Dear Journal,

It used to seem a little daunting for me to be a leader at first because of my ability to shy away from situations. As the years have gone on my anxiety for situations has decreased and voicing opinions to a crowd is not as daunting anymore. This is why it is important to me is that my followers also have the ability to voice their opinion. I want to be a leader who listens to her followers and understands them, so I can decide the best way to lead them. I want them to be comfortable around me, so that they are not shy or afraid to tell me their input. I want to be a leader who follows the servant leadership technique by putting my follower’s needs above my needs. This method is effective because “it makes altruism the central component of the leadership process.” (Norton,240). Along with that, I also think that I should follow trait leadership because it has proven very efficient for decisions and problem solving for groups.  I think that this method is effective because the “leader sees the situation that the team is facing” (Norton, 366).  This connects to my life ambitions because I want to pursue a career in medicine and I need to have these characteristics to be a doctor who goes beyond taking care of the patient’s physical needs. I think that in addition to focusing on the patient’s physical health I need to focus on the patient’s emotional and mental needs by making sure that their voice is heard. My future career requires me to be selfless and put my patient’s needs before mine. This should not be hard for me because I tend to always put the needs of others before me. I have noticed from the reading that there are strengths and weaknesses associated with every style. This leads me to question: why there is not a style of leadership that encompasses the strengths of every style? My actions are guided by making sure that I follow the strengths of each style of leadership and be aware of the weaknesses, so I can avoid them. Until next time!

Sincerely,

Gauri Ketkar