Deck 16: Positive Leadership

Question 1

Over the last several years, the slower economy has meant that Maine Plumbing and Heating has had fewer customers, which has caused some concern among its dozen employees. But Gary, the owner, has found a number of ways to reassure and encourage his workers. How would you describe Gary?

A) ineffective leader
B) positive leader
C) career manager
D) investment broker

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Culture gives employees a sense of organizational identity and generates a commitment to particular values and ways of doing things.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

A study of business press over a 17-year time period found that positive terms seldom appeared over the 17 years, while negative words increased ______ over that period.

A) slightly
B) one hundred percent
C) fourfold
D) by double

Answer 3

C

Question 4

What are some examples of positive characteristics of people and organizations?

A) confidence, optimism
B) hope, well-being
C) positive thoughts, patterns
D) all of these

Question 5

If there are minimal bad feelings associated with a task or person, your mind will notice and focus on:

A) those bad feelings rather than existing good feelings or qualities
B) upcoming events and positive qualities
C) something unrelated to distract you from the task at hand
D) none of these

Question 6

"Positive Organizational Behavior" is an emerging field that concentrates on people's weaknesses rather than their strengths.

Question 7

One of the least important functions of leadership is to articulate and communicate a compelling vision that will motivate and energize employees.

Question 8

Optimism is a desirable trait for leaders. It leads to:

A) happiness, perseverance
B) work, negativity
C) neither of these
D) both of these

Question 9

Leadership's power comes from building on the solid foundation of a ________.

A) well-managed organization
B) economical inspired movement
C) properly planned event
D) crisis

Question 10

Where does affirmative bias occur?

A) as a consequence of his/her personal relationships.
B) at home
C) within the leader
D) none of these

Question 11

A powerful way to influence a team is for the leader to use positive communications that counter the natural human tendency toward negativity.

Question 12

Positive leadership uses theoretically grounded principles to promote outcomes such as:

A) bored at work
B) energized teams
C) flighty emotions
D) all of these

Question 13

What type of thinking can trap people into fear, disorientation, negative thinking, and competition for scarce resources?

A) virtuous thinking
B) deficit thinking
C) positive thinking
D) capital thinking

Question 14

People in organizations want to be inspired, but they also need a coherent structure, milieu, and focus for their efforts.

Question 15

A leader's job is to find and promote the positive.

Question 16

A good vision captures people's idealistic motivations for what the organization is striving to achieve.

Question 17

What is the term used in psychology to describe how the human mind reacts more quickly and strongly to perceived bad things than it does to good things?

A) positive bias
B) quality bias
C) negativity bias
D) negativity preference

Question 18

Positive leaders want people to be able to use their weaknesses and find a state of flow where work seems painful and trying.

Question 19

Many executives are wary of feelings in the workplace, but real leaders know that emotion is not what drives people.

Question 20

Independent thinking is one part of what is called leader mindfulness.

Question 21

People like to have a sense of _________ that makes a positive difference in the world.

A) a beneficial relationship
B) power
C) routine
D) meaningful work

Question 22

What type of leaders set their successors up for failure because it will be a testament to their own greatness if the company doesn't perform well without them?

A) ambitious
B) solid
C) egocentric
D) level 5

Question 23

Other than businesses, which of the following have visions that also reflect an altruistic purpose?

A) nonprofit organizations
B) LinkedIn
C) Facebook
D) IKEA

Question 24

If people are inspired by a picture of what the organization can be in the future, then:

A) they do not care about the purpose.
B) they can help take it there.
C) they are likely to leave
D) none of these

Question 25

In companies that use ______ as a noble purpose, people are treated as valuable resources and provided with support to perform at their peak.

A) discovery
B) altruism
C) heroism
D) excellence

Question 26

What term means being unpretentious and modest rather than arrogant and prideful?

A) shy
B) humility
C) will
D) none of these

Question 27

Positive leaders break free of preconceived barriers. Which of these is not an example of things they do?

A) Work to overcome conditioned ideas.
B) Strive to be closed minded
C) Encourage open debate of assumptions.
D) Express feelings

Question 28

What term can be defined as continuously reevaluating previously learned ways of doing things in the context of evolving information and shifting circumstances?

A) mindlessness
B) negotiation
C) mindfulness
D) none of these

Question 29

What level of leadership refers to the highest level in a hierarchy of manger capabilities? Managers at this level show humility and a lack of ego.

A) Level 4
B) Level 8
C) Level 9
D) Level 5

Question 30

Leaders apply the three aspects of ___________ to build positive organization relationships and culture.

A) professional leadership
B) social leadership
C) positive leadership
D) career leadership

Question 31

A positive workplace increases employee ______, thereby supporting a thriving enterprise.

A) productivity
B) engagement
C) neither of these
D) both of these

Question 32

Hopes and dreams for the future are what keep people moving forward. Leadership means linking people's hopes and dreams to _________ so that people can take action toward achieving the future.

A) objectives
B) specific goals
C) neither of these
D) both of these

Question 33

What are some things fear prevents employees from doing at work?

