| rship courses/classes/coaching comes in many names | | | | course to take part in, such as in an MBA. |
| and forms, but the susbtance usually fits into one of 2 | | | | These courses are often those recommended by |
| catergories: | | | | leading leadership experts, leadership consultants, |
| 1. Academic Leadership Courses | | | | leadership coaches and gurus. They receive this |
| 2. Experience or 'Hands on' Based Courses | | | | universal support, because practise-based leadership |
| The differences between the two are very stark: | | | | courses are certainly seen as the 'premium' or '5 star' |
| academic courses teach the theory surrounding | | | | way of developing your skills and improving your |
| leadership & management (as the skills needed | | | | leadership potential. |
| for both can sometimes overlap). These will involved | | | | Being able to work with someone one-on-one gives |
| many leadership theories developed by professors | | | | you a great attachment and commitment to your |
| and researchers using scientific methods, and drawing | | | | leadership course. Not wanting to let your mentor |
| sensible conclusions from their results. | | | | down, you will find that having someone above you, |
| While I wouldn't want to attack the work of these | | | | looking down upon your work will tremendously effect |
| researchers - it is however important that we | | | | the amount of effort you put into it. I appreciate that |
| appreciate the weaknesses inherent within this | | | | you may see yourself as a very motivated individual - |
| strategy of learning. | | | | however the majority of us will still slack off less with |
| Weakness 1 : Lack of reality. Sometimes experiments | | | | a face-to-face leadership ooach. |
| take place in very abstract and artificial settings. They | | | | A course that bases its learning points upon the |
| may help us learn and understand human behaviour, | | | | individual mistakes or weaknesses in a participants |
| but however it is in linking these scientific results to | | | | actual activity is a great way to ensure that the |
| practical approaches to leadership, where this type of | | | | potential-leader remembers and is able to apply the |
| leadership course falls down. Due to the rather | | | | lessons learnt. |
| contrieved settings - the results may simply not | | | | Experience based courses are however far more |
| replicate in real life due to other factors that always | | | | expensive than purely academic - the most convient |
| exist in a business like setting. | | | | of which; online leadership courses, can be avaliable for |
| Weakness 2: No development for the learner. Learning | | | | under £500, (although of course, the less you |
| a theory is certainly not the same as being able to | | | | pay, the less you can expect). |
| apply one. And in this sense: purely academic | | | | In conclusion, chosing a leadership course or online |
| leadership courses do not even cover all the bases | | | | leadership course is about balancing your own needs. |
| needed to effective improve the leadership (or ensure | | | | Do you believe that you will be able to action advance |
| a marginal improvement) in an individual. | | | | leadership models on your own? Or do you believe |
| Experienced based courses can take the form of | | | | that having a professional with oversight who will give |
| mentoring from within an organisation, or perhaps a | | | | feedback, will be able to better respond to your |
| real-life based case study for the participant of the | | | | leadership development needs? |