Students can draw on a variety of sources to help them with writing assignments. _____________________, they can draw on personal experiences. __________________, for an assignment about communication skills, a writer might think about the way he or she communicates through conversations with others while at work or at home.
_________________, a writer might look at ways he or she communicates with others electronically via email or texting or Facebook. Students might _________________ find examples of written communication skills by looking at skills they’ve learned for previous writing assignments. _________________________, student writers can look for ideas from other people’s experiences. _______________________, writers can interview other students or even family members. ______________________, a writer may have heard others talk about this topic, maybe in class.
Another source would be television shows on the topic of communication. __________________, college writers may find that they need to do some research to complete an assignment. __________________, lots of experts have written articles or books on the topic of communication skills.
______________________, a search of “communication skills” on the Internet might provide useful information; _______, reference librarians can help students find research materials in special collections or databases. ______________, college writers need to be able to draw on a combination of personal experience, observations of others, and research materials to develop their written assignments.
(Adapted from Exploring Writing: Sentences and Paragraphs by John Langan)
UNIT 8. LEADERSHIP
A EXPLORING A TOPIC
I Expressing an opinion (B1/B2/C1)
1. Have you ever been a leader? What was the situation? Does one need the qualities of a leader to be successful in life?
2. Compare the definitions of the notions leadership, keading, leader and give your own definition of the term leadership:
a) Leadership, a critical management skill, is the ability to motivate a group of people toward a common goal (from Management and Leadership at about.com).
b) Leading is about setting direction and ensuring that that direction is followed. Leading can apply to leading oneself, other individuals, groups, organizations and societies. The nature of how leading is done depends on the context of the situation, one one's perspective, and on the nature and needs of those involved (from Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. All About Leadership).
c) Leader is the person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country: the leader of a protest group, a natural leader (Oxford Dictionaries. Language matters).
d) Leadership is the action of leading a group of people or an organization, or the ability to do this: different styles of leadership (Oxford Dictionaries. Language matters).
e) Leadership
1. The individuals who are the leaders in an organization, regarded collectively.
2. The activity of leading a group of people or an organization or the ability to do this.
Leadership involves
1. establishing a clear vision,
2. sharing that vision with others so that they will follow willingly,
3. providing the information,knowledge and methods to realize that vision, and
- coordinating and balancing the conflicting interests of all members and stakeholders.
A leader steps up in times of crisis, and is able to think and act creatively in difficult situations. Unlike management, leadership cannot be taught, although it may be learned and enhanced through coaching or mentoring. Someone with great leadership skills today is Bill Gates who, despite early failures, with continued passion and innovation has driven Microsoft and the software industry to success.
3. The act of inspiring subordinants to perform and engage in achieving a goal (BusinessDictionary.com).
II Related information (B1/B2/C1)
1. Define the meaning of the following terms: vision, motivate, encourage, reward, drive, commitment, goal.
2. Read the article What is a leader by F. John Reh and dwell on the following:
1) What is peculiar about a leader’s vision?
2) What are specific traits of a leader?
3) What are specific skills of a leader?
WHAT IS A LEADER
At the most basic level, a leader is someone who leads other. But what makes someone a leader? What is it about being a leader that some people understand and use to their advantage? What can you do to be a leader? Here's what you need to know and do.
A leader is a person who has a vision, a drive and a commitment to achieve that vision, and the skills to make it happen. Let's look at each of those in detail.
The Leader's Vision
A leader has a vision. Leaders see a problem that needs to be fixed or a goal that needs to be achieved. It may be something that no one else sees or simply something that no one else wants to tackle. Whatever it is, it is the focus of the leader's attention and they attack it with a single-minded determination.
Whether the goal is to double the company's annual sales, develop a product that will solve a certain problem, or start a company that can achieve the leader's dream, the leader always has a clear target in mind. This is a big picture sort of thing, not the process improvement that reduces errors by 2% but the new manufacturing process that completely eliminates the step that caused the errors. It is the new product that makes people say "why didn't I think of that", not just a toaster that lets you select the degree of darkness of the toast. Edison did not set out to build a better candle, he wanted to find a whole new way to illuminate the darkness. That's the kind of vision a leader has.