Master of Science in Leadership

As a leader, I get to make choices. These choices not only impact my own circle of direct influence but can have a ripple effect on the organization as a whole. I think that through my actions I can change, or transform an organization and the people within it. Transformational Leadership appears to be the hot leadership theory that has garnered the attention of researchers over the last several decades (Northouse, 2016). Denning (2011) takes a look at this leadership theory through the lens of leadership through storytelling and identifies the eleven dimensions that describe an Interactive Leader. Of the eleven elements used to describe interactive leaders, leadership that participates, connects, and that is relatively free of ego speak to me and my leadership style (Denning, 2011).   Image From: https://gonextpage.com/2018/12/28/practicing-the-art-of-leadership/  The picture above depicts three individuals dressed in business attire scaling a mountain. The person a...

Telling stories is no easy task, and telling good stories that people actually want to listen to is even more challenging. Throughout the course of taking MSLD 500 Leadership Communication I have learned many communication techniques, but what may end up being the most impactful is verbal communication and presenting. Most of the time in my career, I find myself speaking to people live, over zoom, or on the phone. It is more seldom that I am required to submit a written report.   Image from: https://minutes.co/how-to-grab-an-audiences-attention/ It is easy to tell when I am telling a boring story. People lose eye contact with me. They look at the time, or they might even start scrolling on their phone for entertainment. Julian Treasures provided some excellent and useful information about telling stories “that people want to listen” to (QuickTalks, 2016). In his TEDTalk Treasures lists the seven deadly sins of speaking. They include gossip, judging, negativity, complainin...