Lesson Summary

Though defined in a variety of ways, leadership is well documented and plays a key role in relationships, organizations, and societies. Understanding leadership requires a thorough examination of theory and experience as to how leaders come to be.

This lesson introduced the age-old debate over whether leaders are born or made. From this context, leadership was broken down into traits possessed by leaders (including a strong focus on the Big Five personality traits) and then compared to sets of behaviors that must be learned within a leadership role.

Leadership is a complex interaction between leaders and followers coming together through a shared experience, goal, or interaction. This course focuses on developing leadership skills in order to build effective teams. The next lesson will provide a deeper dive into other, more modern leadership theories.

 

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