Famous Leader - Margaret Thatcher EX-Prime Minister of Great Britain Essay

Famous Leader - Margaret Thatcher EX-Prime Minister of Great Britain - Essay Example People often described Thatcher using terms such as decisive, determined, iron willed and confident. These terms typify Thatcher’s inherent leadership traits, thereby, affirming the trait theory of leadership. â€Å"Trait theory of leadership differentiates a leader from a non-leader by concentrating on the individual’s inherent characteristics and qualities† (Northouse, 2012, p. 65). Thatcher further demonstrated numerous behaviors that distinguished her from other leaders. These behaviors included a desire to lead, integrity, intelligence, job related knowledge and self confidence. Although the trait theory of leadership is a viable approach to people’s leadership attributes, the approach has certain limitations, for instance, there are no collective traits, which envisage leadership under all situations. Traits essentially foretell people’s behaviors, particularly in the context of adverse situations rather than constructive situations. Such limi tations have pushed researchers to advocate the consideration of alternative leadership theories. This paper will examine Margaret Thatcher’s leadership traits, skills and behaviors in the context of the traits theory of leadership. ... Effective leaders also have the capacity to appreciate how they can attain their objectives. Leadership traits or qualities differentiate leaders from followers. Thatcher had the aforementioned characteristics, which differentiated her as an effective leader. Some of Thatcher’s most notable leadership traits include courage and resolution, self-confidence and decisiveness. Thatcher’s courage was evidenced by her throwing herself into politics; a male dominated field in which women were not welcomed. Thatcher showed courage and resolution through her single-minded passion to fight off her opposition. Notably, Thatcher had the drive to confront her enemies. Thatcher also demonstrated exceptional conviction and confidence, which enabled her to remain in power. In the course of Thatcher’s premiership, Britain’s unemployment rates rose rapidly. However, Thatcher’s conviction allowed her to offer persuasive arguments, for instance, that a tightly-bound ec onomy would offer future benefits. The mammoth patriotic enthusiasm that followed Thatcher facilitated her persuasive tendencies. Thatcher’s conviction further exemplified her decisiveness. She did not follow multitudes but rather made her own decisions and stuck to her choices. This decisiveness is primarily notable in Thatcher’s successful repulsion of Falkland Islands by Argentina. Thatcher’s decisiveness is also evident from her introduction of an internal market to the nation’s health care sector. Thatcher was a notable champion of capitalism and free markets. Leadership Skills Thatcher had many leadership skills through which she engaged with her followers. Notably, she had transformative skills as she always engaged her followers in processes of