10 Leadership Philosophy Examples: Lead Towards Success

A leadership philosophy refers to a set of values, beliefs, and principles shaping how a leader leads others. Learning about different philosophies will help you determine which leadership style suits you best. This will ultimately make you a better leader by recognizing your weaknesses and helping you to work on them. Here, we are discussing 10 famous leadership philosophies.

Key Leadership Styles Unveiled

Philosophers on leadership introduced the following 10 famous leadership styles: 

1. Autocratic Leadership

Autocratic leadership or authoritarian leadership is a management style in which a single leader has full control over a group or organization. The leader makes all decisions alone and enforces strict obedience to defined rules and regulations without any descent. Kurt Lewin, a German Psychologist, introduced this philosophy. 

2. Delegative Leadership

In delegative leadership, leaders give employees more autonomy. They assign tasks and allow employees to make decisions. It was introduced by Kurt Lewin, a German Psychologist, who also introduced Autocratic leadership. 

3. Democratic Leadership

Democratic Leadership is next among the famous leadership philosophies and is also known as participative leadership. In this management style, leaders encourage peers to be involved in decision-making, collaborate on tasks, and build relationships.

4. Learning Leadership

Learning leadership is probably the best leadership philosophy at present. In it, leaders create an environment to learn and acknowledge. They encourage team members to ask questions without hesitation and explore new learning opportunities. John Dewey introduced this management style.

5. Managerial Leadership

Managerial leadership is one of the highly used and famous leadership philosophies. This philosophy involves guiding a team to achieve set goals through efficient management. It can be a part of other leadership styles like learning and democratic leadership. Peter Drucker is one of the philosophers of leadership who introduced the managerial leadership style. 

6. Participative Leadership

In participative leadership, peers are involved in decision-making, but leaders make the last call. It helps build trust between the team and leader for all tasks as leaders value all the suggestions and can lead to higher quality. Rensis Likert, a social psychologist from the U.S., developed the participative leadership philosophy.

7. Servant Leadership

The servant leadership philosophy follows the belief that the most effective leaders serve others rather than take control. It can be anyone: customers, partners, fellow employees, or even a large community. Rober Greenleaf introduced the concept of servant leadership in 1970 with his essay, “The Servant as Leader.”

8. Solution-Based Leadership

Next among the famous leadership philosophies is solution-based leadership. It involves leaders making action plans with clear solutions and outcomes. To make sure the plans succeed, leaders might interest people with tasks. Dr. Rick Goodman, one of the renowned authors and philosophers on leadership, introduced this management style. 

9. Strategic Leadership

Strategic leadership involves leaders using their resources to plan, picture, and lead to achieve the goal. Utilizing the available talent to the fullest is the core of this management style. Strategic leadership is a highly used leadership philosophy at the current time.

10. Transformational Leadership

Transformational leadership is often considered a hands-on approach to leadership. It involves motivating team members to collaborate and achieve a shared goal. Transformational leaders empower the team to look beyond their interests. James MacGregor Burns, a political scientist and leadership researcher, introduced this leadership style.

Leading With Purpose

Philosophers on leadership have introduced several philosophies over time. Each leadership philosophy has its own strengths and weaknesses, so it’s best to adapt some features of every style. At the current time, when leadership has become harder than it’s ever been, following the best practices is the only way to become an iconic leader and lead the team to success.