W ORG 5000 Project
Personal Leadership Development Plan
Throughout this course you will reflect on the various aspects of your own leadership style. During this process, you will naturally uncover your strengths, areas of development, and topics you would like to explore further.
Your Personal Leadership Development Plan will be the one document in which you record your thoughts and ideas. In each unit, you will have an opportunity to record information you have learned.
Complete each section of this document as you progress through the course. None of the sections are meant to stand alone, so with each entry, review and reflect on your previous writing. Submit the entire document each unit as required, and make changes as required by your instructor.
You are encouraged to transfer work from other assignments to your plan. However, your Personal Leadership Development Plan Project should contain 1,500-2,000 words that are new contribution. The use of APA format for in-text citations and a reference listing in all assignments is required if you use quotes or paraphrases of content from your textbook or other source.
Section I: Who Am I?
Unit I: Self As Instrument: The Power of Awareness
During Unit I of this course, you have had an opportunity to reflect on your leadership journey so far. Please note any important discoveries about yourself you would like to remember later in the course as your create your plan. Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
As a leader, I have been performing well, but not optimally. My strengths are self-confidence, a positive attitude, and an ability to work well with people. According to Northouse (2015), self-confidence is an important leadership tenet developed over time through an understanding of strengths and weakness, and taking initiative to build on strengths and improve the weakness, which results in an ability to understand how to act in different situations. On the other hand, a positive attitude and outlook has enabled me to approach and handle different situations realistically in line with any goals, objectives, or a vision I set out to achieve. On the other hand, I think I need to be more empathetic, and improve on my personal and other people’s emotional understanding, in order to make my relationships with other people more beneficial and fulfilling. Other areas that I could improve on include motivating people, providing support, and building on my skills to provide direction and guidance to people, I work with.
Unit II: Potential Pitfalls: What Can We Learn from Leaders Before Us?
During Unit II of this course, you have considered what pitfalls you personally are most susceptible to. Please include any notes about potential pitfalls here if you believe they may help you as you complete your Personal Leadership Development Plan. Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
There are various potential pitfalls identified from a self-evaluation, these include:
Inability to be empathetic and understanding of other people’s plight, which could negatively affect how I build and sustain relationships with other people in the organization, thereby negatively affecting my performance as a leader.
Delegating too much and excessive use of the hands-off leadership method; too much delegation could result in overburdening of the other team members and taking too much of their time, thereby hindering them from performing the actual tasks they are supposed to perform.
Failure to provide guidance and direction to team members; an inability to provide guidance and direction to the other team members, including an inability to develop and use appropriate motivation strategies could hinder me from provide effective and optimal leadership for my charges.
Failure to clearly define goals and communicate the same to the other team members will result in the failure to achieve set goals and objectives, thereby hindering overall performance of the team, and the organization by extension.
Complacency and passiveness, or the failure to pay adequate attention to situations, and satisfaction with the status quo, could also make me an ineffective leader.
Unit III: Self-Awareness: Knowing What You does Not Know
During Unit III, you have had the opportunity to consider your core values. Record them here for your reference when you write your Personal Leadership Development Plan. Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
According to Northouse (2015) a leader’s values and ethics, which are the guiding principles, that determine decision-making and action, are evident in a leader’s day-to-day lives; in their decisions and actions. Upon a personal evaluation, I was able to identify the following as my core values:
Courage: The ability and willingness to try out new ideas, make mistakes, accept mistakes, and learn from them to become a better person, and develop new and exciting approaches or ways of doing things.
Integrity: The ability to act consistently and with no likelihood of compromising the values regardless of the situation is one of my core values.
Honesty and openness: I prefer telling people things as they are, without sugar coating the truth, which enables issues to be addressed in a timely manner without a risk of further misunderstandings down the line.
Respect: Treating others and myself with dignity in order to practice reciprocal and mutual respect
Accountability: I am always ready and willing to accept responsibility for my actions, even when consequences of doing so could be dire.
Excellence: I strive to ensure that other people and I deliver excepted results within expected specifications by doing the right things at the right time at the right place.
Other possible core values include trust, passion, and temperament.
Section II: What Moves Me?
Unit IV: The Roots of Motivation
Complete Exercise 6.1: Your Extrinsic Motivations and Exercise 6.2 Your Intrinsic Motivations in The Discover Your True North Fieldbook: A Personal Guide to Becoming an Authentic Leader, and record your responses here. Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
Table 6.1: Your Extrinsic Motivations
| Extrinsic motivators | ||
| Category | Extrinsic motivator | Rank |
| Monetary compensation | To be able to generate sufficient income so that I am able to acquire all that my heart desires | |
| Power | To be influential in many things that affect people around me | |
| Prestigious title | I want to bear a title that will make me respected when I am introduced | |
| Public recognition | I want to feel recognized for the impact I have made on society | |
| Social status | I would like to have a high social economic status. This will improve my quality of life. | |
| Competition | Competition keeps us on our toes so that we are not obsolete. | |
| Association with prestigious institutions | It will make me feel respected as I will be able to associate with an elite clique of academics. | |
Table 6.2: Your Intrinsic Motivations
| Intrinsic motivators | ||
| Category | Intrinsic motivator | Rank |
| Engaging in personal growth and development | I believe in constantly working on myself so that I am the best person I could possibly be. | |
| Doing a good job | It gives me job satisfaction to be able to work to my fullest potential. | |
| Helping others | Making a difference in someone’s life is a source of immense joy and blessings. | |
| Leading and organizing others | Leadership is a gift that moulds a person’s character. | |
| Being with people you care about | Spending time with my family makes me happy. It enables me to cope with life challenges. | |
| Finding meaning from your efforts | It gives me a reason to continue what am doing. | |
| Being true to your beliefs | It guards my conscience. | |
| Making a difference in the world | It will contribute to a legacy. I will be remembered for my contribution. | |
| Influencing others | It is one of the advantages of being in leadership. | |
Unit V: Finding and Refining Your Sense of Purpose
Complete Exercise 10.3: Living Your Purpose in The Discovering Your True North Fieldbook: A Personal Guide to Becoming an Authentic Leader, and record your responses below. Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
When in the past have you been operating from your leadership purpose?
Where in your life today are you operating from your leadership purpose?
List some examples of situations in the future that would enable you to fulfill the purpose of your leadership.
1.
2.
3.
What are you going to change today so that tomorrow you are better aligned with your purpose?
Section III: What is Next?
Unit VI: Empowering Others
Complete Exercise 11.5: Sharing Your Story in The Discovering Your True North Fieldbook: A Personal Guide to Becoming an Authentic Leader, and record your responses here. Once you complete this exercise, write a summary of your leadership story here. Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
Unit VII: Leadership Style Inventory
Complete Exercise 11.13: Leadership Style Inventory in The Discover Your True North Fieldbook: A Personal Guide to Becoming an Authentic Leader, and record your responses here. Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
*Use Discover Your True North: Expanded and Updated Edition as a reference as needed.
Unit VIII: Reflecting on Your Personal Leadership Development
Review the content you have contributed throughout this course, and determine three measurable next steps for your personal leadership development. For each step, answer the following questions:
What will I do by when?
Does this support my values and purpose?
Who will support me through this development process?
Once you complete this exercise, submit this document for grading.
Step #1
Step #2
Step #3
References
Northouse, P. G. (2015). Leadership: Theory and practice. Sage publications.
