Transformational Leadership in Nursing and Effective Time Management

In order to be successful. Leaders have to use their time wisely to complete tasks. The debate on whether leadership is innate or acquired after birth has raged on for decades. While no consensus has been reached on the issue, it is generally agreed that all successful leaders possess certain traits. Time management is one of these traits. This paper seeks to present a time management assessment and show the difference between leadership and management.

Time Management Assessment

Managing time can be a difficult affair for nurse leaders who have to handle busy schedules that involve staffing problems, meetings, and other issues, every day.

Poor time management may result in wasted time, inefficient workflow, poor quality work, missed deadlines, as well as decreased work satisfaction (Chunta & Boothby, 2017). Therefore, a nurse must possess time management skills. The assessment revealed that my time management skills are strong, though several areas that can be potentially improved were noted. In carrying out the assessment, a time audit was done to track how I used the 24 hours a day. Preparation in advance is one of my main strengths. This trait helps avoid confusion and more waste of time. For instance, if one starts their day by checking their email and addressing the newest problem, the ongoing projects might be hurt. The audit also revealed that email could be a constant distractor, hence the need to develop strategies to address the issue, such as scheduling specific times to be checking email. To reduce time wastage as a nurse leader, the need to avoid calling for unnecessary meetings was noted. As mentioned earlier, time management is an indispensable trait in a leader. As such, the above-mentioned strategies are important in leadership.

Leadership Style

Nursing is among the most dynamic fields in healthcare. Therefore, I believe that nurses should be constantly inspired to embrace change. As such, I believe that the transformational leadership style best describes me. This is a style of leadership where the leader inspires, encourages, and motivates the employees to innovate and bring about the needed change in the organization. However, unlike some of the other styles, such as autocratic leadership, the leader does not micromanage. Rather, the leader trusts in the ability of the employees and hence gives them more autonomy over decisions regarding their tasks. Studies have revealed that employees who have more autonomy are bound to be more creative and innovative (Thibault et al., 2019). They also look ahead and find solutions to existing problems. The training and mentorship offered also prepare the employees to take up more challenging tasks and leadership roles in the future. The style was proposed by James V. Downton in 1973 and was later expanded in 1978 by James Burn (Kelly, 2019).

However, as advanced by the contingency theory of leadership, no style suits all situations (Kulkarni, 2017). Therefore, to respond to different situations, I might be forced to borrow certain aspects of other styles. For instance, a style that leans more towards autocratic leadership may be adopted when the employees are not well-experienced. After they gain enough experience, however, one can revert to transformational leadership.

Leadership vs. Management

As intimated earlier, leadership and management are different, though they are often taken to mean the same thing. The most visible difference between the two is that while leadership focuses on inspiring, management is more about planning. Mostly, leadership involves a motivational style, while management leans towards an authoritarian style. While the two are different, they are complementary. An attempt to separate them in an organization leads to more problems. Moreover, in successfully run organizations, the two exist in tandem. Therefore, for an organization to be successful, the staff must be coordinated and organized and also motivated and inspired.

Application of the Concepts to the Work Environment

The concepts learned in this module can be applied in various spheres of nursing. The time management assessment gave insight into areas that can be improved to make leadership more effective. The various theories and styles of leadership are important in guiding a leader in different situations. The relationship between those two can also be employed to improve the relationship between the leader and the followers.

Conclusion

The above discussion has clearly shown the differences between leadership and management. The time management assessment helped reveal some of my strengths, as well as areas that need improvement. Owing to the skills that I possess, the transformational leadership style describes me best. However, it can be changed depending on the situation you have to deal with in life.

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