential-traits-of-good-leadership/#36cff9949488

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Writing an Educational Leadership Philosophy Statement

Dr. natasha kenny, phd, & dr. carol berenson, phd, taylor institute for teaching and learning .

December 2016

We often support instructors in creating teaching philosophy statements, and various resources exist to support their development (e.g. Chism, 1998; Kenny, Jeffs, and Berenson, 2015; Schonwetter et al., 2002).  However, few resources are available to help faculty in preparing educational leadership philosophy statements.

We recently created a resource to help faculty preparing educational leadership philosophy statements as part of their nomination dossiers for institutional and national awards, such as the University of Calgary Teaching Award for Educational Leadership and the  3M National Teaching Fellowship .

Similar in format to a teaching philosophy statement, an educational leadership philosophy statement “clearly communicate[s] what our beliefs are about educational leadership, why we hold these beliefs and how we translate our beliefs into practice” (Berenson and Kenny, 2015).  An example structure for an educational leadership philosophy statement and guiding questions to help those preparing a statement are presented in Table 1 below.  While every statement will uniquely articulate the educational leadership beliefs and practices of each author, these questions provide a foundational guide for helping to support faculty in creating an educational leadership philosophy statement.

Dr. Ken MacMillan, 3M National Teaching Fellow, and the 2015 recipient of the UCalgary Award for Educational Leadership has shared an  example educational leadership philosophy statement here .

Philosophy statement components

Developing an educational leadership philosophy statement provides an opportunity for individuals to reflect on their own leadership beliefs and activities. This process also makes visible the many ways in which leadership is formally and informally enacted by individuals on our campus.

Beliefs about educational leadership

What are my beliefs about educational leadership in post-secondary education? Why do I hold these beliefs?   Who or what has most informed my leadership approaches? How have my beliefs been influenced by my experiences postsecondary educator and/or scholarly literature related to leadership? What difference do I hope to make as a leader? What does it mean to be a good leader in a post-secondary context?

Educational leadership activities and initiatives

What educational leadership activities, practices and initiatives have I implemented? How do these align with my beliefs? When have I felt most engaged and affirmed as an educational leader? What are my key strengths and skills as a leader? What am I most proud of? What sets me apart? What are some of my accomplishments as a post-secondary leader?

Impact and influence

What difference have I made, and how do I know? What has been the impact and influence of my educational leadership (on me, on students, on colleagues, on my department, on my faculty, on the institution and beyond)? What have others learned from my leadership approaches?

Future aspirations

How will I continue to develop, grow, and improve as a leader? What interests me most about teaching and learning in post-secondary education? What changes do I most hope to see and inspire? What are my future goals and aspirations as a leader in post-secondary education?

Guiding questions adapted from: Kearns, K.D. & Sullivan, C.S. (2011); Kenny, Jeffs & Berenson (2015); Stavros & Hinrichs (2011); Schonwetter et al. (2002); Seldin, P., Miller, J. E., & Seldin, C. A. (2010).

Related content

Sample teaching philosophy statements .

Read more >>

What Makes a Great Teaching Award Nomination Dossier? 

Berenson, C. & Kenny, N.A. (2016).  Preparing an Educational Leadership Philosophy Statement . Calgary, AB: Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning.

Chism, Nancy. (1998). Developing a philosophy of teaching statement.  Essays on Teaching Excellence: Toward the Best in the Academy, 9,  1-3.  Retrieved from http://podnetwork.org/content/uploads/V9-N3-Chism.pdf

Kearns, K.D. and Sullivan, C.S. (2011). Resources and practices to help graduate students and postdoctoral fellows write statements of teaching philosophy.  Advances in Physiology Education , 35, 136-145.

Kenny, N.A., Jeffs, C., & Berenson, C. (2015).  Preparing a Teaching Philosophy Statement.  Calgary, AB: Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning.

