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ALPHA LEADERS

Focus: Motivation, Teamwork, Leadership

Time: 15-20 minutes

Objectives:

1. Define the qualities of leadership

2. Identify strengths and weaknesses of different leadership styles

3. Recognize the importance of leadership style on motivation and teamwork

Materials needed:

Alpha Leader portraits (provided, or use your own selection)

Tape

Copies of Alpha Leaders Worksheet for each participant

Introduction:

Alpha Leader is a term describing a person who, through the combination of skills, personality, and

timing, has become a cultural icon of his or her period. Some Alpha Leaders are posted around the

room; you may recognize many or all of them. Obviously, not all of us can be Alpha Leaders. But many

of us have probably wondered how these leaders accomplished all that they did. How did they get

people motivated? How did they gain consensus among diverse groups of people? How did they

communicate effectively? How were they able to operate with such integrity? How were they aware of

others feelings and able to respond so empathetically? In this exercise we will explore the phenomena

of leadership.

Directions:

1. Post the Alpha Leader portraits around the room, and tape a piece of blank paper beside each.

2. Distribute a copy of the Alpha Leaders Worksheet to each participant to complete.

3. After all participants have completed the Worksheet, tell the group that they will now be able to

see which Alpha Leaders their colleagues chose.

4. Read each quality from the Worksheet aloud and ask the participants to stand beside the

portrait of the Alpha Leader they chose for that quality. Ask the participants to share why they

chose the leader and summarize their responses on the blank paper beside the portraits.

5. Repeat the process for each of the qualities on the Worksheet.

6. As the learners to be seated. Select the two or three portraits that were chosen most often by

the learners during the activity. Ask the participants to review the comments written about

those leaders on the papers and to complete the following sentences:

a. Good leaders…..

Quick Training Tips

Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

b. Good leaders motivate by…

c. Bad leaders…

d. Bad leaders lose the faith of their followers because…

7. Lead a discussion utilizing any/all of the questions below.

8. To trim time off of this activity, feel free to reduce the number of questions in the discussion, or

eliminate step (s) 4 and/or 6. If step 4 is eliminated, facilitate a brief discussion to obtain

participants’ opinions about the Alpha Leaders’ characteristics and qualities.

Discussion Questions:

1. Were there any surprises over which Alpha Leaders were chosen?

2. Was any Alpha Leader chosen most often? Why do you think this was?

3. Did any of the Alpha Leaders have qualities in common? Did these qualities come up ofent in

choosing a leader?

4. What insights do you have about different leadership styles?

5. Is there a difference in being a leader or a manager? Do any of the Alpha Leaders possess

weaknesses that may get in the way of being a good manager?

6. What Alpha Leader might be best suited for your workplace? You’ve just identified how

different styles would suite your workplace; now reflect on how your answer might have

changed for other workplaces? How is your workplace different than others?

7. If your employees/co-workers were to stand under your portrait in an Alpha Leader activity,

what would they see as your qualities? In what situations might they choose a different Alpha

Leader?

8. What barriers (both internal and external) do you face that prevent you from being the type of

leader you would like to be? Which of the leaders might be good at handling problems you

yourself face? What qualities the Alpha Leaders possessed would you like to develop in

yourself?

Quick Training Tips

Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

ALPHA LEADERS WORKSHEET

Choose one leader from the Alpha Leaders posted around the room for each of the following

categories. Your choice of leader should be based on your own personal sense of the leader’s

qualities, skills, and leadership style. You may select an Alpha Leader more than once.

Category of Leadership Quality Alpha Leader chosen

Which Alpha Leader would be the most

effective communicator in your workplace?

Which Alpha Leader would be the most

effective at delegating in your workplace?

Which Alpha Leader would be the most

effective problem solver in your workplace?

Which Alpha Leader would be the best

innovator in your workplace?

Which Alpha Leader would you trust in a crisis

at your workplace?

Which Alpha Leader would provide the most

creative stimulus in your workplace?

From which Alpha Leader would you prefer to

get feedback regarding your job performance?

Which Alpha Leader would you want for your

own supervisor?

Which Alpha Leader would provide the most

appropriate level of empathetic understanding

of employee needs in your workplace?

Which Alpha Leader most closely resembles

your own leadership style?

Quick Training Tips

Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

FIDEL CASTRO

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

HILLARY CLINTON

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

JOAN OF ARC

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

VINCE LOMBARDI

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

MUHAMMED ALI

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

WINSTON CHURCHILL

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

PRINCESS DIANA

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

ELEANOR ROOSEVELT

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

FRANLIN ROOSEVELT

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

GANDHI

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

BILL GATES

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

BILLY GRAHAM

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

CHE GUEVARA

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

MARTIN LUTHER KING

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

NELSON MANDELA

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

ROSA PARKS

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

POPE JOHN PAUL II

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

MOTHER TERESA

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

OPRAH WINFREY

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

PAT SUMMIT

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

PATTON

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

ATILLA THE HUN

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

GERONIMO

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

BRAD PITT

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Reference: Adapted from: Epstein, R. (2001). The big book of motivation games. McGraw-Hill, NY, NY.

DONALD TRUMP