Date of Award

1995

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Leadership Studies

Abstract

One growth area within the field of leadership studies is the concept of personal leadership. Personal leadership encourages identifying and living by one's own core values. It incorporates defining and adhering to a personal mission statement and vision. Teaching personal leadership means identifying specific practices, exercises, disciplines and habits that aid the individual in learning to lead a principle-centered life. Since the material is translatable into all realms of a leaders life, teaching personal leadership methods to Jepson students will aid them in gaining a better understanding of themselves and will prove to be a practical preparatory course for leadership and for life.

This trend towards personal leadership is reflected in today's changing work world as well. Global competition and employee demands are causing leaders to rethink their previous management methods. To remain competitive, organizations are realizing that they must fully utilize their most abundant resource- the create energy of their own people. Traditional top-down methods of management are becoming obsolete as leaders recognize the value of channeling the creative energy of their employees. The result is that organizations are unleashing this energy by involving workers in their own leadership. The results of this alternative leadership process are astonishing. Fortune Magazine advises, "don't dismiss it as just another touchy-feely flavor of the month, It's real, it's radical, and it's changing the very definition of corporate leadership for the 21st century (Huey, 1994)."

Certainly, there is no better learning laboratory than one's own self and individual life experiences. If we are to study leadership by content, context, and experience, then should we not also enact parallel, simultaneous studies of leadership "on the outside" and leadership "on the inside"? Our emphasis in the Jepson School is very much "on the outside" as we learn to be more effective leaders in our interaction with other people and within various environment. What our curriculum calls for is more emphasis on leadership "on the inside"- more emphasis on how to become more effective people so that ultimately we may become more effective leaders.

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