Schonwetter, D.J., Sokal, L., Friesen, M., & Taylor, L.K. (2002). Teaching philosophies reconsidered: A conceptual model for the development and evaluation of teaching philosophy statements.  International Journal for Academic Development,  7(1), 83-97

Seldin, P., Miller, J. E., & Seldin, C. A. (2010). The teaching portfolio: A practical guide to improved performance and promotion/tenure decisions. John Wiley & Sons.

Stavros, Jacqueline M, & Hinrichs, Gina. (2011). The Thin Book Of SOAR: Building Strengths-Based Strategy: Thin Book Publishing.

How to Write a Philosophy Essay: Ultimate Guide

What Is a Philosophy Essay: Definition

Philosophical writing isn't your typical assignment. Its aim isn't to provide an overview of professional philosophers' works and say whether you agree with them.

Philosophy demands becoming a philosopher for the time of writing, thinking analytically and critically of ideas, pondering the Big Questions, and asking 'Why?'. That's why it requires time and energy, as well as a lot of thinking on your part.

But what is philosophy essay, exactly? If you're tasked with writing one, you'll have to select a thesis in the philosophical domain and argue for or against it. Then, you can support your thesis with other professional philosophers' works. But it has to contain your own philosophical contribution, too. (This is only one definition of philosophy essay, of course.)

What's a Good Philosophy Paper Outline?

Before you start writing your first line, you should make a philosophy essay outline. Think of it as a plan for your philosophy paper that briefly describes each paragraph's point.

As for how to write a philosophy essay outline, here are a few tips for you:

• Start with your thesis. What will you be arguing for or against?
• Read what philosophical theory has to say and note sources for your possible arguments and counterarguments.
• Decide on the definitions of core concepts to include precise philosophical meanings in your essay.
• After careful and extended reflection, organize your ideas following the structure below.

How To Structure a Philosophy Paper?

Like any other essay, a philosophy paper consists of an introduction, a main body, and a conclusion. Sticking to this traditional philosophy essay structure will help you avoid unnecessary stress.

Here's your mini-guide on how to structure a philosophy essay:

• Introduction - Clarify the question you will be answering in your philosophy paper. State your thesis – i.e., the answer you'll be arguing for. Explain general philosophical terms if needed.
• Main body - Start with providing arguments for your stance and refute all the objections for each of them. Then, describe other possible answers and their reasoning – and counter the main arguments in their support.
• Conclusion - Sum up all possible answers to the questions and reiterate why yours is the most viable one.

What's an Appropriate Philosophy Essay Length?

In our experience, 2,000 to 2,500 words are enough to cover the topic in-depth without compromising the quality of the writing.

However, see whether you have an assigned word limit before getting started. If it's shorter or longer than we recommend, stick to that word limit in writing your essay on philosophy.

What Format Should You Use for a Philosophy Paper?

As a philosophy and psychology essay writing service , we can attest that most students use the APA guidelines as their philosophy essay format. However, your school has the final say in what format you should stick to.

Sometimes, you can be asked to use a different college philosophy essay format, like MLA or Chicago. But if you're the one to choose the guidelines and don't know which one would be a good philosophy argumentative essay format, let's break down the most popular ones.

APA, MLA, and Chicago share some characteristics:

• Font: Time New Roman, 12 pt
• Line spacing: double
• Margins: 1" (left and right)
• Page number: in the header

But here's how they differ:

• A title page required
• Sources list: 'References' page
• No title page required
• Sources list: 'Works cited' page
• Sources list: 'Bibliography' page
• Footnotes and endnotes are required for citations

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Guideline on How to Write a Philosophy Essay

If you still don't feel that confident about writing a philosophy paper, don't worry. Philosophical questions, by definition, have more than one interpretation. That's what makes them so challenging to write about.

To help you out in your philosophical writing journey, we've prepared this list of seven tips on how to write a philosophy essay.

