A520.9.5.RB_McNerneyLeighAnn

Many powerful and successful organizations are run politically and there is never a guarantee that the best person for the job will actually get the job. It is important for future leaders to become aware of their sources of personal influence. I personally feel comfortable developing my own sources of personal power because I feel as technology continues to transform our culture so will the need to recognize personal attributes in order to climb the ladder of success. Expertise, attraction, effort and legitimacy are the areas in which an up and coming leader can enhance in order to advance.

Expertise is the process of knowing different aspects of the job inside and out. A person can become an expert through hard work and dedication. Once the person has acquired enough knowledge he or she becomes an asset to the likelihood of the company success. He or she possesses the knowledge that their higher-level managers do not and they depend on the experts to make decisions to better their company. I feel this is something I am currently working on achieving as there are many rules and regulations to learn in the Financial Aid Department that have to be learned every day. For example as we implement a new software system it very crucial we all understand the different processes. I have been reading through our manuals to learn these processes so that my Director can call upon me if and when he has a question since he is unable to learn every process with all of his responsibilities.

Attraction is the ability to be viewed by others as a likable and agreeable person.  Someone who posses this trait can be seen by many as a charismatic and inspiring leader who can be trusted. I believe that this source of personal power is very influential in every aspect of a person’s life. People judge others naturally no matter what the setting is and having this type of power will help anyone get ahead in life. When I think about my life I feel I can understand the power attraction has over others because I have experienced what it is like to get something based solely on my looks. I am certainly not the best looking person out there however I notice I can usually get away with more because of the attraction aspect of my personal power.

Effort is another personal power, it is being a reliable and dependable individual who will do “whatever it takes” to get the job done.  This is the most important power because this is what most managers look for in an employee. They want to feel like they can rely on the employee to complete the task at hand successfully. Currently I am putting a lot of effort into my job however I feel I should improve my level of effort since returning form maternity leave. I have been a little distracted with my emotions since the transition from being home all the time to working full time. In order to lead effectively it takes dedication and dedication comes from effort.

Legitimacy is the ability to be accepted by others, which in return helps, you become an influential person thus a successful leader. In order for people to believe in you, you must be able to be accepted and then once they accept you they will start to follow you. I feel this personal power of mine is still in the developing stage. I am able to feel accepted however I do not have enough legitimacy for others to want to follow me. In order to improve this I will continue putting forth the effort to learn to hopefully become an expert in an area of financial aid. For example we have a scholarships and state grants manager who knows the different scholarships and state grants inside and out. No one possesses as much knowledge as she does so she has become an asset to the Financial Aid Department.

I feel I do embody many characteristics of a likable person such as I am very supportive, honest and loyal to my coworkers. I try to be emotionally accessible and provide positive regard and acceptance. I try to treat people, as I want them to treat me. If sacrifices need to be made I will try and do it honorably.  When dealing with any and all situations whether I agree or not I try to be empathetic and understanding to others point of views. I also will engage in relationships with all of my fellow coworkers even if I tend to disagree with them on most decisions. In order to work as a team it is important to be open and honest with coworkers. My goal is not to become friends with everyone I work with but instead try to get along for the sake of the company’s success.

In my organization I am at the bottom of the totem pole, but I am working on changing that. Starting at the bottom and working my way to the top using my personal influential powers will help me succeed. I am going to put forth effort in order to gain expertise knowledge in different areas of financial aid. I plan to use my agreeable likable attitude to develop legitimacy with others. My objective is to one day call myself a Director of financial aid.

Whetten, D.A., & Cameron K.S. (2011). Developing Management Skills (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

A520.7.3.RB_McNerneyLeighAnn

Throughout my professional journey I have had the pleasure of being able to be provided with an amazing mentor and or coach from a professional standpoint but also from a family member. I feel that these relationships are very important in the overall success I have had thus far. My sister Julie has provided me with support, guidance as well a great role model for me to follow. My Director Frederic has also provided me with support, guidance and he is also a great role model for me to follow. Each relationship offers different support systems, guidance and role models but combined they are the reason I have come this far successfully.