A) taking risks
B) doing their worst
C) falling behind
D) none of these

Question 34

_____ thinking means questioning assumptions and interpreting data and events according to one's own beliefs, ideas, and thinking, not according to pre-established rules, routines, or categories defined by others.

A) interdependent
B) independent
C) intradependent
D) codependent

Question 35

Dan is known for his explosive temper and biting comments. Most of his direct reports are looking for other jobs, and in the meantime, they just keep quiet and focus on completing tasks in order to avoid attracting his attention. How would you describe this work environment?

A) emotionally toxic
B) opportunistic
C) appreciative
D) typical

Question 36

An unspoken notion among many senior-level executives is that _____ is a good thing and benefits the organization.

A) love
B) knowledge
C) fear
D) emotion

Question 37

Using the discovery approach, what inspires people to see the adventure in their work and experience the joy of pioneering or entrepreneurial spirit?

A) a slump in the economy
B) more efficient computers
C) a vision
D) none of these

Question 38

What is one of the approaches used in independent thinking?

A) rely on the standard way of doing things
B) accept black-and-white answers
C) try to break out of the mental boxes
D) none of these

Question 39

A ____ is an ambitious view of the future that everyone involved can believe in, one that realistically can be achieved, yet one that offers a future that is dramatically better than what now exists.

A) career
B) vision
C) president
D) company

Question 40

What is the primary factor in determining the level of fear experienced at work?

A) compassion
B) accomplishments
C) relationship between an employee and direct supervisor
D) none of these

Question 41

Research in diverse social settings has revealed that without special effort _________ statements typically outweigh _________ statements.

A) positive, negative
B) powerful, weak
C) negative, positive
D) weak, powerful

Question 42

A strong culture that encourages adaptation and change enhances organizational performance by which of the following?

A) energizing and motivating employees
B) unifying people around shared goals
C) shaping and guiding employee behavior
D) all of these

Question 43

A study of the varying communication styles among 60 top management teams show that the higher performing organizations had a ratio of ___ positive statements for each negative statement

A) 9
B) 3
C) 5.6
D) .5

Question 44

What disappears during flow?

A) opinions
B) ego
C) expertise
D) styles

Question 45

What term refers to the shared standards that define what behaviors are acceptable and desirable within a group of people?

A) communication
B) norms
C) personality
D) culture

Question 46

What is the ratio of positive to negative statements known as?

A) social networking ratio
B) positivity ratio
C) negativity ratio
D) pos-neg ratio

Question 47

There is value in identifying a person's gaps in _________ and offering developmental challenges along with training, coaching, and support.

A) performance
B) personality
C) vocabulary
D) all of these

Question 48

Being totally immersed in something that time stands still and you experience an overall feeling of enjoyment and satisfaction is known as ______.

A) flow
B) leisure
C) performance
D) enabling

Question 49

Frequent ____________ statements made by leaders are associated with better performance.

A) positive
B) connective
C) neither of these
D) both of these

Question 50

What term refers to the level of agreement among employees about the importance of specific values and norms?

A) expert power
B) legitimate power
C) culture strength
D) none of these

Question 51

When a person feels that a task is beyond his or her capacity, _______ impedes a flow experience.

A) forcefulness
B) anxiety
C) learning
D) all of these

Question 52

Creating an environment that enables flow requires that managers be committed to the __________ of employees as well as getting the job done.

A) activity
B) environment
C) emotional well-being
D) conductivity

Question 53

Heroism means the vision is based on being _________.

A) strong
B) aggressive
C) effective
D) all of these

Question 54

Managers in high-performing organizations asked more questions and showed much greater _____ than in low-performing organizations.

A) focus on others compared to self
B) daily production
C) facebook comments
D) negativity

Question 55

What mechanism is one of the most important ways to build and maintain the cultural values you want?

A) daily actions
B) ceremonies
C) stories
D) special language

Question 56

In flow, there is no room for ______.

A) knowledge
B) focus
C) mental wandering
D) creativity

Question 57

What mechanism can you use to provide dramatic examples of what the company values?

A) daily actions
B) ceremonies
C) stories
D) symbols

Question 58

At one highly competitive real estate agency, the top-selling agent gets a huge bonus so it's not surprising that agents will do anything to outsell others. New agents are warned that they should not expect any collaboration, trust, or help from other agents. These qualities are part of the agency's _________.

A) Organizational culture
B) Pop culture
C) Coercive culture
D) High culture

Question 59

Flow offers an opportunity to develop employees':

A) leadership skills
B) improve the quality of their lives
C) boost their performance
D) all of these

Question 60

A ________ defines and uses signals and symbols to influence corporate culture.

A) visionary leader
B) reward leader
C) cultural leader
D) corporate leader

Question 61

What are the three aspects of positive leadership?

Question 62

List the levels in the Level 5 Hierarchy. Explain in your own words what each level means.

Question 63

What are the four approaches you can take in framing a noble purpose that helps people feel that their work is worthwhile? Give a brief two- to three-word description of each.

Question 64

What are four of the six mechanisms you can use to enact cultural values? Pick the one you think is most effective, and explain in detail why you think so.

Question 65

What is the Pike Syndrome and how is it related to independent thinking?

Question 66

What are the four types of leaders based on their attention to vision as a basis for action? Describe.