What makes a good leader using Advocate leadership style Research Paper

What makes a good leader using Advocate leadership style - Research Paper Example This paper is going to be concerned with advocacy style which is the strongest from of leadership. Advocates are committed to accomplish whatever mission they have set out using all the available means. They take responsibility for failure and share success and would suffer for the sake of the group. The paper is going to argue that a leader using advocacy leadership style which is the norm in the social work can become a good leader by being assertive, dedicated, humble, flexible and able to use different strategies to get results. In addition he must possess skills such as capacity to inspire, communication skills, leading by example, self-awareness, able to manage conflict among others. Introduction Every successful organization has a successful leader behind it. The problem is that there has not been an agreement among theorists as to what constitutes successful leadership. The trait theorists would argue that it is the innate qualities of leaders that make them successful; the b ehaviorists would argue that it is the behavioral characteristics that make a leader to be effective while still others believe that effective leaders possess certain skills. For ages, we have heard many individuals from different organizations being named as great leaders; for example, Bill Gates and Nelson Mandela. What is leadership and what makes these leaders effective? This is what this paper will try to answer using the advocate leadership style. Effective Leadership Leadership is defined by Stanfield (2009 p. 5) as â€Å"directing behavior of others towards accomplishment of some common objective†. In other words, it is the ability to influence others towards an accomplishment of some set goal. Leadership is often used interchangeably with management or administration but the two concepts mean two different things. While leadership involves influencing people, management involves planning, organizing and controlling. A good manager needs to be a good leader but a good leader does not necessarily have to be a manager. Some people become leaders due to their power to influence or charisma and not because they have management skills. However, good management skills can help in becoming an effective leader. Organizations require good leaders in order to function effectively and beat competition. There are many types of leadership in organizations such as the idealists, diplomats, mentors, achievers, innovators, enthusiasts, and advocates (Northouse, 2010). All of them have different styles of leading but the focus will be on the advocates. The advocate type of leaders according to Kirst-Ashman and Hull (2012, p. 207) are highly committed to the goals of the organization and are most of the times skilled administrators. These are the strongest leaders in any organization as they handle a great deal of responsibility without being too dominating. Moreover, they take their responsibility very seriously and would go to great heights to ensure organizati onal goals or the group missions are achieved (Stanfield, 2009). They are thus willing to suffer for the sake of the team provided they get to where they are heading to. They also do not avoid conflicts and take tasks head on. They are willing to take responsibility for any failures or mistakes but when it comes to achievements, they are shared among all members. Kirst-Ashman and Hull (2012) also consider such leaders as straight-forward and have great concern for the well being of all members in the organization. All these attribute make advocates great leaders and their style is most needed especially in social work where great deal of advocacy is required. So what makes a