Self-Leadership in the UAE

Abstract

Although self-leadership strategies is popular in modern organizations, there is no clear use of self-leadership in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or its neighbor countries. Self-leadership studies started more than fifty years ago with the focus on the use of self-leadership in organizations. Self-leadership is the main link in management efficiency. Too often, the focus is on ways to influence others, which neglects how mangers can better lead themselves toward their personal goals. The UAE culture, like many others, focuses on the family as a unit of the society and not the individual. Similarly, at work, the focus is on organizational objectives and needs rather than those of the individual. For many years and after many studies, it is important to now place more of an emphasis on individual control and the responsibility of individuals in organizations. The aim of this study is to provide an overview of the nature of self-leadership in the UAE. It stresses the uses of self-leadership perceptions in the public and private sectors. The study includes middle management employees from different nationalities and backgrounds working in the UAE. This research is a pioneering examination of self-leadership in the UAE. “Self-leadership involves the effort of motivation the individual apply over themselves to achieve the self-motivation and self-direction needed to behave in desirable ways (Manz, 1992b). Three different part of self-leadership influence succeeding result and outcomes: behavioral-focused strategies, natural reward strategies and constructive thought pattern strategies (Manz, 1986, 1992). Behavior-focused strategies include using self-goal setting, self-observation, self-cueing and self-reward. Natural reward strategies include” seeking work activities that are pleasant and enjoyable. Constructive thought strategies include engaging in positive self-talk visualizing performance, and observing individual beliefs and assumptions to support intuitions and cognitions with preferred behavior.