Individual Assignment

My Leadership Story

For this individual assignment, students will be required to read the Harvard Business Review (HBR)article “Crucibles of Leadership” by Warren Bennis and Robert J. Thomas found in the HBR MGMT 464 Course Packet and write a 4-7 page personal reflection paper* ( student paper example posted on D2L website).

According to Bennis and Thomas “a crucible, by definition, is a transformative experience through which an individual comes to a new or an altered sense of identity……Everyone is tested by life, but only a few extract enough strength and wisdom from their most trying experiences. They’re the ones we call leaders.”

The intent of this assignment is for students to reflect on a “crucible” experience(s) or event(s) that, in your opinion, has shaped your views, approach and/or understanding of leadership. It is my belief that each of you have had at least one ”crucible” event or experience that has significantly influenced and/or shaped your identity as a leader.

I would like to acknowledge up front that some of you will find this assignment difficult to do. Please be aware that you are not alone and that this is the case for many people for whom I have used this exercise in my consulting and coaching business. If this is the case, I strongly encourage you to deal with the “angst and discomfort” since leadership development is a journey and what effective leaders do have in common is knowing who they are, what they value and what they stand for, which is what this assignment will help you do.

Please be reflective and thoughtful in your paper. Please address the following questions in your paper using these as section headers to organize your paper as you share your thoughts and reflections. Please provide as much detail as necessary in setting the background so that I, as the reader have a clear understanding of the context of the situation and/or event you have chosen to focus on.

· What was the “crucible” experience or event and how did it change or transform you? Provide background and context. (2-3 pages).

· What assumptions did you have about leadership that were either challenged and/or reinforced by this crucible event? Why? (1/2 – 1 page).

· What was the impact and/or effect of this crucible experience on your view, approach and beliefs about leadership (i.e., what values did you adopt, discard or change, what insights, awareness, key learnings, etc. did you gain from this crucible event/experience)? (1/2 – 1 page).

· What skills and/or strengths did you discover you had and/or that you developed as a result of your crucible event/experience? (1/2 – 1 page).

· Summarize your paper with a paragraph discussing your definition of leadership and what leadership means to you. (1/2 – 1 page).

* Permission was obtained from a previous student to use their paper as an example of a well written paper.