How to Write a Leadership Essay- With Example
Do you know how to write a good leadership essay? Many students don’t. They consider it a difficult assignment, and yet the idea of writing an essay about themselves or their own ambitions can be even more exciting. This lack of preparation is understandable because few other types of essays ask students to essentially review themselves and their potential. The most challenging aspect of all may be deciding what to write about.
Don’t worry though, because this article will show you how you can write a successful leadership essay with ease. It’s not as hard as it seems when you break it down into simple steps. With these simple guidelines in mind, anyone can become an excellent writer and produce a winning essay.
How Long Should Leadership Essays Be?
First, let’s review how long your leadership essay should be and what you need to include:
The length of the paper will vary by class and professor, but usually, it does not exceed three pages. Your essay must contain an introduction, body paragraphs with concrete examples, and a conclusion paragraph.
What Should You Write About?
Before you begin:
- Take a moment to sit down and reflect on what are good leadership skills.
- Think about the people you know who are good leaders and what leadership abilities makes them stand out.
- Write down some of those qualities, and be prepared to use them as references during your writing process.
Qualities of a good leader
Once you have that list, you can narrow it down. What are the most important qualities of a good leader? It might be helpful to think back on your academic career and how professors grade different aspects of writing. What does each professor value? Some of the best leadership traits to include in your essay are:
- Integrity.
A good leader has to be someone of integrity. They have to be honest and follow through on their promises. Sometimes, they will need to make tough decisions for the greater good.
- Humility.
Leaders can acknowledge their own mistakes and avoid dwelling on them. Instead, great leaders strive to learn from those mistakes so that they can do better later. They are willing to listen to others rather than being egotistical or self-centered.
- Love.
When you have strong leadership skills, it means that you care about the people around you. You are willing to lead them well so that they can succeed as well.
- Ethics and morals.
Of course, a good leader must have strong personal ethics and morals. He or she should be able to recognize right from wrong and make decisions accordingly.
- Empathy.
A good leader is someone who has empathy. They understand that everyone is going through something difficult, and they can help them work through it.
- Courage.
Leaders will need to stand up for what is right and be brave. They should also admit when they are wrong and apologize, even if it’s difficult for them.
- Respect.
A good leader will show respect. They won’t let their ego get in the way, and they’re willing to be flexible when necessary.
- Communication.
Any leader will need strong communication skills so that they can guide their team toward the same goal.
- Collaboration.
To be a successful leader, you must lead collaboratively so that everyone feels heard and respected.
- Creativity.
Good leaders are innovative thinkers who see problems as opportunities rather than roadblocks.
- Determination and focus.
A good leader isn’t ready to give up when things get tough. They work hard to achieve their goals and put in the necessary time and effort.
Leadership styles
There are times when the essay prompt needs one to write about differences in governance and leadership styles instead of your own leadership abilities. Leadership styles that you may include in your paper are:
- Democratic
If you are told to write about democratic leadership, be sure to include the qualities of a strong democracy. These qualities include a government with checks and balances so that no one person or group becomes too powerful without opposition. An effective democracy needs public participation, equal treatment for all citizens, free elections with multiple parties, separation of powers, and the rule of law.
- Authoritative
An authoritative leadership style is when one person in charge makes all of the decisions. It is sometimes effective when the leader has experience and expertise in a particular area, but this style can also be very harmful. Without checks or balances, an authoritarian leader could become corrupt over time. Dictatorships are governed by authoritarian leader who controls every aspect of life in their country.
- Affiliative
An affiliative leadership style is very group-oriented. It values harmony and avoids conflict over accomplishing goals. This type of leader often discourages voicing opinions or concerns so that problems can go unresolved for quite some time. The leader pays attention to the emotional needs of their followers.
- Pacesetting
This leadership style focuses much attention on high performance, even if it means working employees to the bone. Leaders who use this strategy often value competition and like to push their followers. Pacesetting leaders are confident in their ability to accomplish great things, which is why they set such high standards for themselves and their team members.
What Not to Include in a Leadership Essay
When you are writing your essay, think about what not to include. You don’t need to add any fluff or filler. Some of the worst things that you can include in your essay are:
- Complaining
Complaining about how hard it is to lead people. If you complain, it means that you won’t be able to motivate anyone else.
- Inappropriate or offensive language
Profanity does not make for good leadership skills and will distract from your message.
- Off-topic information
Don’t veer away from the topic of your essay and go into another story about something unrelated. Stick to what you are supposed to be talking about.
- Bad advice
Recommendations that are not based on fact or research will not help your audience, especially if they are looking for academic advice.
- Invalid or inaccurate content
If you don’t have a good grasp of the material, it will show during your writing. This will reflect poorly on you, and you might not get a good grade.
