Module 1 – Background

Required Material

First, start out by viewing these two short videos that will introduce you to two popular tools used for self-awareness in leadership that you will read about for this module:

Tearle, R. (2014) Emotional Intelligence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MepJp7KpaH4, Intelligent Executive, Maidenhead, UK:

Seligman, M. (2009). Dr. Martin Seligman’s top strengths. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YC1HZqCbZ70:

The two videos above will give you a good general overview of emotional intelligence and the VIA Inventory of Strengths. Now read up in more detail about these two tools in the following readings:

Kaufman, C., Silberman, J., & Sharpley, D. (2012). Chapter 17: Coaching for strengths using VIA. In Passmore, J. (Ed.). Psychometrics in Coaching: Using Psychological and Psychometric Tools for Development (2nd Edition). London, GBR: Kogan Page Ltd. [eBook Business Collection. Note: when looking up books in any of the eBook search engines don’t copy and paste the entire reference into the search engine. Instead, only include the title of the book. For example, to find this book enter in the following search terms:

Psychometrics in Coaching: Using Psychological and Psychometric Tools for Development]

Sterrett, E. A. (2000). Chapter 1: Defining Emotional Intelligence. Manager’s Pocket Guide to Emotional Intelligence: From Management to Leadership. Amherst, MA, USA: HRD Press. [eBook Academic Collection]

Sterrett, E. A. (2000). Chapter 3: Assessing Emotional Intelligence. Manager’s Pocket Guide to Emotional Intelligence: From Management to Leadership. Amherst, MA, USA: HRD Press. [eBook Academic Collection]

In the optional reading list below, there is a very short chapter on the VIA Inventory of Strengths as well as a book about the StrengthsFinder which is an alternative to the VIA.

Optional Reading

Cantore, S., & Passmore, J. (2012). Chapter 14: How can people understand and build on their strengths? Top Business Psychology Models: 50 Transforming Ideas for Leaders, Consultants, and Coaches. London: Kogan Page. [eBook Business Collection]

Rath, T. (2007). Strengths Finder 2.0. New York: Gallup Press. [eBook Business Collection]

Module 1 – Case

Case Assignment

For this first Case Assignment, your task is to apply some of the leadership development tools that you read about in the background materials to your own personal development. As a warning, this assignment as well as several other assignments will involve taking a lot of surveys. Of course surveys are not the only tools used in leadership development, but they are one of the most popular tools and many leadership coaching companies charge a lot of money for the surveys that they’ve developed. Fortunately some of the surveys discussed in the background readings are available for free. The purpose of taking the quizzes are both for use in your leadership development, and also to get a taste of what various leadership coaches out there are doing and charging their clients for.

Make sure to thoroughly review the background readings before writing your paper. The main tasks in this assignment are A) read the background materials, B) take some self-assessment quizzes, and C) write up a self-development plan based on what you’ve read about in this module and your score on the quizzes. More specifically, write a four to five page paper addressing the following questions:

1.   Take the Values in Action (VIA) Inventory of Strengths that was discussed in the background materials. This instrument is available for free but you need to register: https://www.viacharacter.org/survey/account/register

If you can find a free variation of the Strengthsfinder survey online you take this one instead, but the “official” Strengthsfinder survey from Gallup is not free. Report and discuss your results. Were your results surprising or what you expected to find? [One half to one page in length]

2.   Now take the Emotional Intelligence Self-Assessment in Chapter 3 of Sterret (2006) as well as the Leadership Assessment in this chapter. Discuss how you scored on each of the different elements of Emotional Intelligence as well as your Leadership Assessment. Report and discuss your results. Were your results surprising or what you expected to find? [One half to one page in length]

3.   Now we get to the main heart of the assignment. Based on what you have learned in this module and the quizzes you took above, give some specific examples of how you will improve your leadership skills. Your examples should be based on both your results on the two quizzes, and from the required readings. Make sure to cite at least two of the required readings in your answers, and support your answers with specific results from the quizzes that you took. [One and a half to two pages]

4.   Finally, discuss the main limitations of the quizzes you took and the concepts you read about for this module. What information is missing from the quizzes you took? What additional important aspects of leadership development are not covered in this material or quizzes? What else do you think you need to know about yourself in order to improve your leadership skills? [One page]

Assignment Expectations

·        Follow the assignment instructions closely and follow all steps listed in the instructions

·        Stay focused on the precise assignment questions, don’t go off on tangents or devote a lot of space to summarizing general background materials

·        List supporting references and cite sources in proper format

·        Use appropriate writing style in essay form (organization, grammar, and spelling).

·        Include both a bibliography and in-text citations. See the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13-14 on in-text citations