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Robert Greenleaf And James Hunter

Decent Essays

Robert Greenleaf and James Hunter are both experts when it comes to leadership. Greenleaf coined the term “servant leadership” and published his first essay regarding this topic in 1970. Hunter is a world renowned author and speaker because of his leadership forte, and has worked with thousands of business executives on developing leadership skills that create successful businesses (Hunter 1998). Both of these men are distinguished professionals because of their philosophies and approaches to efficacious leadership, but they each have a different approach of how they present and represent these ideas.
Greenleaf takes a very direct approach in presenting his beliefs about leadership. He speaks in absolutes. Using headings in his writings, he addresses a specific component of leadership and explicitly states what he means in the succeeding paragraphs. Leaving little room for subjection or argumentation, Greenleaf does not pose open-ended questions towards his readers, but rather, speaks with an assertive tone that makes his ideas sound factual. Congruently, many facts are presented throughout Greenleaf’s writing, giving readers a reliable platform on which to found their beliefs. Greenleaf writes:
People who go for leadership (whether they are servants or non-servants) may be viewed as one of two extreme types. There are those who are so constituted physically and emotionally that they like pressure—seek it out—and they perform best when they are totally intense.

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