Leadership Essay Outline
Now that you have identified your most important qualities, it is time to develop an outline. Your essay should include the following features:
- An introduction
- Three-body paragraphs with examples for each quality you identified
- A conclusion
Introduction of a leadership essay
Of course, like other essays, the leadership essay needs to be introduced. This is your opportunity to get your reader’s attention and make them curious about what you will say. After all, if they aren’t interested in what you have to say, they won’t read the rest of it.
Some techniques of writing an excellent leadership essay introduction include:
- Open with a relevant anecdote or quote.
- Include a thesis statement, which is a sentence that summarizes what you will say in your essay.
- You can include a question in your introduction.
- End with an intriguing statement that makes your reader want to read on.
Body paragraphs of a leadership essay
The body paragraphs of a leadership essay are where you will go into more depth about each quality. Start your paragraph with a topic sentence that summarizes the point you want to make about that quality, then include at least three examples from your life or history. Make sure that each example is relevant and as specific as possible.
End each paragraph with a transition sentence that leads you into the next body paragraph.
Conclusion of a leadership essay
The conclusion restates what you have already said but in more general terms. If your introduction included anecdotes or quotes, make sure to reference these again in the conclusion so that it is clear how they relate to what you are saying.
Don’t forget to thank your reader for taking the time to read your essay. You can also include a final statement meant to pique the readers’ curiosity about what you will do with your leadership qualities in the future.
Edit and Proofread the Essay
This is the final step while writing a leadership essay. After you have written the essay, you need to edit it and make sure that there are no errors that will impact the quality of the paper.
Some of the aspects of the paper that need editing while revising the paper include:
- Spelling and grammar.
Spellings errors can easily obscure meaning and convey a lack of attention to detail. Grammar mistakes can make your writing awkward or unclear.
- Punctuation.
Punctuation errors can change the meaning of entire sentences. Make sure that all commas, semicolons, colons, hyphens, and periods are used correctly.
- Clarity.
Clarity refers not only to the content, which should be direct but also to the organization and language. Make sure that there aren’t any unclear sentences or phrases anywhere in the essay so that it is easy for the reader from beginning to end.
- Redundancy.
Are you repeating yourself in different ways? If so, cut back on how much you are saying and capture it in fewer words.
Sentence structure.
Are there any sentences that are confusing because the structure is awkward? Are you using passive voice or repeating words in your phrases?
- Flow within the essay’s paragraphs.
Are the paragraphs in some way difficult to follow? Are they organized in a logical, easy-to-understand order? Are you using transition words correctly?
Tips for Writing a Compelling Leadership Essay
- If you are having trouble writing your essay, here are some tips that might help. Keep in mind that no essay is ever perfect, so it’s important to get the best results possible with the time available:
- Read and analyze other leadership essay examples. Learning how others structure an essay and knowing what works well will make it easier for you to write your own essay.
- Include anecdotes that support your points. Use examples that are relevant to the topic and specific. When using a fictional character or story, make sure it is relevant to your essay’s topic.
- Write naturally and try not to be too wordy. Don’t use unnecessary words and avoid overly complex phrases and sentences so that the reader isn’t confused about what you mean.
Leadership Essay Sample
Writing a leadership essay based on the following writing prompt.
Who is a good leader?
To answer this question, we need first to define who a good leader is. It takes a lot of skills and qualities to be a leader, and we all have different views about what qualities make an effective leader. For example, the stereotypical view of a leader is someone who can give orders and be in charge. But for me, a good leader can inspire and motivate people and show others that they care.
A good leader should be able to guide people through hard times and lead by example. People choose leaders that they feel confident will take them in the right direction, but leaders need to be conscious of the fact that the ones following them may not always want to go where you want them to go. To be a good leader, you need to have integrity and be able to look yourself in the mirror each day. In addition, you need to treat people with respect and inspire others without resorting to manipulation or fear tactics so that they will follow along willingly.
People are naturally drawn toward leaders who display confidence, but this quality can easily go too far. Leader needs to be aware of their own limitations and not try to be someone they are not. For example, a leader constantly preaching about how great they are is likely not what they tell their followers. There needs to be an element of humility in leadership, even though you should also have confidence in your abilities.
I have had the opportunity to be a leader in some capacity for most of my life. The lessons that I have learned have taught me what it means to be a good leader. For example, in high school, I was president of the student council. I chose to take on this leadership role because I wanted to be involved in the decisions that affected others, but I knew that things wouldn’t get done if I didn’t listen and respect what other people had to say. This is an example of how a good leader should always strive to listen and understand where everyone around them is coming from.
A leader should also be willing to take on difficult tasks and make sacrifices if necessary. For me, the most challenging part of being president was organizing fund-raisers for projects that most students did not believe in. I had to teach people to dream big and work hard if we wanted the school to improve. I didn’t always enjoy this process, but it was definitely worth it when our hard work paid off.
In conclusion, I believe that the qualities of leadership are not always evident. Sometimes you can look at someone and know they’re a leader, but other times it’s less clear. I like to think that if this person can inspire others to follow them willingly, they are definitely a good leader.
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