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Leadership Philosophy

Leadership Philosophy

Heather LaMore

Education Department, Grand Canyon University

EAD-501: Educational Administration: Foundations for the Developing Leader

Dr. Patricia Beltram

May 1, 2022
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Leadership Philosophy

Leadership Philosophy

Merriam-Webster (n.d.) defines leadership as, “the act or an instance of leading” and

philosophy as, “a theory underlying or regarding a sphere of activity or thought.” With these

definitions in mind, one’s leadership philosophy refers to their personal beliefs and how they

use them to guide a team to success. The following is a brief analysis of leadership styles, as

well as an overview of my own leadership philosophy.

Personal values and beliefs

The importance of defining one’s leadership philosophy cannot be understated. It is

what guides a team and their success or failure rests heaviest on the shoulders of the one at

the head. My leadership philosophy is very much a team approach. Success is not something I

can achieve on my own and this is at the forefront of my mind when building my team. I am

leading a group of professional educators and childcare professionals that have enormous gifts

to contribute to the success of our center. It is my belief that it is my job as their leader to

support and guide them with our shared vision. I value and recognize their potential to

contribute to our success and that drives my thinking, decision making, goal setting, and

interactions with others.

Overview of three leadership styles

The following section is a brief analysis of three common leadership styles, followed by a

description of which most closely match my personal philosophy.

Transactional

As the name suggests, a transactional leader is one who relies on transactions to

encourage their team. Good performance is rewarded, while poor performance has
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Leadership Philosophy

consequences. Northouse (2019) notes an example in the classroom as students earning higher

grades for good work and lower grades for poor work. Another example would be a school

system rewarding higher standardized test scores with additional funding, while withholding

funding from a school with poorly performing students.

Frangieh and Rusu (2021) describe transactional leadership as a “carrot and stick

approach” that “motivates employees to give the best they can do to realize the company’s

goals under appropriate managers’ guidance.” They define the carrot as the reward for success

and the stick as the punishment for failure. It is this author’s conclusion that this type of

leadership has the potential to be successful in spurts when there is an immediate and

important task to accomplish. It can elicit short-term motivation and drive followers as they

tap into their sense of competition. However, incentive-based motivation is not a way to

achieve sustainable growth from a team. Nurturing intrinsic motivation will create more long-

lasting success.

Transformational

Stone, Russell, and Patterson (2003) discuss transformational leadership based on the

behaviors of “idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and

individualized consideration.” The combination of these behaviors leads to a team that has

influence over and buy-in to the vision of the organization.

The transformational leader is one that values creative problem solving. The classroom

is a place of constant change and the need to be flexible is constant. When teachers are a part

of an intellectually stimulating environment, the opportunity to sharpen critical thinking skills is

present. This not only benefits the rest of the team, it encourages self-efficacy and creative
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Leadership Philosophy

problem solving in the moment. This ability is highly valuable in the educational setting and the

qualities of transformational leadership can be quite effective.

Servant

Northouse (2019) references Greenleaf’s (1970) definition of servant leadership. It is

defined as the leader’s want to support and be of service to the team. They are most

concerned with the general well-being of everyone on the team and will do whatever they can

to support them, as well as giving them opportunity to share responsibility for the team.

As a profession generally comprised of nurturers, a team of educators is best lead by a

one who understands this demographic. The deep desire of a servant leader to be supportive

means this is a style of leadership well suited to education. However, keeping in mind that the

leader is also an educator, they are likely to share this character trait. This author believes it is

important that the well-being of the leader is considered and as such, the leader is at risk for

burnout if they fully adopt the servant leadership approach.

My style

Of the three described above, the servant leadership style is most closely aligned to my

own. When making decisions for our center and thinking about how we can best move

forward, the first thing I think of is the value my team has to contribute. I am always available

when they need support and do my best to guide with a clear vision of where we need to go.

With this in mind, the biggest drawback to the servant style is the potential for leader burnout.

While my first responsibility is to the success of the entire team, it is important to maintain a

balance. One can only give so much of themselves and as the popular saying goes, you can’t

pour from an empty cup.

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Leadership Philosophy

Act with integrity and fairness

Integrity and fairness are values that any leader should aspire to uphold, particularly in

the education field. As the leader of a talented team of professional educators, I keep these

values in mind at all times. By doing so, they feel valued and appreciated and return that

appreciation by passing it on to our students. I lead by example and that trickles down to our

youngest learners.

One of the main ways I strive to embody these values is by always being honest with my

team. I expect the honesty from them, so it is only fair that I provide them the same courtesy. I

have encountered people in leadership positions that have been less than forth coming with

important information, even to go so far as blatantly lying. These people not only lose my trust,

but often my respect. It is crucial that a leader has the trust and respect of their team, and by

exemplifying integrity and fairness, those values are likely to follow.

The National Policy Board for Educational Administration (2015) notes integrity and

fairness under Standard 2, Ethics and Professional Norms. These values are highly regarded and

vital to ethical and effective leadership. I hold them both in very high esteem and conduct

myself in such a manner that these ideals are evident to my team and the rest of our

community.

Effective and inspirational leadership

I believe an effective leader is always looking for ways to improve and I am no exception

to this. My ultimate goal is to have a happy, creative, and effective team leading a building full

of engaged, caring, and confident students. As teachers and students both come and go, it is

important to maintain these values at the core of all I do and set the tone for new additions,
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Leadership Philosophy

but also remember that there is always room for improvement. In this way, my leadership style

is an emerging model of effective leadership In addition, I utilize a focus on servant leadership

and hope that is inspirational to my team. Clarence et al (2020) studied servant leadership

among teachers in non-formal learning centers, and their findings confirm that it is an effective

and valuable style to bring the best out of educators.

Conclusion

In conclusion, my leadership philosophy continues to evolve the more I learn. Referring

back to Merriam-Webster’s (n.d.) definition of philosophy as, “a theory underlying or regarding

a sphere of activity or thought,” it is to be expected that the philosophy can change as the

experience changes. It is important to stay true to my personal ideals of honesty, integrity,

fairness, and the theme of servant leadership, however rigidity can be detrimental. With an

open mind, I continue forth on my journey as a leader in childcare and look forward to

continued growth.
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Leadership Philosophy

References

Clarence, M., Devassy, V. P., Jena, L. K., & George, T. S. (2020, September 3). The effect of

servant leadership on ad hoc schoolteachers’ affective commitment and psychological

well-being: The mediating role of psychological capital. International Review of

Education / Internationale Zeitschrift Für Erziehungswissenschaft, 67(3), 305–331.

Frangieh, M., & Rusu, D. (2021). The Effect of the Carrot and Stick Transactional Leadership

style in Motivating Employees in SMEs. Review of International Comparative

Management / Revista de Management Comparat International, 22(2), 242–252.

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Leadership. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved May 1,

2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leadership

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Philosophy. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved May 1,

2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/philosophy

National Policy Board for Educational Administration (2015). Professional Standards for

Educational Leaders. Reston, VA. Retrieved from https://www.npbea.org/wp-

content/uploads/2017/06/Professional-Standards-for-Educational-Leaders_2015.pdf

Northouse, P. (2019). Leadership: Theory and practice. SAGE Publications.

https://bibliu.com/app/#/view/books/9781506362304/epub/OEBPS/s9781506362359.i

1759.html#page_293

Stone, A.G., Russell, R. F., and Patterson, K.. (2003, August). Transformational versus Servant

Leadership: A Difference in Leader Focus. Regent University: School of Leadership

Studies.
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Leadership Philosophy

https://www.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/sl_proceedings/2003/stone_transfor

mation_versus.pdf