The Character of a Leader

Introduction and Alignment

Examples of unethical behavior in business abound. Though many may try to explain away such actions as isolated mistakes or accidents, ultimately the character of an organization’s leaders guides the character of the organization. This exercise will help you determine your inclinations towards viewing the character of others. As with the reflections in the last workshop, make sure you focus not on who has the better character traits, but on who demonstrates them consistently.

Upon completion of this assignment, you should be able to:

• Identify and define indicators of a leader’s character.

Resources

• Video: Southwest Airlines: Leadership and Decision Making
• File: Character of a Leader.docx

Background Information

In Acts 17:11, a certain group known as Bereans was considered to be of more noble character because of their receiving of the Gospel message with great eagerness and their study of the scriptures every day to see if what the Apostle Paul said was true. The implication appears to be not only that their character was noble (exalted, excellent, admirable) but that it was so because of their eagerness (to learn), their daily scripture reading, and that among the reasons they were doing so was the desire to make sure what Paul was telling them was true (perhaps holding him accountable). If they were double-checking Paul’s work, should not you consider finding ways to double-check the work of others, especially leaders?

Instructions

1. View the video “Southwest Airlines: Leadership and Decision Making.”
2. Download the file Character of a Leader.docx.
3. Using the Character of a Leader document, spend 15 minutes thinking of all the character elements you can that a leader might possess.
   1. Spend 15 minutes thinking of qualities, even if you sit staring at your computer screen.
   2. Think of leaders you know personally.
   3. Write down any quality, whether it is good or bad.
4. Next, read through your list of characteristics. In the chart:
   1. Identify those that are good (it is possible some characters are both good and bad, so just go with your gut).
   2. Identify those that are bad (it is possible some characters are both good and bad, so just go with your gut).
   3. Identify whether you believe each to be a Christian character trait.
      
5. Navigate to the threaded discussion. Attach your completed Word document, then respond to the following:
   1. Compare and contrast the character of good and bad leaders from your document. What is the relationship between character and quality of leader? Provide a detailed evaluation that demonstrates clear, insightful critical thinking.
   2. What character traits are required for effective leaders? What is the difference between being an effective leader and a good or bad one? Provide a detailed evaluation that demonstrates clear, insightful critical thinking.
6. Your initial post should be 200 to 300 words and include two academic resources that are properly cited.
7. Your initial post is due by the end of the fourth day of the workshop.
8. Read and conduct a critical analysis of postings by two of your classmates by the end of the workshop.
   1. The topic of your discussion response should be your classmate’s posting and should be written as if you were reviewing his or her posting in an academic journal. Your discussion response should therefore answer the following questions as applicable:
      1. Were the arguments of your classmate articulate and logical? Were the facts correct?
      2. Was the interpretation your classmate provided reasonable and consistent with experts in the field? Was your classmate consistent with both the substance and intent of his or her references?
   2. The focus for your critical analysis is not whether or not you agree with your classmate, but how well his/her position was presented.
   3. Each response should be at least 200 words and cite two academic sources. (Note: the academic sources do not count towards the word length requirement.)