There are many different approaches to wielding power and managing effectively. Effective leadership is at heart a process, and one which depends on intimate knowledge of the organization one is in, the goals one must accomplish in order to succeed, and the workers that one must motivate in order to achieve the desired results. While there are as many interpretations and definitions of leadership as there are people in this planet, the most generally accepted definition is this: leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal (Northouse). This paper will briefly analyze the leadership process, and finish by focusing on using this process to empower a minority group or organization such as the British Muslim Association.
Leadership at heart involves the smart utilization of power. Leaders can exert positive power or negative power, depending on the perspective of the recipient. Negative power occurs when the individual being led perceives it as a form of exploitation, manipulation, or as being overly competitive. Negative power can be characterized as a win/lose situation, where the leader wins and the follower loses. Negative power causes followers to perform out of fear of failing. Positive power, on the other hand, occurs when the individual on the receiving end believes that they have benefited from the leadership situation. The perceived benefit can be personal, symbolic, or economic, but regardless of its character when the individual on the receiving end believes the power being wielded is positive the leadership interaction operates on a win/win basis. This is due to the fact that the follower senses that the leader supports them and feels motivated to perform in order to justify the support (Likert).
There are three main types of positive power: charismatic power, expert power, and reward power. Each of power mechanisms are a tool that can be lever...