Leadership is essential in healthcare management. For proper coordination of the healthcare system, everyone must embrace leadership. In healthcare facilities, nurses must demonstrate good leadership skills. Quality leadership is essential in solving problems in healthcare. Nurses can critically analyze situations and work collaboratively to achieve quality. When nurses take leadership roles, they can identify problems and know effective ways of mitigating the crisis. Since nursing is all about collaboration, strong leadership will enhance commitment and interdisciplinary teamwork. No one is ready to listen to a disorganized individual. Leadership begins with understanding oneself and solving intrapersonal conflicts before thinking of others. Strong interpersonal relationships are enhanced through good leadership. Leaders must listen to their followers or subordinates and understand their needs before anything else. This paves the way for commitment and fulfillment of what one has promised (Northouse, 2021). The relationship between the follower and the leader is crucial.
All affairs in healthcare management are made possible through effective leadership. Nurses must understand their crucial roles of interacting with work colleagues and patients as leaders. The contributions of everyone in making caregiving effective should be appreciated. Leadership is multifaceted (Northouse, 2021). Even though it is complex, nurses must understand how to make it effective. Nurses should learn about healthcare leadership. This is essential in helping them understand transformative leadership. This paper shall discuss my strengths and weaknesses. The aim of reflecting on these attributes is to understand how I can improve my leadership skills to become a better leader.
The Northouse Conceptualizing Leadership Questionnaire (NCLQ) was crucial in evaluating my leadership skills. I scored 17 on trait emphasis, 19 on skill emphasis, 21 on ability emphasis, sixteen on behavior analysis, 13 on process emphasis, and nine on relationship analysis. The NCLQ comprises several emphases that test the strength of a leader. Each emphasis has its questionnaires with different grading. The emphasis includes traits, behavior, ability, skills, process, and relationships (Tonsberg & Henderson, 2016). These emphases aim to assess how an individual influences others through their decisions and what makes the followers perceive the person as their leader. Leaders must demonstrate improved skills each time they take the leadership test. Those who cannot improve their leadership have to find better ways to adjust to their environment.
Leadership is identified in individuals as they grow up. The surrounding is key in shaping leaders. Individuals can be nurtured into better leaders by those who surround them. Emphasis looks into factors that help one become a good leader (Northouse, 2021). Interaction with peers plays a pivotal role in identifying leaders. Based on the tested traits, I identified myself with the relationship trait. This is because the relationship is the foundation of leadership. I have often perceived relationships as a process, ability, skill, and almost equal behavior. From this, my results showed that ability and relationship were the highest. The trait was the lowest on the scale. From this, I don’t believe people are born leaders; instead, they acquire leadership as a trait in their interaction with others. In my opinion, one can decide to be a leader or not. For example, good orators may not necessarily have been born that way. They might have taken time to improve their communication skills and overcome stage fright. It is not surprising that these individuals may be viewed as shy in person. Leadership demands that an individual must understand their followers and influence them to listen.
Based on the NCLQ tests, I prefer to develop better relationships with others than anything else. This will boost the strength of my leadership. From the positive perception of leadership in relationships, I believe that effective communication between my colleagues and me will improve things. Instead of expecting others to behave as leaders, I expect them to start communicating well with others. I am good at communicating with everyone to ensure effective leadership. The collaboration between leaders and followers is essential to enhance motivation and responsibility. Relationships pave the way for interaction with followers. During my peer evaluation, I got feedback from my team that I communicated ‘effectively, to the point, and in an engaging way.’ Communication has helped me in self-organization. It is crucial in planning and understanding the needs of others. Effective communication skills are a great asset that should not be forgotten.
I must improve on consistency. Consistency in work has been my weakness. When team members fail in their roles, I have always focused on blaming them. If I become consistent, I will focus on my leadership skills rather than assessing the quality of others. Sometimes, starting a task is easy, but the team’s enthusiasm declines with decreased vigor. I should not be deterred from performing my roles even when others are underperforming. Inconsistency impairs my ability to lead by making me unreliable. I should be responsible for every task, even when others are not doing their best.
Everyone should make leadership available (Tonsberg & Henderson, 2016). It should not be confined to a specific individual. This is necessary to promote equality and sustainability. In the traditional model, the leading authority is perceived as top-down. It starts with those at the top in healthcare management to followers. As a leader, I must involve everyone in the decision-making process. This is essential even to overcoming my inconsistency. Nursing is a collaborative role in which all the significant stakeholders must be involved. I must know my follower’s motivation, interests, and needs.
The lowest score on my ability test means I must work hard to improve. In nursing, one must adapt to the work environment. Even though ability had the lowest score, I believe that leadership is not solely based on the ability of an individual to adjust to their environment (Tonsberg & Henderson, 2016). However, an individual perceived as a leader can have the ability to lead. The ability must be gotten from experience. Experience is birthed from constant training. For example, I have always viewed myself as good at communication and able to excel in academics but poor in assertiveness. Leadership abilities must be expressed through cognition and practice. An individual must comprehend leadership from the view of those surrounding a person rather than making assumptions about what they ought to do. Understanding this concept from an individual perspective is crucial.
Leadership in nursing is not just about holding the top administrative position (Tonsberg & Henderson, 2016). It shows followers’ understanding and listening to them regardless of their perspectives. Many nurses confuse that having authority to make decisions in the hospital is a sign of leadership. People can have administrative authority because of their educational qualifications, not necessarily the ability to lead others. Leadership traits are an integral part of healthcare. They work interchangeably to promote quality. I must learn to strengthen my consistency and communication skills. These will help me serve patients better and collaborate effectively with the interdisciplinary team.
My identified traits have helped me understand what a nurse leader requires. I have observed many nurse leaders who seem resilient in fostering their leadership skills. However, some do not understand the essence of working with everyone. This can only be achieved through better communication. Effective communication will promote active engagement and, thus, collaboration (Carlow University, 2021). When nurses collaborate despite their ranks, better relationships are fostered. Nurses are expected to show commitment in the delegation of their duties. As a nurse, I must apply critical thinking in solving problems. This is because my leadership must always benefit the patients and maintain excellent relationships with my work colleagues. Mentorship and teaching are crucial tools for becoming an excellent leader. Many nurse leaders identify themselves with their mentors. These mentors are considered special people who helped them progress in their leadership. It is crucial to examine feedback. Feedback helps one in understanding their position in leadership. Also, it is crucial to listen and understand the fundamental organizational structures that influence leadership.
In summary, the NCLQ is important in assessing one’s leadership strengths and weaknesses. It emphasizes abilities, traits, relationships, processes, skills, and behavior. The scores of each emphasis are essential. Through the questionnaires, I have understood the meaning of leadership and the areas I need to improve on. Finally, we must understand that leadership will keep evolving.
Carlow University (2021). Examining the Qualities of an Effective Nurse Leader https://online.carlow.edu/resources/article/effective-nurse-leader-qualities/
Northhouse, P.G., (2021). Introduction to Leadership: Concepts and Practice. Chapters 1& 2. 5th Edition
Tonsberg, T.A., & Henderson, J.S., (2016). Conceptualizing Leadership. Understanding complex Systems, 159-165.