There is always the argument that “leaders are born”. Depending on the person this may be true. If leaders truly are born then it is a good thing because they will have less to develop than those who do not naturally have what it takes to be a great leader. On the other hand, some of the most successful leaders, for example Alexander the Great, have extraordinary mentors, Aristotle, which teach them what they were not born with. Also, trait based leadership suggests that there is no room for people to develop into leaders, you either have the traits or you do not. There is no room for those that don’t. While this is a well researched theory I think that it leaves too many great leaders out of the picture; those who weren't born with leadership traits.
I think that you made a good point that while there are great leaders who are born with leadership qualitites, there are a large number who grow to become great leaders too. I think that personality traits can change over time, but also stay the same. I think this is true with leaders too. Although some might be born with great speaking skills, there are many classes and exercises to improve on one's speechmaking. Good point though!
ReplyDeleteOn the "leaders are born" debate, I think that you can be born with traits that will make you a leader but, this isn't the only way to be a great leader. I think that leadership can be developed. In htm 380 we discussed that leadership is about finding your style and that just because you have traits that would make you a great leader, it doesn't mean you'll be a leader for good.
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