Are leaders born successful or can they be trained Essay

Are leaders born successful or can they be trained - Essay Example However, to achieve such goals they must have broader skills and trait sets that allow them to think and act globally. Such traits are charisma, creativity, flexibility, achievement drive, motivation, honesty, integrity, self-confidence, cognitive ability and emotional stability (Elliot, 1994). Nevertheless, there is an issue that always arises when we are trying to understand the nature of the leaders. Are such skills and traits inherited or any of us can be trained to become a leader? Are leaders born? This controversial issue has been an object of study for centuries. There are many theories that suggest that to become an authentic leader, one has to be born with a distinct set of personal characteristics. Such as ‘The great man theory of leadership’ that became very popular since the 19th century. Many historians and scientists examined this theory. â€Å"Effective leaders are those gifted with divine inspiration and the right characteristics.† This theory is based on the study of people who were already world’s legendary leaders such us Abraham Lincoln, Julius Caesar, Mahatma Gandhi, and Alexander the Great (Bass, 1990). The conception of Traits Theory of Leadership also suggests that leaders are given special qualities that separate them from their followers. The leadership is defined in terms of traits of personality and character. To be even more precise, (Bird 1940) compiled a list of seventy-nine such attributes, from twenty psychological oriented studies (Bass, 1990). People declared as leaders, or sometimes even as heroes, presented features like superior intelligence, physical strength, moral force, charisma, self-confidence and an unbelievable desire to succeed. Those divine virtues given to them, enabled born leaders to stand out from the masses and achieve great things, regardless of setting or situation (Bass, 1990). Many scientists also consider the phenomena of leadership as the set of the right qualities or persona lity that are innate. The ability to lead is directly linked to one's personality. Moreower, there is a special brain chemistry between leaders and followers. The high levels of serotonin appear to promote leadership (Cawthon, 2006). Numerous contemporary studies have revealed that genes affect a variety of leadership abilities. The innate qualities influence your attitude toward leadership, your willingness to take leadership role and even what kind of leader a person might become. Some portion of your attitude toward leadership is hidden in your DNA. Through many studies, we know that genetics accounts for about 40 percent of the difference between people in what they think of leadership. The same genetic predispositions that accounted for our ancestors’ interest to heading up the hunting party or running the clan, it seems, the same happens today, affecting our lives in modern organizations (Shane, 2010). Professor Scott Shane (2010, pp.122-123) also suggests that the DNA influences whether you move up in your company or not. Because people tend to engage in behaviors that they are good at, those with the genes that predispose them to develop leadership potential are more likely to move toward leadership roles. Genes influence whether you become a leader through your personality traits, social