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Essay / Leadership Styles: Analysis of Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Diana
Table of ContentsIntroductionLeadership AnalysisQueen Elizabeth IIPrincess DianaConclusionIntroductionThere is much to learn when it comes to modeling leadership styles after strong female role models of our history, such as the Queen of England, Elizabeth II and the late Princess Diana of the Whales. To this day, Queen Elizabeth II plays an important role in the monarchy, providing steadfast leadership for her people and striving to keep her country united, secure and strong. The Queen maintains a formal public attitude and adopts a democratic leadership approach with a transactional leadership style. Princess Diana also had a democratic leadership approach with a more transformational leadership style and used her charisma, demonstrating a unique ability to convince others to join her humanitarian efforts. Queen Elizabeth II and the late Princess Diana are both known throughout history as highly respected and powerful female leaders of their time, with similar and dissimilar leadership styles and qualities. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayLeadership AnalysisQueen Elizabeth IIQueen Elizabeth II, formerly Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary, is Queen of England and honored as the 6th woman to be crowned. She made history as the longest serving member of the British monarchy, since 2007. At just 25 years old, she was thrust into the role of Queen on February 6, 1952 when King George VI died at the age of 56 (New York Times, 2015). At such a young age, England demanded that she do her duty and be the public figure she needed. Despite these difficult circumstances, the Queen has demonstrated strong leadership in taking on her new role with confidence and grace. Over the years, Queen Elizabeth has proven her leadership through her willingness to try new things and adapt. For example, she approved changes to inheritance laws in 2011, which now allow eldest daughters to have pre-eminence over younger brothers (Loftus, 2015). Although she has made efforts to embrace some changes, she has great respect for maintaining many of the ancient traditions and customs of the monarchy. The Queen is known for her democratic leadership style using a calm and firm approach, demonstrating intellectual, tactical and rational leadership. During her speech to the United Nations General Assembly in 2010, the Queen once said: “I know of no single formula for success. But over the years, I have observed that some attributes of leadership are universal and often involve finding ways to encourage people to combine their efforts, talents, ideas, enthusiasm and inspiration to work together” ( Thiran, 2018). Queen Elizabeth II has many other important leadership qualities that we can learn from. Another example of how Elizabeth II is a good leader is that she is not afraid to ask questions. Her inquisitive nature helps her interact with different ranks of people she meets, from the Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom to common workers. This shows that she is a good listener and demonstrates her personal awareness of those she interacts with, making the effort to understand them to provide valuable leadership lessons in her speeches to commoners. The Queen has proven herself to be a very loyal and dedicated leader when it comes to the civil service and her family. She leads by example with her servant leadership style(Third, 2006). Servant leadership is when a leader puts their people first and leads by example to encourage them to do their best. Elizabeth II is also known for her courage, strong spirit and ability to unite her people. For example, after the terrorist attacks on public transport in London in July 2005, which killed and injured many people, she made a speech to all of England asking that everyone unite and be strong in times of tragedy and difficulties (Thiran,2018). The Queen instilled hope and confidence in her people by proclaiming that violence only makes the English people stronger and that everyone is capable of humanity and respect for the laws to keep themselves safe. Elizabeth II has always been discreet, especially when using social networks. She does not give “flashy” speeches and avoids discussing public policy issues and personal interviews (Geoff, 2015). The Queen has always shown great responsibility in protecting the private matters of the royal family from being in the spotlight. This is why she initially refused to address the nation over the highly publicized tragic death of Princess Diana in 1997. Her mistake was not allowing the British flag to be flown at half-mast to show his respect. The public reacted negatively to this and expected her to publicly acknowledge the loss of the princess. The Queen rethought her initial decision by meaningfully addressing those honoring Princess Diana and explaining her actions by expressing that in times of loss, everyone has different ways of coping and handling the initial shock and has tendency to focus on concern for those left behind (New York Times, 2015). Princess Diana, leader and role model, will always be remembered as one of the most popular and admired members of the royal family. Princess DianaDiana Spencer was born in 1961 into a British noble family and in 1981 she became Princess of Wales. Princess Diana married Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth's first-born child. Princess Diana initially struggled to accept her royal status, being constantly in the spotlight and felt uncomfortable having a royal title. However, once she had her two sons, Princes William and Harry, three years after their marriage, she began to find herself and assert herself more. The princess proved to be a very devoted and loving mother who won over many women across the world and showed them that a mother could also be a leader. She insisted on how she raised her children and was very involved in their lives. Diana made her children a priority by ensuring that all of her royal responsibilities were planned around her children's schedules. She was first a mother, then a civil servant. Princess Diana was determined to raise her boys as normally as possible and often ignored royal customs. Unfortunately, Diana's marriage to Charles was not as successful as her parenthood. There were marital problems that led to infidelity just five years into their marriage. This caused negative publicity for the royal family and the relentless paparazzi. The Queen advised a separation due to the negative news, and they divorced in 1996. However, Diana continued to be a leader and role model by continuing her humanitarian work in a more private manner (Liza, 2017). Despite all this, Diana never stopped showing her love for people and continued to help those in need. She was a true leader with heart. Princess Diana was an effective leader with strong..