• Read Your Sources Thoughtfully

Whether your recommended reading includes Dante's Divine Comedy or Jean-Paul Sartre's Existentialism Is a Humanism , approach your sources with curiosity and analytical thinking. Don't just mindlessly consume those texts. Instead, keep asking yourself questions while you're reading them, such as:

• What concepts and questions does the author address?
• What's the meaning behind key ideas and metaphors in the text?
• What does the author use as a convincing argument?
• Are there any strange or obscure distinctions?

As for which sources you should turn to, that all depends on your central question; philosophy topics for essay are diverse and sometimes opposed. So, you'll have to do your fair share of research.

• Brainstorm & Organize Your Ideas

As you're reading those texts, jot down what comes to your mind. It can be a great quote you've stumbled upon, an idea for an argument, or your thoughtful, critical responses to certain opinions.

Then, sort through and organize all of those notes into an outline for your essay in philosophy. Make sure that it holds up in terms of logic. And ensure that your arguments and counterarguments are compelling, sensible, and convincing!

Now, you might be wondering how to write a philosophy essay introduction. Don't worry: there's an explanation right below!

• Craft Your Introductory Paragraph

Think of your introduction as a road map preparing your reader for the journey your essay will take them on. This road map will describe the key 'stops' in your essay on philosophy: your topic, stance, and how you will argue for it – and refute other stances.

Don't hesitate to write it out as a step-by-step guide in the first or third person. For example: 'First, I will examine... Then, I will dispute... Finally, I will present….'

Need an example of an excellent introduction for a philosophy paper? You’ll be thrilled to know that we have one of our philosophy essay examples below!

• Present Your Key Arguments & Reflections

Philosophy papers require a fair share of expository writing. This is where you demonstrate your understanding of the topic. So, make your exposition extensive and in-depth, and don't omit anything crucial.

As for the rest of the main body, we've covered how to structure a philosophy essay above. In short, you'll need to present supporting arguments, anticipate objections, and address them.

Use your own words when writing a philosophy paper; avoid pretentious or verbose language. Yes, some technical philosophical terms may be necessary. But the point of a philosophical paper is to present your stance – and develop your own philosophy – on the topic.

• Don't Shy Away from Critical Ideas

Whenever you examine a philosophical theory or text, treat it with a fair share of criticism. This is what it means in practice – and how to structure a philosophy essay around your critical ideas:

• Pinpoint what the theory's or idea's strengths are and every valid argument in its support;
• See the scope of its application – perhaps, there are exceptions you can use as counterarguments;
• Research someone else's criticism of the theory or idea. Develop your own criticism, as well;
• Check if the philosopher already addressed those criticisms.
• Ponder Possible Answers to Philosophical Questions

Writing an essay in philosophy is, in fact, easier for some students as the topic can always have multiple answers, and you can choose any of them. However, this can represent an even tougher challenge for other students. After all, you must consider those possible answers and address them in the paper.

How do you pinpoint those possible answers? Some of them can come to your mind when you brainstorm, especially if you'll be writing about one of the Big Questions. Others will reveal themselves when you start reading other philosophers' works.

Remember to have arguments for and against each possible answer and address objections.

• Write a Powerful Conclusion

The conclusion is where you sum up your paper in just one paragraph. Reiterate your thesis and what arguments support it. But in philosophical writing, you can rarely have a clear, undebatable answer by the end of the paper. So, it's fine if your conclusion doesn't have a definitive verdict.

Here are a few tips on how to write a conclusion in a philosophy essay:

• Don't introduce new arguments or evidence in conclusion – they belong in the main body;
• Avoid overestimating or embellishing the level or value of your work;
• Best conclusions are obvious and logical for those reading the paper – i.e.; a conclusion shouldn't be surprising at all;
• Stay away from poorly explained claims in conclusion.

