BUS 510 Reflective Journal
Chapter 1: Prudence-Making the Right Decision
| Quotes from the textbook | Analysis of the quote |
| We do not develop the virtue of prudence through life experience but through contemplation of that experience (Havard, 2017). | It is very wrong to assume that immense levels and years of experience might allow one to be able to master the virtue of prudence, as many believe. However, this is not so since reflection and contemplation of that experience are what allows an individual (manager/leader) to be able to fully understand the extent of their prudence from which they can better themselves and how they approach situations that require decision making. |
| Experience has value, but it is the combination of experience with contemplation that makes for effective, prudent decision-making (Havard, 2017). | It is very common to hear employees and people seeking recruitment inquiring about the experience. This is indeed a vital tool when it comes to making decisions. However, these acquired experienced can only be valuable if they are combined with the ability to contemplate since this makes it possible to make better and even more effective decisions (Peiró, Agut, & Grau, 2010). |
| Prudent decision-making consists of three steps, sometimes taken consciously, sometimes not: deliberation, judgment, and decision (Havard, 2017). | According to the author (2017), making effective choices is highly dependent on the deliberation put into the mater from where one can make their self-conscious judgment. As a result of this, the best decision is then made, which can then trigger how one reacts or coupes with conditions or a challenge at hand. |
Chapter 2: Courage-Staying the Course
| Quotes from the textbook | Analysis of the quote |
| Staying the course, maintaining a consistent focus, and being predictable in terms of what we believe may not always lead to love, but will lead to effective leadership trust (Havard, 2017). | Being a leader is a matter of being able to make other people believe, trust, and have faith in you through thick and thin. Therefore, a leader should be able to remain consistent and truthful to a particular objective. In some cases, such values and principles might not earn one love from others possible due to the challenges along the way. However, it will make one get respect and a faithful following as a strong leader. |
| Endurance is the essence of courage (Havard, 2017). | Courage is highly related to bravery, which is something that many people strive to get for a long time. This is so since having courage does make it possible for one to stay in a particular course of direction. However, courage does bring along immeasurable struggles and challenges. Thus, this is why the reading suggests that endurance is the essence of courage since without this quality, one ill not be able to remain courageous in the long run. |
| Courage entails the ability to run risks (Havard, 2017). | In management or seeking to achieve a particular goal, it is very common to come across a large number of potential risks. This quote reflects on the ability of one being able to surf the waves of risk and still be able to come out on top. |
Chapter 3: Self-control Mastery of Heart and Mind
| Quotes from the textbook | Analysis of the quote |
| I no longer teach the management of people at work…I am teaching, above all, how to manage oneself (Maxey, 1999). | This quote by Peter Drucker in the course reading reflects on how business management is attaining training on how to manage people in a working condition. However, according to Drucker, when it comes to becoming a prominent manager, it is always vital to ensure that one is able to grasp the utmost self-control. This is emphasized by the fact that Drucker has turned to teach about self-management before the management of people. |
| Self-control has a direct influence on how leaders carry out their professional duties. | Self-control is a skill that not many people are able to harness since it is something one has to learn and acquire on their terms and time. However, how one behaves and carry’s out their activities on a personal level to end up reflecting in their professional status. Therefore, being able to know and understand when to control oneself can be an added advantage. |
| There is no place for envy in a leader’s heart. | Havard strongly believes that no leader should be willing to open up their room to envy since this will easily result in them losing a sense of direction and leadership. Encouraging envy makes it harder to focus on the task at hand, which drives a wedge between being a leader and having a connection to those who depend on the leader. |
Chapter 4: Justice-Communion and Communication
| Quotes from the textbook | Analysis of the quote |
| Leaders strive for the common good, which, for them, is something whose importance transcends the Gross National Product and other indicators of prosperity. | In business, indicators are widely used as tools of looking into the performance and operations of the business entity. However, over time it ends up becoming harder to see any form of social, community, employee, or even personal gains. Thus, good leaders strive to achieve fulfillment and a common god, such as making the community or his/her employees better since this is a better reward aside from making profits. |
| Leaders conceive of work as a service to all. | As a leader, one is always expected to always lead by example. From this, it is evident that all leaders are highly expected to be effective leaders by being able to serve others first before expecting others to fall in line (Hart, 2019). By leading by the act of being an example will ensure that a leader earns respect required. |
| Leaders see family life as a source of strength, not an obstacle. | For the longest time, many people who seek to have successful careers have believed that having a family is a bad idea since it only becomes more of an obstacle causing one to pull back from obtaining their personal and career goals. However, this is the analogy that Havard aims at eradicating by identifying a family as a source of strength rather than an obstacle. |
References
Hart, L. (2019). Effective leaders are focused on serving others… Journal of Accountancy, 228(1), 72-72.
Havard, A. (2017). Virtuous Leadership: An Agenda for Personal Excellence. Scepter Publishers, Inc.
Maxey, C. (1999). No more mister nice guy. Training & Development, 53(6), 17-19.
Peiró, J. M., Agut, S., & Grau, R. (2010). The relationship between overeducation and job satisfaction among young Spanish workers: The role of salary, contract of employment, and work experience. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 40(3), 666-689.