Taking a Dive into "Theory"

The concept of situational leadership is one that I've found I can really relate to and appreciate as both a leader and a follower. In the article "High Task-Low Realtionship Management" I was able to discover exactly what situational leadership entails and how important it is to understand when in a leadership role. Situational leadership values using one's natural management style while also utilizing the styles that fit the situation at that moment in time. The four types of leadership beahvior styles in situational leadership are as follows:

• high task-low relationship (telling)
• high task- high relationship (selling)
• low task-high relationship (participating)
• low task-low relatoinship (delegating)

Task relates to the duties and responsibilites of an individual or a group, including telling people what to do, how to do it, when, and where. On the contrary, the relationship behavior is the extent to which the leader provides encouragement, listens, and coaches. Keeping the situational factor in mind these task and relationship behaviors are best exhibited only in the correct circumstances. This depends on the "readiness level" of group members which is the extent to which a staff member has the ability, willingess, and confidence to accomplish a specific task. By evaluating my leadership theory thus far, I'd say it's pretty safe to admit that I would fit under the "participating" leadership behavior style in most all circumstances. As I've made apparent, I'm one to put people and their feelings before my own and in this instance, even before the task at hand. I believe that by giving people confidence and encouraging them with kindness and motivation, they then will be able to master the task at hand and know that I will be there as their leader to support them whole heartedly. However, I am finding out that this style of leadership behavior is not favorable in every situation. If my team was in a time of crisis, there would need to be a focus on task and getting the job at hand done, rather than simply making everyone feel loved. A leader of whom I believe exhibits the "selling" behavior very well is my advisor for the SDSU Ambassadors organization on campus. Her name is Ashley and she is an SDSU Alumni and former Ambassador. Ashley is really great at advising us as student Ambassadors because she not only has formed a relationship with each one of us, she also knows the appropriate time to step into the authoritative role and get things accomplished. Somehow Ashley always found the perfect balance for this through her behaviors and made us all feel as though we could trust her as a friend and as a leader. There were times when I saw Ashley step into the "telling" behavior such as at New Student Orientation. Ashley was very busy during this time so she would simply tell us what needed to be done, focus on the task at hand, and ensure that everything was completed properly. In this situation I feel as though "telling" behavior was what should have been used anyways because she was dealing with so much at once, if she started to focus on the relationships then she may have become distracted.

I found the Fiedler contingency model to resemble the idea of situational leadership, in fact I believe that the contingency model and situational leadership go hand in hand. They complement each other through the use of one's leadership style and the situational favourableness. Fiedler's "least preferred co-worker" (LPC) serves as an instrument for measuring one's leadership orientation. According to Fiedler, both low-LPC (task oriented) and high-LPC (relationship-oriented) leaders can be effective if their leadership orientation fits the situation. Here you see how situational leadership behaviors mesh together with Fiedler's contingency theory and situational favourableness. The model suggests that improving effectiveness requires changing the situation to FIT THE LEADER. If there is a "mismatch" in the situation and the leader's natural personality there will most likely be a "mismatch" in the leadership and the ability to lead effectively. I can agree with Fiedler's model in that it is of utmost importance to have a good "fit" between the leader and the situation itself. The question is, how to we ensure that we are able to be the ideal leader in a variety of situations? Is this something we can develop? Or do we have to change ourselves in order to behave in a way that may not come natural to us but may be the "right fit" for the specific situation? My ideal goal is to find the perfect match where I can be who I truly am and do what I love in those situations which will allow me to do so.