Introduction
Leadership attributes/styles are the qualities possessed by a leader that constitute either good or bad character. The key elements of good leadership attributes comprise personal character, the ability to mobilize and lead individuals, set directions, and stimulate organizational capability. There are both negative and positive leadership attributes depending on the character of the leader. However, the majority of the characteristics are normally natural since they reflect one’s personality (Northouse 2007). Nevertheless, a leader has the potential to strengthen or develop his/her attributes or leadership styles as he/she performs the leadership role. The following are the leadership attributes of Adela who is a nurse leader. It illustrates both her good attributes and bad attributes.
Positive leadership attributes/behaviors
Adela is a nurse leader who is responsible for mobilizing and working with other nurses in the hospital. Adela has been influential in sustaining and launching relationships within the hospital, especially between other nurses and patients. Adela is a confident leader. She feels confident among the employees and does her best every time there is a job to be completed. This has made people develop trust in her. Many times her confidence has inspired other nurses to work hard and put their best efforts whenever they are working (Mary 2012). Adela is also enthusiastic about her work. She is passionate, dedicated, and friendly. This is one of the reasons why the majority of people are open to her and seek her assistance whenever they have a problem or face some difficulty.
Adela is a source of inspiration for the entire hospital. She is a motivator when teamwork is involved. Most of the time she becomes a part of the teamwork and helps the rest of the nurses to achieve particular goals or objectives. Adela is always self-organized especially in cases of uncertainty. Many times when some unusual or uncertain situations happen in the organization other nurses always look up to Adela’s help and advice. They always find security and reassurance from her because of her confidence.
Negative leadership attributes/behaviors
Despite the good leadership qualities possessed by Adela, she also has negative leadership attributes. One problem that has been noticed in Adela is that she is emotional. At times, when she makes decisions based on her emotions which is not good. She is also ruthless especially to those people who do not follow instructions. Adela always expects perfection and if a nurse does not meet her expectations, she turns out to be rather merciless and a bit hard to handle or talk to. Adela is also full of pride and she is self-centered. Despite being open to the organization, Adela is sometimes self-centered especially when it comes to personal issues (Shamas-ur-Rehman & Stephen 2010). There are times when she is moody, and it becomes hard to approach her with problems. Another problem with Adela is that she is assumptive and does things without checking the fact behind them. If another nurse has some problems or has not performed as well as expected, Adela normally reacts without checking the reasons why and what exactly happened.
In conclusion, every leader has both positive and negative attributes, and Adela is not an exception. Nevertheless, it is important for every leader to try and strengthen their leadership skills and do away with those attributes that decrease their leadership skills. In the case of Adela, the only thing I would change is her ruthlessness and overreaction. Despite showing that she is a confident leader, employees need to be understood whenever they fail to perform as expected.
References
Mary, B. (2012). Leadership Attributes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Northouse, P. (2007). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Shamas-ur-Rehman, T. & Stephen, O. (2010). Ineffective leadership: Investigating the negative attributes of leaders and organizational neutralizer. New York: Emerald Group Publishing Limited.