Table of Contents, Inner Leadership Resources Page
Previous Section, Inner Leadership Next Section, Inner Leadership

Westside Toastmasters is located in Los Angeles and Santa Monica, California

LEADERSHIP LEARNING ACTIVITIES

Activity 1: Self-Assessment— Type A Leader Behavior Pattern

Instructions. Leaders are confident, self-assured, and posess what some would call a Type A personality. The following questions might help you if you share these leadership personality characteristics. Indicate whether each of the following items is true (T) or false (F) for you.

_____ 1. I am always in a hurry.

_____ 2. I have list of things I have to achieve on a daily or weekly basis.

_____ 3. I tend to take one problem or task on at a time, finish, then move to the next one.

_____ 4. I tend to take a break or quit when I get tired.

_____ 5. I am always doing several thing at once both at work and in my personal life.

_____ 6. People who know me would describe my temper as hot and fiery.

_____ 7. I enjoy competitive activities.

_____ 8. I tend to be relaxed and easy going.

_____ 9. Many things are more important to me than my job.

_____ 10. I really enjoy winning both at work and at play.

_____ 11. I tend to rush people along or finish their sentences for them when they are taking too long.

_____ 12. I enjoy "doing nothing" and just hanging out.

Scoring key: Type A individuals tend to indicate that questions 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 10, and 11 are true and that questions 3, 4, 8, 9, and 12 are false. Type B individuals tend to answer in the reverse (1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 10, and 11 as false and 3, 4, 8, 9, and 12 as true).

Activity 2: What Is Your Strategic Leadership Type?

Instructions. For each of the following items, rate yourself using the following scale (you can also use the items to rate a leader in your organization):

My Ranking _________ Ranking for my organization _________

1

2

3

4

Always

Never

Occasionally

Often

_____ 1. I enjoy working on routine tasks.

_____ 2. I am looking for new ways of doing things.

_____ 3. I have trouble delegating tasks to my subordinates.

_____ 4. I like my subordinates to share the same values and beliefs.

_____ 5. Change makes me uncomfortable.

_____ 6. I encourage my subordinates to participate in decision making.

_____ 7. It is hard for me to get things done when there are many contrasting opinions.

_____ 8. I enjoy working on new tasks.

_____ 9. I feel comfortable giving power away to my subordinates.

_____ 10. I consider myself to be a risk taker.

Scoring key: Reverse scores for items 1, 5, 6, 7, and 9 (0 = 3, 1 = 2, 2 = 1, 3 = 0). Challenge-Seeking Score: Add items 1, 2, 5, 8, and 10. Your score will be between 0 and 15. Total: _________

Need for Control Score: Add items 3, 4, 6, and 9.Your score will be between 0 and 15. Total: _________

The larger the number the stronger the tendency is toward that leader characteristic.

Activity 3: Leadership and Gender

Instructions. The leadership literature includes broad discussion about differences between gender roles and leadership This activity is designed to explore the relationship between gender roles and leadership.

  1. Develop a list of your leadership characteristics. You may use specific personality traits or a behavioral description. Set that list aside.

  2. Select another leader of the opposite gender. Develop a list of the personality traits or behaviors of that other leader.

  3. Compare and contrast the two lists. Determine what, if any differences are apparent. Discuss these differences and the reasons why men and women differ in their approach to leadership.

  4. Write a brief report highlighting your findings and their implications for your future leadership actions.

Westside Toastmasters on Meetup

Table of Contents, Inner Leadership Resources Page
Previous Section, Inner Leadership Next Section, Inner Leadership