Philosophical Essay Example

Sometimes, it's better to see how it's done once than to read a thousand guides. We know that like no one else, so we have prepared this short philosophy essay example to show you what excellent philosophy papers look like:

Like this example? Wondering how to get a custom essay as great as it is? You're in luck: you can buy online essay at EssayPro without breaking the bank! Keep in mind: this example is only a fraction of what our writers are capable of!

30 Philosophy Paper Topic Ideas

Philosophical writing concerns questions that don't have clear-cut yes or no answers. So, coming up with philosophy essay topics yourself can be tough.

Fret not: we've put together this list of 30 topics for philosophy papers on ethics and leadership for you. Feel free to use them as-is or tweak them!

15 Ethics Philosophy Essay Topics

Ethics deals with the question of right and wrong. So, if you're looking for philosophy essay topic ideas, ethics concerns some of the most interesting – and most mind-boggling – questions about human behavior.

Here are 15 compelling philosophy essay topics ethics has to offer you:

• Is starting a war always morally wrong?
• Would it be right to legalize euthanasia?
• What is more important: the right to privacy or national security?
• Is justice always fair?
• Should nuclear weapons be banned?
• Should teenagers be allowed to get plastic surgery?
• Can cheating be justifiable?
• Can AI algorithms behave ethically?
• Should you abide by an unfair law?
• Should voting become mandatory?
• When can the right to freedom of speech be limited?
• Is it the consumers' responsibility to fight climate by changing their buying decisions?
• Is getting an abortion immoral?
• Should we give animals their own rights?
• Would human gene editing be immoral?

15 Leadership Philosophy Essay Topics

You're lucky if you're tasked with writing a leadership philosophy essay! We've compiled this list of 15 fresh, unconventional topics for you:

• Is formal leadership necessary for ensuring the team's productivity?
• Can authoritative leadership be ethical?
• How do informal leaders take on this role?
• Should there be affirmative action for formal leadership roles?
• Is it possible to measure leadership?
• What's the most important trait of a leader?
• Is leadership an innate talent or an acquired skill?
• Should leadership mean holding power over others?
• Can a team function without a leader?
• Should you follow a leader no matter what?
• Is leader succession necessary? Why?
• Are leadership and power the same?
• Can we consider influencers contemporary leaders?
• Why do people follow leaders?
• What leadership style is the most ethical one?

7 Helpful Tips on Crafting a Philosophical Essay

Still, feeling stuck writing a philosophical essay? Here are seven more tips on crafting a good philosophy paper that can help you get unstuck:

• Write the way you would talk about the subject. This will help you avoid overly convoluted, poor writing by using more straightforward prose with familiar words.
• Don't focus on having a definitive answer by the end of your philosophical essay if your conclusion states that the question should be clarified further or that there are multiple answers.
• You don't have to answer every question you raise in the paper. Even professional philosophers sometimes don't have all the answers.
• Get straight to the point at the start of your paper. No need to warm up the reader – and inflate your word count.
• Avoid using quotes. Instead, explain the author's point in your own words. But if you feel it's better to use a direct quote, explicitly state how it ties to your argument after it.
• Write in the first person unless your assignment requires you to use the third person.
• Start working on your philosophical essay well in advance. However much time you think you'll need, double it!

7 Common Mistakes to Avoid in Philosophy Writing

Sometimes, knowing what you shouldn't do in a philosophical essay is also helpful. Here are seven common mistakes that often bring down students' grades – but are easily avoidable:

• Appealing to authority – in philosophy, strive to develop your own stance instead;
• Using convoluted sentences to appear more intelligent – instead, use simpler ways to deliver the same meaning;
• Including interesting or important material without tying it to your point – every piece of evidence and every idea should explicitly support your arguments or counterarguments;
• Inflating your word count without delivering value – in the writing process, it's crucial to 'kill your darlings';
• Making poorly explained claims – explicitly present reasons for or against every claim you include;
• Leaving core concepts undefined – explain what you mean by the words like 'free will' or 'existentialism' in the introduction;
• Worrying about being wrong – no one can be proven wrong in philosophy!

