Some people are born to be great leaders and others are born to be great learners. I ask myself this question: “How was I created? » Was I born a leader or was I shaped to lead. In explaining my philosophy on how I want to lead, I will first delve into my past to recognize and identify my creator. October 27, 2004 I raise my right hand to serve and protect the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. At this point in my personal leadership journey, I have my first glimpse of a “shut up and listen” leadership style. Clear and concise advice was meat and potatoes in my early stages of shaping who I am today as a leader or so I think. It was pretty simple, I have A, B, C and D to do, that's how I'm told I'm going to do it, and then I execute. Sounds simple, right? It’s simple but it left me with questions and the desire to ask “why?” and I asked for it a lot. Later in my career, I noticed a different type of leadership style and the question was, “What do you think?” and this has been asked quite often. This style had about the same success rate when completing a task as when I first encountered it, but why? There is a time and place to insert these styles and depending on who is being directed will help determine which style. The method of applying transactional theory corresponds to this way of teaching. The balance of rewards and punishments was carefully applied, but he made sure to continue to maximize great experiences since human nature tends to want to be surrounded by them. My father-in-law has been selfless of service to us and seeks no recognition for what he has done; he was worthy of it. Applying humility and being humble is something that was given to me by my father-in-law and I see that still applies today. I find this to be a very passive type of leadership, but understanding that a concise affirmative approach is not too far away.