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Leadership Assessment Paper

Trami Nguyen
Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing
NUR4144 Professional Role Development: Servant Leadership

LEADERSHIP ASSESSMENT PAPER

According to Kouzes and Posner, leadership is about a persons observable actions and

behaviors (Kouzes & Posner, 2013). Using the self observation tool of the Student Leadership
Practices Inventory, I explored five areas of leadership: model the way, inspire a shared vision,
challenge the process, enable others to act, and encourage the heart (Kouzes & Posner, 2013). In
this paper, I explore, in depth, areas of leadership where I excel and areas where I need
improvement.
Of the five leadership practices, I scored highest on enabling others to act. I am not
surprised that this practice was my highest score. Enabling others to act comes naturally to me
because I enjoy working with others. I believe that everyone has strengths and weaknesses that
can be beneficial when working towards a common goal. I recognize that everyone has
something that they can bring to the table. Enabling others to act is the leadership practice that I
am most comfortable with because I enjoy forming trusting, caring relationships with others.
According to my peers, enabling others to act is my strongest leadership practice. My
peers actually scored me a little higher than I scored myself during my self-assessment. Enabling
others to act is a practice I am comfortable with regardless of the setting. Whether I am working
in a group project or taking care of a patient, I utilize the skills of this leadership practice to
guide my actions. I enjoy building relationships and being a part of dynamic groups. Enabling
others to act requires actively listening and a certain level of respect for others and their
decisions. Even if I do not agree with others decisions, I have enough respect for others to
support their decisions.

LEADERSHIP ASSESSMENT PAPER

Enabling others to act is the leadership practice that I am most comfortable with. To me,
this practice means providing someone with the resources, skills, and ideas that they need to
reach a higher goal. Great leaders will provide not only physical support, but also emotional and
mental support. For example, in nursing, a preceptor assists his or her student nurse insert a
Foley catheter for the first time. Mentally, a preceptor may provide support by helping the
student nurse think through the steps before beginning the insertion. Physically, the preceptor
supports the student by opening packages or handing supplies. Emotionally, the preceptor may
listen to the students concerns and give the student words of encouragement before, during, and
after completing the skill. In this scenario, a preceptor is an effective leader by listening and
supporting the student. The preceptor is enabling the student to act, which helps the student gain
confidence. When people gain confidence, leaders emerge. In my opinion, the ultimate outcome
of enabling others to act is helping in the development of a new leader.
According to the literature, enabling others to act is about fostering collaboration and
strengthening others by sharing power (Kouzes & Posner, 2013). Some specific behaviors seen
with this practice include developing cooperative relationships, active listening, respecting
others, supporting others decisions, giving others freedom, and providing leadership
opportunities (Kouzes & Posner, 2013). Great leaders respect other people and their decisions,
even if they do not coincide with their own beliefs. Leaders who enable others to act take the
time to listen to others feeling and concerns. Actively listening plays a big part in fostering
cooperative, trusting relationships. Effective leaders also provide opportunities for others to
make choices and to take the lead sometimes. Before this can happen, it is crucial for a leader to
build a strong, trusting relationship because it is sometimes difficult to trust someone enough to
let go of personal power. A leader who enables others is not self-serving or thinks about his or

LEADERSHIP ASSESSMENT PAPER

her own profit and position (Blanchard & Hodges, 2005). They focus on serving others and
fulfilling the purpose of the whole group. When this leadership practice of enabling others is
utilized, empowerment and growth occurs. When empowerment is present within an individual
or group, the outcomes are positive and new leaders emerge.
In regards to my scores for the leadership practice of enabling others to act, I scored
highest on actively listens, treats others with respect, and supports decisions others make. I
scored lowest on provides leadership opportunities. I believe the results were fairly accurate.
Active listening and treating others with respect is something that I do every day without
thinking. Nursing school has allowed me to practice these behaviors even more in working with
my classmates and with patients in the hospital. Supporting decisions others make does not come
as naturally as the other behaviors, but I still try to understand and support others even when I
disagree. Provides leadership opportunities is my least frequent behavior. Aside from not having
many leadership roles at this time in my life, I recognize that I can improve in allowing others to
take charge in group activities.
As I mentioned earlier, I am most comfortable with the leadership practice of enabling
others to act. I demonstrate this practice frequently in my Clinical Immersion course with my
patients and my preceptor. One of my most frequent behaviors is active listening. From the
moment my day begins with getting report from night shift, I am actively listening. Throughout
the day, I must listen to doctors orders, patients concerns and feelings, and my preceptors
constructive criticism and praises. This behavior helps me build trust and foster collaboration
with others. I also demonstrate the leadership practice in Clinical Immersion by giving my
patients freedom and choice. Many patients feel helpless and a loss of control in the hospital. By

LEADERSHIP ASSESSMENT PAPER

allowing them to take an active part in their plan of care, I am empowering them to take charge
and improve their health.
While I feel confident with the practice of enabling others to act, I would like to improve
in challenging the process. I will become a better leader and a better nurse if I find opportunities
to grow and experiment with risks. I also hope to gain more confidence in my skills and abilities
by utilizing this leadership practice more frequently. To feel more comfortable with challenging
the process, I will have to get out of my comfort zone. In general, I do not like change; I like
familiarity. If I truly want to feel more comfortable with challenging the process, I am going to
have to get used to being uncomfortable in the beginning.
Because it is my last semester of nursing school, my Clinical Immersion course is the
best time to push myself to improve in challenging the process. In working with my preceptor
and clinical immersion instructor, I will develop goals for the rest of the semester to practice
some behaviors of challenging the process. I am already in the process of utilizing some of the
behaviors including developing skills and abilities and setting goals. I will improve in other
areas, such as taking initiative in experimenting and keeping current, by asking more questions
when I am unsure about something and doing my own research to find answers. I will be
proactive on my unit by seeking opportunities to learn and develop different nursing skills, even
if I am hesitant and anxious. I will know that I have improved in this leadership skill when I
undauntedly volunteer to perform a new skill or task. Even if I am unsuccessful, I still have the
opportunity to grow by learning from my mistakes and setting goals for the future.

LEADERSHIP ASSESSMENT PAPER

References
Blanchard, K. & Hodges, P. (2005). Lead like Jesus. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.
Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2013). The Student Leadership Challenge: Student Workbook
and Personal Leadership Journal. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.