Transformational leadership
Transformational leadership is leading by motivating. Transformational leaders provide extraordinary motivation by appealing to followers’ ideals and moral values and inspiring them to think about problems in new ways. These followers have felt trust, admiration, loyalty and respect for them and were motivated to do more than they thought they could or would do. In essence, transformational leaders make the dreams of tomorrow come true for their followers.
Perhaps the most important characteristic that transformational users possess is their ability to create a vision that brings people together. Dr. Martin Luther King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech prompted a generation to support the civil rights movement in America. But transformational leaders must have more than a vision, “They must also know which way to go to achieve it.” Followers are drawn to the vision and the leader has to have the plan to energize them to achieve it.
Vision plays a crucial role and leaders who are fully committed to their vision and course of action are often referred to as charismatics. Charismatic leaders have unshakable faith in their mission, are confident in their success, and have the ability / talent to convey these certainties to their followers. In turn, they are rewarded with unquestionable loyalty and obedience.
In our society, we have a common notion of the leader as a person with the vision, who then makes people buy, align with that vision. This notion is bankrupt and dangerous, because the leaders who have done well for their communities and organizations are not the ones who came up with the vision. If we imagine them as conductors, they are good at embodying the soul of music. These leaders are good at articulating the transcendent values of the organization or community. A leader’s vision must have precision and not just appeal and imagination. Articulating a vision for an organization or community has to start with a lot of listening, a lot of stimulation of debate and conversation, to distill, to capture the values. It should also start with a careful diagnosis of the current troublesome environment one needs to adapt to.
When changes in the environment occur slowly, managers generally do not recognize them as threats to their organizations. To become aware of environmental changes, transformational leaders must frame their vision by providing employees with a new purpose for working. Framing is a process by which leaders define the group’s purpose in very meaningful terms. In organizations, identifying frameworks often implies core values and purpose that should guide employees. For example, at Walt Disney the main purpose is simply “to make people happy.”
Impression management involves an attempt to control the impressions that others form about the leader through behaviors that make the leader more attractive and attractive to others. The print sounds manipulative and sometimes it is. On the other hand, it is also a natural and sincere expression that reveals to the followers an alignment between the vision and the person. Integrity, for effective leaders is just that. Reveal how the message that followers hear relates to the messenger’s personal experiences. Telling a story or setting a clear example can be a particularly effective way to manage impressions; according to some, it is the essence of charisma.
With or without authority, exercising leadership is risky and difficult. Rather than providing answers as a means of guidance, sometimes the best thing you can do is ask questions or confront people with the hard facts, rather than protect people from change. Often it is necessary to make them feel a bit of reality; otherwise, why should they undergo a painful adaptive learning process? However, people are often reluctant to do adaptive work and painful learning. They resist in a number of typical ways. If you want to lead others, you must understand how to counter this type of resistance.
Transformational leaders are most effective when the company is new or when its survival is threatened. The poorly structured problems these organizations face require leaders with vision, confidence, and determination. These leaders must influence others to enthusiastically join in their efforts and awaken their feelings about what they are trying to do.