Leadership Philosophy and Growth Plan
Leadership Purpose and Vision
Anyone can be or has been a leader at some point in their existence, and being a leader can be defined by just about everyone. What I look for in a leader are the same values I have since evaluating my values as a leader. My top five values I seek are empathy, honesty & integrity, growth, creativity, and happiness. Helping me understand a person and how they operate aids me in assisting them. Being empathic to a person goes a long way for me. I want to understand their background and thought process to help lead them to their results. Often, we do not have to agree on anything at all, but I want to take the opportunity to appreciate and recognize their viewpoints. I am finding that common ground to connect with someone on a personal level and be related at the same time. I rather always hear the truth, even if it’s hard to take. Being honest and having integrity go a long way. I want a leader to be blunt when needed. Having that type of communication for me helps me understand their support for me. I have returned that favor, as difficult as some conversations are, I would rather not be seen as a manager who struggles with hard conversations, but I believe it helps confirm my respect for individuals.
As a leader, I find my primary purpose to foster the growth of myself and individuals. I like to see progress rather than results. Learning from both mistakes and achievements. Seeing how far someone has grown is important during evaluation. Being open to creativity. I pride myself on always thinking outside the box and bending the guardrails. Finding different ways to do things and encouraging ideas. Allowing myself and others not to limit themselves to the status quo. Testing the waters leads to results. Implementing new ideas into serious projects. Being creative does not always have to be artistic, but it always must be interesting and fun. And finally, being happy. Happiness. A leader must find some enjoyment in their roles. This sums up my overall purpose of being a leader. As a leader, connecting with individuals, having open and honest conversations, and seeing a person’s growth while they have the freedom to be creative really does bring me more joy than anything else.
My vision for myself goes beyond my five core values, although it is a strong foundation, I can understand my values may not fit for everyone. If I were to have a broad mind, be open to new suggestions and ideas, and have the right attitude, being competent even when I agree or disagree will help improve my vision for myself. However, I do want people to know I always want the best for them. I aspire to keep them going. My satisfaction revolves around leading people to be a better version of themselves. I want everyone to be successful, including myself. Being a successful leader is not always about being up front and center all the time, being right, or even the loudest person in the room. A successful leader often listens and provides feedback or coaching when needed but always supports individuals. It’s about developing those individuals to be better than what they are! Being their cheerleader. Providing security. Allowing them to be comfortable to be creative by taking on risks and developing new ideas.
In my autobiography, I questioned myself on who I am, which is a continuous struggle of mine. I embrace not knowing who I am. It’s a superpower of mine. I believe I do not have to fit in, and that allows me to be on the competitive edge of everyone else. Eliminating the possibility of groupthink. I might call it the Derek effect. I mentioned at times, I feel lonely, unworthy, and sad. However, my core values aid me in being a stronger leader than I think I am. My vision of a leader and where I need to be: I’ll be in spaces alone, leading the way! I may have ideas and goals that I might feel unworthy of having because of the lack of support I may get at first, which could lead to sadness. But in time, all that will change and develop into my core values as I gain the following and support from others to embrace those feelings of self-doubt. I know I can aspire to be more than what I already am. I may have a slight idea where I will end up in my career but, even if I do not know where I will end up in my career, but I do know keeping my core values close will aid me in being the leader I truly aspire to be.
Leadership Identity and Legacy
As a leader and overall person, I want people to succeed at all costs. I want to motivate individuals in the best way I know how, which is by being myself. I want people to remember me for the support I give, the honest feedback, the blunt coaching, the understanding, and my morals for being empathic. I know in my heart that I do not want to be a household name by going out in the world to make a difference for everyone. However, I know if just one person who has interacted with me can say, “Derek impacted my life,” my life mission would be fulfilled not only in my professional career but also in my personal life.
If I had to write a letter to myself, it would likely include the following: “Derek was straightforward. Yet he was always helpful whenever I needed him. He encouraged me even when I did not know I needed the support. I remember I would often ask him questions, expecting an immediate answer, but he would never give me the answer. Instead, he guided me to make my own decision and answer. Although sometimes frustrating, I knew he had the best interest in my education and independence. When I would make a mistake, he never talked down to me. He treated me as the adult I am and tried to understand how I made that choice. Helping me understand where I went wrong and providing helpful feedback and great coaching conversations. I enjoyed having Derek in my life. He may not always be the best at providing the recognition I thought I deserved, but he would always say, ‘That’s your job. You are doing what you are supposed to be doing.’ As I reflect, I know he always had my best interest in mind. Not every leader needs to be sunshine and rainbows, and Derek certainly was not that. Derek was a leader we needed to get us over that last hump to the finish line. He led the way without knowing he was always the leader. A silent cheerleader.”
