According to the Path-Goal theory, a leader’s conduct is determined by their coworkers’ contentment, encouragement, and effectiveness. The leader’s role is to direct employees to select the optimal route to achieve their and the company’s objectives. According to the theory, leaders must participate in various categories of leadership conduct, relying on the essence and requirements of the scenario (Olowoselu et al., 2019). The basic principles state that the leader’s responsibility is to help others achieve their targets and to offer the necessary guideline and assistance to guarantee that their goals are consistent with the company’s objectives. Moreover, they suggest that executives have to be adaptable and manage to adjust their approach as needed. I chose this theory because its main principles are close to my philosophy and viewpoints. For instance, my life experience has taught me through various cases that even the best method ceases to work if it does not fit the type of problem a person faces. Therefore, adaptability and timely adjustment to the situation, which embody the core principles of the Path-Goal theory, are essential skills for my development.
Before developing a plan, I have looked for online questionnaires that could give me a general overview of my personality traits and strengths and weaknesses. I have found several on the internet and went through four personality tests as sticking only to one may lead to biases. Consequently, my questionnaire results indicated that I could and should change some behaviors. Those behaviors involve looking for alternative viewpoints, being flexible, and supporting others. According to the results of the personality tests and the analysis of people’s opinions regarding my behavior, I determined that those three behaviors composed the most important qualities that would increase my leadership skills most efficiently. I think I can improve those behaviors since I believe any behavior or skill can be adopted and learned if one puts enough effort into it, stays persistent, and practices it regularly. Moreover, the Path-Goal theory proposes that behaviors like adaptability and supportiveness enhance leadership skills (Saleem et al., 2021). Finally, I should improve them simply because my lack of them has repelled me from the definitive version I could become.
First, I would not say I will ‘change’ those behaviors. I already have some basis for them – further, I have to strengthen them as much as possible. The goal is to learn to be in search of alternative viewpoints, flexible, and supportive. In order to achieve it, I am considering several steps. The first step is to start paying attention to the different viewpoints of the people surrounding me. For instance, they might be my parents, siblings, friends, and even celebrities. Then, I have to focus on their perspectives and acknowledge how they differ from mine. If I find something strange in them, I should approach them and have a little discussion regarding the unclear points. Second, I need to meditate for ten minutes daily to learn flexibility. Since meditation increases mindfulness, it contributes to the growth of cognitive flexibility. Further, I will become more supportive by making eye contact and setting apart any bothersome ideas to listen to the person I am interacting with. I can practice these changes at home with my family members or friends since they are those with whom I often spend time together.
This essay discusses the Path-Goal theory and a plan to improve the way I lead. First, the theory states that people must engage in various types of leadership behavior based on the demands and specifications of the particular circumstance. Consequently, this leads me to develop a plan regarding the possible ways that I can change my set of behaviors. As a pre-stage, I needed to analyze my traits, which made me take some personality tests and ask my community to share their opinions about my behavior. Based on that, I discovered that I would progress more by developing a growth mindset, which contains openness to different perspectives, flexibility, and supportiveness.
References
Olowoselu, A., Mohamad, M. bin, & Aboudahr, S. M. (2019). Path-goal theory and the application in Educational Management and leadership. Education Quarterly Reviews, 2(2).
Saleem, A., Wu, L., Aslam, S., & Zhang, T. (2021). Spotlight on leadership path-goal theory silos in practice to improve and sustain job-oriented development: Evidence from education sector. Sustainability, 13(21), 12324.