How will your own worldview inform your leadership approach in a way that enhances your sphere of influence in a diverse world?
Instructor’s Opening Post
The overarching course question is “how do the leader’s personal and social worlds interact?” We begin
our inquiry by exploring our personal worldview and how our worldview shapes our view of the world,
and how we act in it as a leader. Walsh and Middleton (1984) argue:
A world view is never merely a vision of life. It is always a vision for life as well. Indeed, a vision
of life, or world view, that does not actually lead a person or people in a particular way of life is
no world view at all. Our world view determines our values. It helps us interpret the world
around us. It sorts out what is important from what is not, what is of highest value from what is
least…
Why is being aware of one’s worldview as a leader important? One reason, is, as Roy Disney, observed
“It’s not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.”
What is a worldview? Sire (2009) argues,
A worldview is a commitment, a fundamental orientation of the heart, that can be expressed as
a story or in a set of presuppositions (assumptions which may be true, partially true or entirely
false) that we hold (consciously or subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently) about the basic
constitution of reality, and that provides the foundation on which we live and move and have
our being. (p. 20)
How can leaders become more aware of their worldview and its influence on their leadership approach?
Valk et al. (2011) in their “Worldviews and Leadership” article write:
Worldview construction is complex. Nonetheless, the nature of leadership reveals that great
leaders take action in the world from a clear place: they are anchored in a particular view of the
world. Humans are meaning makers, and when leaders assist others in making sense of the
world through a clearly articulated and coherent worldview, solid action can follow. Thus, while
we need to be cognizant of the diversity of worldviews and the diversity of uses of the concept,
we also need to recognize that particular visions of life and ways of life can be powerful and
compelling. The challenge to leadership is to find ways to more explicitly map out these
worldviews, discerning those that tend to impede and restrict from those that seek to enhance
and expand the world we truly need or want.” (p. 61)
Drawing on your reading of Valk et al. (2011) and Sire (2009) answer the following questions:
1. In terms of Sire’s definition of worldview, what does it mean for you to “live and move and have
your being” as it relates to your worldview?
2. How will your own worldview inform your leadership approach in a way that enhances your
sphere of influence in a diverse world?