Realize that your draft contains those mistakes, and it's too late to fix them? Then, let us help you out! Whether you ask us, 'Fix my paper' or ' Write my paper from scratch,' our philosophy writers will deliver an excellent paper worth the top grade. And no, it won't cost you a fortune!

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Essay on Leadership Philosophy

Students are often asked to write an essay on Leadership Philosophy in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Leadership Philosophy

What is leadership philosophy.

Leadership philosophy is a set of beliefs and principles that guide how a leader acts and makes decisions. It’s like a map that helps leaders choose the right path when leading others. This philosophy shapes how leaders treat their team, how they solve problems, and how they reach their goals.

Importance of Vision

A leader must have a clear vision. This means they know exactly what they want to achieve and can share this goal with others. Having a vision helps the leader to inspire their team and keep everyone focused on the end goal.

Leading by Example

Good leaders don’t just tell others what to do; they show them. They act the way they want their team members to act. This builds trust and respect. When leaders show they are hardworking and honest, their team is likely to follow their lead.

Communication Skills

Leaders must be great communicators. They need to explain ideas in a way that is easy to understand. They also need to listen to their team’s ideas and concerns. Good communication helps everyone work better together.

Adaptability

Leaders must be able to change their plans when necessary. If something unexpected happens, they need to find new ways to reach their goals. Being adaptable means not giving up when faced with challenges.

250 Words Essay on Leadership Philosophy

A leadership philosophy is like a map for how a leader plans to guide others. It is a set of beliefs and ideas that a leader uses to make decisions, act, and help their team reach goals. This philosophy affects how a leader acts every day and how they treat the people they are leading.

Being Fair and Kind

A good leader treats everyone fairly and with kindness. They do not pick favorites and are nice to all members of their team. This helps everyone feel important and willing to work hard. When a leader is fair and kind, people trust them more and are happier in their group.

Encouraging Others

Leadership is not just about telling people what to do. It is also about encouraging them to do their best. A leader should cheer on their team and help them believe in themselves. When leaders support their team, the team can do better and reach higher.

Learning from Mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes, even leaders. A good leader knows this and sees mistakes as chances to learn. They do not get upset or blame others. Instead, they look at what went wrong, learn from it, and try to do better next time.

A leadership philosophy is a leader’s plan for how to guide their team. It includes being fair, kind, encouraging, and learning from mistakes. Leaders who follow these ideas can help their team succeed and create a positive place for everyone to work and grow.

500 Words Essay on Leadership Philosophy

Leadership philosophy is a way of thinking about how to guide or lead others. It’s like having a map that shows you how to act when you’re in charge of a group. This philosophy is made up of beliefs and values that a leader holds dear. It helps a leader decide what is important and how to make good choices when working with others.

Being a Good Role Model

A big part of being a leader is setting a good example. This means that a leader should act in a way that they want others to follow. For instance, if a leader shows up on time, works hard, and is kind, others are likely to do the same. A leader who is a good role model can inspire their team to act better and reach their goals.

Listening to Others

A leader should always listen to the people they are leading. This means paying attention to what others are saying and valuing their ideas. When leaders listen, they can learn new things and make everyone feel important. This can make the team stronger because everyone feels like they are a part of the group’s success.

Encouraging Teamwork

Leaders know that working together is key to success. They bring people together and help them work as a team. When everyone helps each other and shares their skills, the group can do great things. A leader who believes in teamwork makes sure that everyone has a chance to contribute and that no one is left out.

Making Decisions with Courage

Sometimes leaders have to make tough choices. A leader with a strong philosophy isn’t afraid to make decisions, even when they’re hard. They think about what’s best for the group and stand by their choices. This shows others that the leader is committed and willing to do what it takes for the good of the team.

