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Karp, Tom

Is willpower important in acts of leadership?

In this article, we explore the phenomenon of willpower in acts of leadership, a capacity that has been largely overlooked by leadership research. It is argued that leadership is a social process where someone assumes leadership by taking and earning a right to lead, and we investigate whether willpower is important for leadership. We do this by conducting three studies. Even though the research is still in need of further work, the conclusions from these studies combined indicate that willpower may be an important capacity in acts of leadership. We also find that willpower is a process phenomenon to which certain generic principles apply, and we suggest a set of strategies for this available to leaders, and to others who want to better use and develop their willpower. We also think that some of the recommendations provided are of interest to other than leaders, given the suggested importance of willpower.

Subjects--Index Terms: leaders

Index Terms--Genre/Form:
Leadership
willpower
process
leaders
strategies