THE PSYCHOLOGY OF LEADERSHIP (PART I)

Understanding the influence of inspirational leaders By Arthur F Carmazzi The Inspirational Leader is one who can instill passion and direction to a group. To become such a leader requires an understanding of how YOU as a leader affect the Psychology of a group, and how the groups reactions affect you and each of the individual members of that group. A leaders actions and reactions not only affect th e psychology of individuals, but affect the entire culture of the organisation or group. Leadership Psychology deals with the psychology a leader must embrace and use to modify their own behavior as well as influence the behavior of a group. This process and application is often referred to as Organizational Behavior or Organizational Culture. In numerous Group Dynamic Disciplines such as Directive Communication and theories like The ripple effect by Sigal Barsade, leadership is a product of awareness and command of the reactions and influences of a group on the individual. So what is Inspirational Leadership? And how does Leadership Psychology make the cultivate passionate teams and individuals who love their jobs and work at their peak? In personal studies of over 218 leaders and the organizational cultures they create through their influence, as well as my own experience in running organizations, I would like to suggest what I believe leadership is not so we have a platform to start from. Leadership is NOT about changing the mindset of the group, but in the cultivation of an environment that brings out the best and inspires the individuals in that group It is NOT the ability to influence others to do something they are not committed to, but rather to nurture a culture that motivates and even excites individuals to do what is required for the benefit of all.

It is NOT carrying others to the end result, but setting the surrounding for developing qualities in them to so they may carry each other. Each individual has various environments that bring out different facets from their own Identity, and each facet is driven by emotionally charged perceptions within each environment To lead, one must create a platform through education and awareness where individuals fill each others emotional needs and become more conscious of when and how they might be taking away the emotional gratifications. This is accomplished by knowing Why people may react favorably to a situation in environment A, but get frustrated or disillusioned in environment B. When a leader changes his/her actions in accordance with their awareness of what those actions really mean (not reactive interpretations), they affect the emotional and psychological perspectives of the group. By taking control of the standard reactions to the actio ns of the group, a leader can in effect change the psychology of the group and through them, change the culture of the organization. For this dynamic of leadership to happen, for a leader to be able to cultivate an environment where leaders are nurtured within the group, he/she must ascend to the class of an Inspirational Leader. To attain this requires 8 ascents of psychological awareness. The next part of this article will explain the 8 ascents and why they make the difference in cultivating a leadership enriched environment....

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