Summary
In a group project, whoever commands leadership must possess a number of traits or characteristics to ensure the group's success. These qualities include, but are not limited to:
? Conscientiousness
? Dedication
? Outgoing
? Analytical
? Sincere
Each of these traits is equally important in defining a leader. A successful leader must possess all of these personas to some degree if he or she expects a successful outcome. Often times however, depending on the dynamics of the group, there may be trade offs in the need for each of the characteristics. For example, in a group that might be slightly careless or perhaps "dumb", a leader who is especially conscientious and analytical would be preferred, as they would be good at going over the group work, picking out mistakes, and then correcting them. On the other hand, in a group that is very skilled, you may encounter problems in which each person thinks they are correct. Therefore, you would need a leader who is particularly sincere and accepting of all ideas, in addition to outgoing, and having the ability to bring the group members together, even when there is a good possibility of dissent.
Being a good group leader does not necessarily imply that you are extremely smart or gifted, rather, being a good group leader implies that one owns each of these traits, and is able to use them to the group's advantage.
Personal Experience
Ever since I began my education at Pitt, especially in our CBA Orientation classes, I had heard grumblings about a class called "MCE" or short for "Managing in Complex Enviornments". Though I had been told th ...