My sister Julie is an outstanding individual she is a wife, mom, sister, teacher, group leader, master graduate and is always going above and beyond her normal call of duty. Julie is the reason I have educated myself and continue to pursue my education, as she was the first in our family to attend and graduate college with an undergrad degree. Then while working full time as a teacher and throughout the birth of her son she obtained her master degree in Leadership. I have followed in her footsteps and have also decided to obtain a master degree in Leadership because I was inspired by her ability to take every challenge head on and make good decisions overall.

When I started my masters’ degree in October I was about five months pregnant. The program was finally available to everyone after hearing about it for months and I was overly excited to start it since seeing the success my sister had gained from the same degree. As a psychology major there were not many options for me here at Embry Riddle to continue my education in that area until the Leadership degree came about. When considering starting the degree at five months pregnant I talked to my sister and she was honest with me in that she advised it would be very difficult, but I could do anything I put my mind to. I weighed out the pros and cons and in the end I decided that starting in October would be the best option for me.

Once January came I was again stressing over the ability to continue my education as I had just given birth during the middle of my course. Julie came to my rescue, she provided me with the support I needed to remain motivated to push through this difficult and stressful time. She reminded me of my overall goal of graduating and offered to help me tutoring if needed. As I pushed forward she always expressed her feelings of how proud she was of me, and I reminded myself that if she could do it I could to. Julie is a great role model because she is the essence of what a good leader is. With her degree she has accomplished many obstacles and bettered the overall experience her class has. They have a teacher who is requested by parents every year because parents see the results of what an amazing leader and teacher she is. Since graduating Julie has also taken on the challenge of helping to better the benefits teachers receive as well as she is now getting ready to take the test to become a principle. Julie was also recently chosen to attend a training session in Washington DC to be become a Professional Development trainer to teach Professional Development to our local union.  Without Julie’s support and guidance throughout my life I would not be where I am today.

I started working as the Eastern Region Financial Aid Counselor with no experience at all other than receiving financial aid as an undergrad at the University of Central Florida. Frederic took a chance hiring me as financial aid counselor as it is a very difficult process to learn. There are many areas that change yearly and it mandatory that we not only learn but also teach our students the changes. Frederic has developed a very successful program in how he wants his counselors to learn the information. My training began with reading all about financial aid. I had to know who gets it, who disburses it, how its acquired, the federal regulations as well as what my responsibility were as a counselor. Once I completed the reading process he then coached me through the different tasks I was assigned. He helped me better understand the job and what part I played in it.

As the months passed I learned enough to be on my own and took over the region. Now that I am on my own I have gained a better understanding of what an amazing Director Frederic is. He is the type of manager who sets the example of what we can be if we continue down this path. He provides us with a tremendous amount of support when we are behind, support as we struggle to understand a new process and emotional support as well. No time is a bad time in his opinion meaning if we are upset about a student or even something personal we know we can always go to him and he will guide us in any way he can.

Frederic is always extremely busy but never makes you feel that way. He has just recently taken on the responsibility directing a new team in charge of the VA. I cannot imagine the amount of stress he has but he always is there guiding us down the right individual path. He wants to better each one of us. He spends time with each of us asking us how we are feeling and or what we would like to do with our positions, and with that knowledge he makes adjustments to his individual plans he’s mapped out. He wants to better not only Embry Riddle’s organization but also each of us personally. Frederic is my role model, of how to one day become a successful leader. He has inspired me to better my self and sharpen my critical thinking skills. With his guidance I hope to continue down my career path hopefully one day become a Director myself having my subordinates looking to me for guidance like I look to Frederic.

In my experiences I have understood the importance of having a mentor or coach and why it is important to one day become one as all benefit from this relationship. With these experiences I have also gained a better understanding of what it takes to become a mentor and or coach. It takes dedication from all parties involved, loyalty, respect; empowerment and believing in yourself and whom you’re coaching and or mentoring. Using your coaches and mentors to make better informed choices, becoming more self-aware, using personal experiences, and understanding importance of using critical thinking to make better decisions will ultimately lead you to become a successful leader.