The term leadership has many different definitions and an effective leader is also perceived in different ways. Some basic concepts common to leadership are that it “involves a process of intentional influence exerted by one person on other people to guide or facilitate the activities of a group or organization” (Yukl, 2006). A leader can inspire individuals to do things to achieve a common goal. A leader is defined as a “person or thing that leads” or “a head that guides or directs.” Some effective qualities found in an effective leader are that he has an exemplary character, thinks analytically, is enthusiastic about his work, functions in an orderly manner, stays calm in situations and is committed to the main goal and excellence (White, B. , 2014). Leaders are able to influence other individuals, which results in commitment from those who follow them. A leader can inspire his followers to sacrifice their own interests for a higher cause. This influence can be aimed at the group as a whole or at the leaders. Leadership can be a specialized role or a shared influence. There is direct and indirect leadership. While a direct leader conveys information to an individual, the cascading effect it produces is considered indirect leadership (Yukl, 2006). What qualities are necessary for an individual to be considered an effective leader? One of the most common ways to measure the effectiveness of a leader's leadership abilities is whether the task corresponding to the objectives was achieved. Are the attitudes of the followers positive and is the leader's contribution to the project perceived as a positive influence for the whole? An example would be individuals' drive to accomplish the...... middle of paper ...... are three types of leader behaviors that can define an effective or ineffective leader. Leaders can be task-oriented, relationship-oriented, or participative. According to this information, she is a task-oriented person. She spends time planning the work, but gives no indication of how she wants the work accomplished. She is not a sociable person. She prefers to work alone and has no people skills. At one point she needed someone to go to Memphis for an overnight trip for a recruiting project and she asked me to go. I informed her that I would not be able to attend because I already had plans for the weekend that I could not undo. She seemed agitated that I couldn't go. Later, I suggested to my colleague, who is also a woman, to go in my place and she said no, because a man had to go because the recruitment was in a more difficult part of the city..