Northouse (2015) suggests that someone is a leader if they have the innate characteristic, of particularly dynamic and charismatic people. In comparison, Rank and Hutchinson’s (2000) definition, of what a leader is different. Rank and Hutchinson (2000) state that a leader should have the themes of “proaction, values, ethics, empowerment, vision and communication” (p.499) Thus, this idea of trait approach has not fixed a definitive list of leadership traits, but, is based on an individual’s values and perception. This was obvious on placement, as the idea of being a social work student in a multidisciplinary workplace, meant that clinging to someone that was in the same profession, influenced the perception of who was a leader. It was the association of similar pathways and values, which inspired a personal connection. Northouse (2015) states that the trait approach can give a worker some benchmarks, for what they need to look for if they want to be leaders. However, traits are largely fixed psychological structures and this limits the value of teaching and leadership training (Judge, Piccolo & Kosalka, 2009). Education on traits theory, can help future practitioners explore their own traits and understand their strengths and …show more content…
This is something I believe I need to improve on, evident when I participate in group activities. For example in a group assignment, I might have an idea of what the assignment should be about. However, when it comes to explaining how I came to that idea, or how to proceed in the next steps I struggle. This often, leads the group to being confused and with no direction. Herold, Fedor, Caldwell, and Liu (2008) explain, that a vision should be clear and one should have a vivid picture of where it is going and how to get there. This is important in social work, particularly, when there is case management and having to map out pathways for a client. Not having a clear vision not and being able to express the vision to a client, can lead to the client not knowing the expectations of them and vice versa (Herold, Fedor, Caldwell & Liu, 2008). I would like to be able to use my wisdom of researching and brainstorming, which I