Luke Cousins

11/5/14

Luke Cousins
PRT Integrated Core
November 5th 2014
Leadership Analysis

Leadership Analysis

Luke Cousins

11/5/14

Leadership Analysis

Leadership Analysis
John Quincy Adams our sixth United States president and leader
of country during its infancy once said, If your actions inspire others
to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then you are a
leader. Still to this day I am constantly impressed by the resolve and
charisma of our early leaders, because even though the situations
were unique and complex; our early leaders such as John Quincy
Adams were able to form our country basic ideals into what you still
see today. Even though our government and constitution has slowly
changed throughout the decades, it was these early leaders that had
the courage as well as intelligence to bring forth new ideals and
questions in a difficult time. Leadership is affecting change or direction
on a group by directing and motivating them. I think John Quincy
Adams is a great leader simply, because it wasnt just about all his
achievements and policys during office that made him such a great
leader. Adams was a good leader because of characteristics, values
and personal philosophy that contributed to his leadership style.
When dealing with leadership style its hard for me to pin point
one specific style that I feel fits me best. Rather, I think a blending of
charismatic and situational styles contributes to make up my own
leadership style. A charismatic style is something I identify well with,
because I know I can have a big ego sometimes and I am not afraid to
hold my head up above others. That being said, it doesnt mean that I

Luke Cousins

11/5/14

Leadership Analysis

dont care about others or value their personality and care about their
feelings. In fact I think that my empathy and longing to understand
others is what makes me a good leader simply since it shows that I
truly care about others. A charismatic leader is one who gets others to
achieve extraordinary things by motivating, inspiring and influencing
through power of personality. This resonates well with me since I like to
see what makes people tick, inspire and motivate them to their fullest
potential. For this reason, I know that a charismatic leadership style
will be a good fit for a profession in the specialization of adventure and
outdoor programs. If I was to work for a guiding service or as part of an
outdoor education school, qualities like motivation and inspiration are
crucial to have. These qualities and leadership style are so important
because in order to get others to work towards a certain objective,
which they feel, cannot be done. Sometimes it takes motivation,
inspiration from others to get a group or individual to reach the top of a
mountain.
Another reason my charismatic leadership style is a good fit for
adventure and outdoor programs is because sometimes its hard for
others to realize how strong, mentally tough and developed they are
ethically. It can be hard for one to see how good of a person they truly
are until someone is willing to show them what they are overlooking. In
an outdoor related industry where I might be guiding clients or
students; I think it is important to know that at some point I might have

Luke Cousins

11/5/14

Leadership Analysis

to show and lead others to realize their true potential. I might have to
influence other through power of their personality, which is why I think
my charismatic leadership style will be a great benefit to a profession
in adventure and outdoor programs.
Situational leadership is another leadership style, which I believe
contributes to make up my overall style and philosophy of leadership. I
have used this style of leadership in both Boy Scouts and Outward
Bound, which has proved its usefulness by being able to adapt to
different situations based on the ability of the group and the
complexity of the task at hand. When carrying out my Eagle Scout
project there were times during the building of my bulletin board where
I had to adapt to meet changing situations as they arose throughout
my project. A situational leadership style would be utilized well in a
profession of adventure and outdoor programs, because of the
changing nature of the programs, activities, groups and situations that
I will come in contact with. For example some groups I lead might be
more experienced or comfortable with the activity while other groups I
lead may not. A situational leadership style will allow me to evaluate,
change and refine things as they arise during an activity, program or
expedition that I am leading.
Theodore Roosevelt our 26th president of the United States of
America is one leader who stands out amongst the rest. I have looked
up to him ever since I visited the National Park, which contains the

Luke Cousins

11/5/14

Leadership Analysis

entirety of the California Redwoods and learned of his numerous

conservation efforts. Roosevelt also had a personal love of the natural
world that he shared with others such as the well-known writer,
explorer and naturalist: John Muir. He was best portrayed as a
transformational leader, which can be viewed as an individual who
requires the best of everyone maybe resulting in a transformation of
those individuals or group. Roosevelts leadership style and
characteristics were well displayed throughout his presidency and
personal life.
Roosevelt was able to communicate and share his vision of
environmental protection by being the first president to speak out on
behalf of conservation and worked greatly to expand our system of
national parks and forests. During the Spanish American war of 1898
that took place before his presidency was a period that established
Roosevelt not only as skilled leader, but also as a fairly brilliant military
strategist. The Rough Riders were a regiment that consisted of
volunteer cavalry members and were responsible for the victory of
Kettle Hill alongside the regular troops. Kettle Hill was fought against
the Spanish resistance in Cuba, where Roosevelt became well known
for his ride on horseback between rifle pits on the forefront advance up
Kettle Hill. Despite no orders from superiors, he continued to personally
urge on the advance of the Rough Riders taking place at the forefront
of the battlefield leading to an eventual victory.

Luke Cousins

11/5/14

Leadership Analysis

Military experience, leadership and victory in combat are only a

few of the things that establish Roosevelt as a quintessential role
model for others. He accomplished this by not only serving as an
example in battle but having the courage to do what he felt was best
for his troops. Roosevelt exemplified a transformational leadership
style not only in his military service but by adapting to various
scenarios in combat. His transformational style of leadership was also
present and effective throughout his presidency. This was mainly
important when attempting to address or carry out continually
changing aspects of his domestic and foreign policy (United States Anti
Trust Law, acquisition and interest in areas of the Caribbean). The
previous few reasons as well as specific examples are responsible for
why I admire Theodore Roosevelt and view him as such an effective
leader overall.
Looking over both Theodore Roosevelts leadership philosophy as
well as my own, I am able to see some distinct similarities and
differences. First of all our leadership styles are completely different;
while Roosevelts is transformative I see mine as charismatic as well as
situational. While my charismatic style can be viewed as both strongly
influencing and motivating, I view Roosevelts transformational style as
more serious and almost severe when influencing and motivating
others. A transformational leadership style depends on everyone no
matter if it is uncomfortable. While I view both charismatic and

Luke Cousins

11/5/14

Leadership Analysis

transformational leadership styles as having similarities in

characteristics of behavior it is still apparent that one is more
serious/severe in what requires of others. By carrying out this
assignment and learning more about Theodore Roosevelt I have been
able to see particular aspects of leadership styles. I have also come to
realize that to be an effective leader requires a little bit of mixing of
behaviors from multiple leadership styles.

Citations
1. No Author. Theodore Roosevelt Biography. (n.d.). Retrieved
November 5, 2014 from
http://www.biography.com/people/theodore-roosevelt9463424.

2. No Author. Theodore Roosevelt's 20 Key Elements of

Leadership. (n.d.). Retrieved November 5, 2014 from
http://lawmarketing.com/theodore-roosevelts-20-keyelements-of-leadership/