Continuing to Learn

Great leaders never stop learning. They know that there is always more to know and that they can always get better. A leader who keeps learning can help their team grow and face new challenges. They read books, listen to advice, and try new things to improve their skills.

Being Fair and Honest

Fairness and honesty are at the heart of a good leadership philosophy. Leaders treat everyone the same and tell the truth. This builds trust within the team. When people trust their leader, they feel safe and are more likely to do their best work.

In summary, a leadership philosophy is a set of ideas that guide a leader in how to behave and make decisions. It includes being a role model, listening, encouraging teamwork, making brave choices, always learning, and being fair and honest. Leaders who follow these principles can create strong, happy teams that can achieve amazing things together. Even though leading can be hard, having a clear leadership philosophy makes it easier to guide others in a positive way.

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

If you’re looking for more, here are essays on other interesting topics:

• Essay on Leadership And Management
• Essay on Leaders Are Born Not Made
• Essay on Law Of Nature

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

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9 Leadership Philosophies: Which One Is Right for You?

Disclaimer : We sometimes use affiliate links in our content. For more information, visit our Disclaimer Page . 

Leadership is a complex topic that can be difficult to define. However, one way to think of it is as a philosophy. A leadership philosophy is a set of beliefs or principles that guide your decisions and actions as a leader.

In this blog post, we will explore nine different leadership philosophies. Each has its strengths and weaknesses, and there is no one “right” philosophy. Instead, the best philosophy for you will depend on your leadership style and the needs of your team or organization.

What is a Leadership Philosophy?

A leader’s philosophy is the guiding principle by which they operate. It shapes their actions and decisions and provides a framework for their leadership style. A strong leadership philosophy results in a clear and consistent message communicated to those being led. It also helps to create an environment in which followers can thrive.

A leader’s philosophy should be aspirational yet realistic; it should inspire others to achieve great things and be achievable within the situation. A leadership philosophy is about creating a shared vision and working together to make it a reality. By operating with a clear and purposeful philosophy, leaders can more effectively guide their teams toward success.

Related : Contingency Theory of Leadership

Why is Leadership Philosophy Critical?

A well-articulated leadership philosophy is crucial for effective leadership as it clarifies a leader’s values and beliefs, serves as a guide for decision-making, and builds trust with followers. It helps leaders understand their motivations and how they may impact those they lead, leading to better self-awareness. In the face of challenging situations, leaders can refer back to their leadership philosophy to make informed decisions. Ultimately, a strong leadership philosophy is an essential tool for any leader striving for success in achieving their goals.

Supporting Effective Leadership: Leadership Assignment Help

Leadership assignment help can play a crucial role in developing and refining a leader’s philosophy. Through guidance and insights gained through such help, leaders can enhance their self-awareness and decision-making abilities and build trust with followers. In addition, by seeking leadership assignment help, individuals can create a leadership philosophy that accurately reflects their values and beliefs and serves as a solid foundation for their leadership journey.

Related : Leadership

9 Examples of leadership philosophies

There are many different philosophies OR leadership styles that you can adopt. The most important thing is to find one that resonates with you and your values. Here are eight examples of leadership philosophies that you may want to consider:

1. Servant leadership philosophy

Servant leadership is a philosophy and style of leadership that puts the needs of others first. The term “servant leadership” was first coined by Robert K. Greenleaf in The Servant as Leader, an essay he published in 1970. In his essay, Greenleaf argued that the true purpose of leadership is to serve others, not to accumulate power or wealth. He said that the best leaders lead from a position of humility and compassion, not from a desire for personal gain.

Since then, the concept of servant leadership has been adopted by organizations and individuals worldwide. Many companies now encourage their employees to adopt a servant leadership approach to management, and some business schools even offer courses on servant leadership. Individuals who practice servant leadership typically have a solid commitment to ethical values and social responsibility. They view their work as a calling or vocation, not just a job, and they strive to make a positive difference in the lives of those they serve.

