Leadership Versus Management: The Ongoing Confusion

If you’re in charge at your place of employment, you may already be well aware of the importance of one important debate about your role. The ongoing question is in the battle between leadership versus management. What is the difference between the two methods of running the office? Which of the two is the best choice? Let’s explore these differences.

Defining the Terms

In the contest between leadership versus management, you first have to understand the difference between the two concepts. Basically, leadership refers to someone who sets the direction of the company which other people follow. On the other hand, management refers to a person who controls the resources, including the staff, of the office and, as part of that control, requires the workers to adhere to his or her approach to running the office.

Two Different Approaches

As you can see from the definitions of the terms, there is a big difference between leadership and management in the workplace. With management, the person in charge has subordinates who are required to follow his or her requests. The manager delegates work, decides whose voice will be heard, and probably enjoys the position of authority.

Leaders, on the other hand, do not necessarily relish power. Instead, they have a commitment to a certain vision or plan that keeps them focused and that they believe in. When leaders begin implementing this plan, others will follow on their own without being forced.

Clearly, the difference between leadership and management has a significant impact on the motivation and morale of the workers. Who would you rather work for? A leader whose vision you can believe in or a manager who views his/her way as the only option.

Changing Your Role

As you have probably figured out for yourself, the leadership versus management contest is always going to end with leadership coming out on top. The reason is clear to see: leaders inspire greater loyalty, motivation, and quality results. Managers make people want to do the least possible because they have no reason to strive for anything better.

If you know that you tend to be more of a manager and less of a leader, you can change that. First, start listening to your staff. They have some good ideas sometimes. Plus, if they know you care about the opinions they’ll be motivated to work harder – they just want to be noticed and recognized for their contribution to the company.

Being the Leader

Despite the confusion between the two terms, it’s clear that leadership is always going to be more desirable in the office than management. You want to be a leader so start developing your vision and sharing it with those who may follow you. If you can inspire them to believe in you, your office will go through a major metamorphosis. You’ll begin seeing changes in others’ attitudes and in their performance. Plus, you’ll start to see some positive changes in yourself, too.

By: Victor Ghebre

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Victor Ghebre is the editor of Settinggoals101 where you get practical tips and information on goal Setting, motivation, leadership and more.

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