Leadership

In chapter three of Epstein’s book he discusses the different types of leaders. Leadership is thought of by most people as the person who directs the group by telling everyone what to do. Being a leader is actually more than that. The actual definition of leadership given by Epstein is “the exercise of interpersonal influence toward the attainment of goals.”(32) Epstein describes four types which are the authoritarian, consultative, participative, and the laissez-faire leadership. The first type of leader, the authoritarian, is defined as someone who makes the decision without the groups input and communicates to the group what he or she is going to do. The consultative leader is someone who listens and takes ideas of the group then makes a decision after analyzing all the facts. A participative leader is someone who is actively working with the group to achieve their goals. A laissez-faire leader, which is the lowest rated type, is a leader who does not communicate with the group and allows the group to proceed with the task at hand.

These descriptions of leadership given by Epstein give everyone a better understanding of what and how to be a good leader. We all at some point in our lives will have to lead a group whether in school or work. We all have a better understanding of what makes a good leader.