If you are interested in learning more about servant leadership, many resources are available online and in libraries. Greenleaf’s essay is an excellent place to start, but many books and articles explore the topic in more detail.

2. Democratic Leadership Philosophy

The democratic leadership philosophy is built on the idea that the whole team should be involved in making decisions. The leader may occasionally depart from the team’s input, but they will almost always ask for and consider the thoughts and opinions of everyone involved. This philosophy values respect, empathy, thoughtfulness, and kindness in the leader.

By involving the team in the decision-making process, democratic leaders hope to inspire their team and create a more cohesive unit. This type of leadership can be effective in many different situations, but it requires a leader willing to listen to others and take their input seriously. When used effectively, democratic leadership can help create a more motivated and productive team.

3. Autocratic Leadership Philosophy

Autocratic leadership is often associated with a negative connotation; however, this leadership style can be effective in certain situations. For example, when time is limited and a quick decision needs to be made, an autocratic leader can decide without consulting others, saving time. In addition, autocratic leaders can succeed in situations where followers are not knowledgeable or experienced enough to make decisions.

In these cases, autocratic leaders can rely on their expertise to make the best decision for the group. However, it is essential to note that autocratic leadership is not always the most effective style and should only be used in specific situations. When used excessively or in the wrong circumstances, autocratic leadership can decrease morale and motivation among followers and reduce creativity and innovation.

4. Transformational Leadership Philosophy

In theory, transformational leadership is the perfect style for the modern workplace. The world is constantly changing, and organizations need to be able to adapt to new challenges quickly. This type of leader provides stability and guidance to help a team survive and thrive in an ever-changing landscape. At its core, transformational leadership empowers each team member to reach their full potential.

The leader provides a clear vision and then trusts their team members to execute it. This hands-off approach can lead to fantastic results as it allows each team member to tap into their creativity and develop innovative solutions. When making decisions, transformational leaders seek input from their team but ultimately decide what they believe is in the organization’s best interest.

One of the most important aspects of being a transformational leader is being able to inspire those around you. This isn’t just about having motivational speeches; it’s about being someone others can look up to and aspire to be like. Being a transformational leader is about setting an example for others to follow in many ways. If you can do that, you’ll be well on leading a successful team.

5. Laissez-faire Leadership Philosophy

Laissez-faire leadership is often thought of as a hands-off management style. The French term “Laissez-faire” translates to “let them do .” In theory, this type of leadership should lead to more engaged and motivated employees. After all, if employees are free to make their own decisions, they should be more invested in the outcome. Also, laissez-faire leaders trust their team’s ability to do the job.

This trust can create a feeling of respect and responsibility among team members. However, there are also some potential downsides to this leadership style. For example, employees may feel lost or confused without clear guidance from a leader. Additionally, laissez-faire leaders may be less likely to step in when problems arise. Overall, laissez-faire leadership is a hands-off approach that can empower employees but may also lead to confusion and frustration.

6. Strategic leadership philosophy

A strategic leadership philosophy is about achieving a common goal by making a plan and executing it. This leadership style is mainly adopted in organizations or businesses that need to achieve something big and important. It starts with the leader assessing the situation and then developing a plan of action. After that, they gather the resources required to implement the plan and complete the task at hand.

The advantages of this leadership style are that it ensures everyone is on board with the same goal, supporting each other to achieve it. Secondly, this leadership style gives the employees a sense of direction as they know what is expected. Lastly, it also brings out the best in people as they work together towards a common cause.

The only downside to this leadership style is that sometimes leaders can get too caught up in their plans and ideas and forget to support others’ suggestions. In such cases, it might lead to conflict within the organization. However, overall strategic leadership philosophy is a great way to get big things done by bringing people together.

7. Transactional leadership philosophy

With the transactional leadership philosophy, leaders reward employees in exchange for successful work. This arrangement establishes roles and responsibilities for each employee so everyone knows what is expected of them. Transactional leadership can also help people quickly master their jobs since incentives are provided.

