Leadership - a trait or a skill?
Posted on April 21, 2023 by Gila Cohen Kropf, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
Leadership is widely spoken. Being a leader is among the most popular compliments many wish for. But what is it exactly? a trait or a learned skill?
L e a d e r s h i p – a trait or a skill?
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Leadership is widely spoken in many contexts and it has been researched and analyzed by many studies in the past years. Certain approaches state that leadership counts as a trait that certain individuals are born with, while other claim that it leadership is a skill that can be learned and improved over time.
L e a d e r s h i p as a trait
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The trait theory of leadership suggests that certain people are born with specific traits that can potentially make them stand out as leaders. These traits include but are not limited to charisma, intelligence, confidence, integrity and others. That means, individuals who possess these traits are more likely to be leaders, while those who were not born with these traits are less likely to become leaders.
Followers of this believe that these traits are iintrinsic and cannot be taught. They also believe that these traits are relatively stable over time, meaning that individuals who possess them are likely to hold them throughout their lives.
However, opponents of this approach state that reality shows that there are many examples of successful leaders who do not possess these traits. They also argue that the theory neglects the importance of situational factors, such as the real-time context in which leadership is exercised and the needs , expectations and characteristics of followers.
L e a d e r s h i p as a skill
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The skill approach of leadership states that leadership is a set of skills that can be learned and developed over time. According to this theory, anyone can become an effective leader if they are motivated to become a leader and are striving to develop the necessary skills.
Supporters of the skill approach argue that leadership is not limited to individuals with specific characteristics. The main argument is that leadership skills are not fixed and can be improved through training and practice. This theory also emphasizes the important role of situational factors.
Critics of the skill approach insist that it overlooks the importance of in-born qualities such as charisma and confidence. In case individuals lack these inherent characteristics, they will have difficulties to develop leadership capabilities.
Which approach is the correct one?
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The concept and nature of leadership lies probably between the theories or in other words is a hybrid model and includes both approaches.
Leadership requires a combination of innate traits and acquired skills. Charisma, confidence, and integrity may be innate qualities that help individuals to become successful leaders, but they are not the only qualities that matter. Leadership skills such as communication, decision-making, and problem-solving can also be learned and developed through training and practice.
To conclude, leadership is complex, non-linear. It is a unique combination of in-born traits, learning, practice and environmental conditions such as social and political contexts, opportunities, timing and more. History knows highly impact leaders who differ very much from each other, some of a highly positive impact while others, unfortunately are of a highly negative impact.