In a reflection, I wrote the quote, “We do not have a choice who manages us, we do choose whom to follow,” which speaks volumes. I want individuals to follow me because they see that I am different and that I care. In my previous role as a training manager, I know my legacy will continue to grow with the values and lessons I instilled in at least 60 individuals at a minimum. The legacy of Derek: you do not need anyone else; you have yourself and trust you will make mistakes, and that’s okay, we can always fix them. I may not personally like to receive recognition for the job and duties I have been assigned, but I know I can provide proper validation and motivation to others when needed for their gains. I will have to continue to develop skills to provide words of encouragement to peers and colleagues. Find time to perform those random acts of kindness and unexpected gifts. It is the thought that counts when I think about what type of legacy I want to be remembered for. I have already started to implement change with my direct reports. I celebrated those small wins for progress completed rather than wait till the entire goal had been obtained.
I want to be seen as a task-oriented individual, making sure the team is always on track and ensuring all tasks are completed before deadlines. Being a useful and resourceful leader. I never want to withhold any information from anyone. Knowledge is power. I pride myself on finding different ways to teach the same lesson. Having mutual respect for all, a good understanding, explaining we all have a shared vision in mind and there is enough opportunity for everyone!
Leadership Growth Plan
In reviewing the LPI assessment, the results concluded I am actively challenging the progress and modeling the way. I will continue to develop in those areas. Therefore, I have work to do in the following areas: Enable Others to Act, Inspire a Shared Vision, and Encourage the Heart will be my priority. I have challenged myself to think differently. I tend to view my career in a micro-prospective way. Although that may not be bad and could be a result of the roles I have played. I need to start thinking and acting in a macro-prospective way to help develop in those struggling areas. The big picture. Changing the way I think about my day-to-day life can help lead to a better, more informed, well-thoughtful, and understanding leader.
When enabling others to act, I need to actively listen to others and their viewpoints, provide support for their decisions, and provide them with more opportunities to take on leadership roles. When sharing the shared vision, I should discuss how the future will impact them and how they are related to said changes. Have upbeat and exciting conversations about change management while being optimistic and communicating effectively. Encouraging the heart by celebrating those big wins and small accomplishments. Recognition is just as important as acknowledging a job well done. The LPI assessment results showed me that I criticize myself harder than my observers. Or I lowballed my answers. If I had lowballed my answers, it might have provided me with a sense of under-evaluating my leadership skills. I have been employed for 21 years in various service-related industries, and I never thought of myself as a leader. I have led several projects, yet I did not consider myself a leader. And I know having a title does not define the role. I recently applied to be a manager and received a promotion. I would not have earned that position without reflecting on my previous experiences as a leader. I am in the right place at the right time. The results will help me find more opportunities for improvement, and I continue to develop in areas to become a more well-rounded individual.
My career aspirations include being a director of regulatory compliance. I enjoy having structure in my life. I started my career in insurance compliance, and ending my career as a director would be a full circle of my insurance career, ending where I started. My path to becoming a director has various avenues in the private, public, and government sectors. All three areas would have several benefits professionally. My background of 16 years of insurance aids me in the competencies needed to pursue my goal. It’s almost public knowledge in my industry that higher education is not always needed. However, having my bachelor’s degree in risk management and insurance provides a solid understanding of the requirements needed to help me advance my career. In addition, having a master’s degree would further support my career growth. Earning my MBA with a concentration in leadership will assist me in those higher-level management positions. My continued education also would include several certifications to gain even more insurance knowledge. My attention to detail and auditing will help when evaluating and being compliant within the industry. My goals are hard to quantify as not much is required in my industry to be in my field. Higher education, certificates, and expanding my network will further gain knowledge, and most importantly, staying focused and having this career path and plan will help me succeed.
The leader I am today is who I want a leader to be for me. I have traits from not only previous managers but also from my peers. I make mistakes and take ownership and other times, I hit the ball out of the park. To sum up this entire Interpersonal Leadership course, everything happens for a reason, and we must try to understand why things happen. As I embark on my Master of Business Administration with a Leadership concentration journey, taking this course first has provided me with a sense of gratitude and strength to know I have what it takes to be the leader I aspire to be.