This philosophy is fairly common in today’s business world since it can be an effective way to manage a team. When used correctly, it can help ensure everyone is working towards the same goal and completing tasks efficiently. With the transactional leadership philosophy, businesses can run smoothly and effectively to achieve their goals.

8. Learning leadership Philosophy

Learning leadership is a highly effective philosophy that emphasizes continuous learning and development . By fostering a culture of learning and growth, leaders in this framework prioritize knowledge acquisition and sharing as critical aspects of their work. In addition, they utilize data and evidence to guide their decisions, shaping priorities based on what works best in a given context.

Moreover, by making learning an integral part of the organizational ethos, they create a culture of experimentation and innovation where individuals feel empowered to take risks and learn from their mistakes. Ultimately, learning leadership fosters growth within organizations at every level, encouraging continuous improvement throughout all areas of operations.

Whether looking for ways to become a more effective leader or enhance your existing leadership skills, embracing the philosophy of learning leadership can be a powerful tool for success.

9. Personal leadership Philosophy

A personal leadership philosophy is a set of beliefs, principles, and values that a person uses to guide their actions as a leader. This can be as simple as always putting the needs of others before your own or constantly striving to achieve the best possible outcome for those you are responsible for. Regardless of your leadership philosophy, it must be something you genuinely believe in and are passionate about.

After all, it is only through following our convictions that we can hope to inspire others to do the same. Likewise, only by living our values can we expect to create a world in which others are motivated to do the same. In short, our leadership philosophy is the foundation upon which we build our ability to lead others. It drives us to act in specific ways and strive for particular goals. And it is only by remaining true to our beliefs we can hope to positively impact those around us.

There are many Personal leadership Philosophy examples, but here’s one below:

Leadership is about more than just taking charge and being in control. Leadership means creating a shared vision and purpose for a team or group and then working together to achieve that goal. It also means being brave enough to stand up for what you believe in, even when it isn’t popular or easy. Finally, it means respecting the rights and dignity of all human beings, regardless of their race, gender, religion, or anything else.

I think that loyalty is an essential quality for any leader. You need to be loyal to your team and your mission. You can’t just abandon them if things get tough or you don’t agree with something they’re doing. You also need to be able to take responsibility when things go wrong. If someone on your team makes a mistake, it’s your job as the leader to help them learn from it and move on.

Related : 5 Levels of Leadership

How do you determine your leadership philosophy?

There’s no one answer to this question – everyone will have their unique approach. However, you can keep a few things in mind as you reflect on what kind of leader you want to be. First, think about the values that are important to you. What do you believe in, and how do you want to see those values reflected in your leadership style?

Second, consider the people you admire as a leader. What qualities do they have that you would like to emulate? Finally, reflect on your own experiences as a follower. What works well for you and what doesn’t? Taking all of these factors into account will help you develop a leadership philosophy that is authentic to you.

Related : 16 Leadership Styles

What is a Leadership philosophy statement?

A leadership philosophy statement is a brief (usually one to two pages) document that articulates your beliefs and values about leadership. It serves as a personal roadmap for how you want to lead, outlining what you believe in and what principles you will follow as a leader.

Your leadership philosophy should be something you can refer back to when making big and small decisions. It should be a living document you can revise as you gain new experiences and insights. And it should be something you are comfortable sharing with others, as it can be a helpful tool for building trust and buy-in from your team.

Final Thoughts

A leadership philosophy is a set of beliefs, principles, and values that a person uses to guide their actions as a leader. Your leadership philosophy is the foundation upon which you build your ability to lead others. It drives you to act in specific ways and strive for particular goals. And it is only by remaining true to your beliefs can you hope to impact those around you positively.

There are many examples of personal leadership philosophy, but your personal leadership philosophy must be something you genuinely believe in and are passionate about. Only by living your values can you hope to create a world in which others are motivated to do the same.

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