Leadership Case

Questions for discussions

1. I am thinking that his personality traits are openness to experience and Conscientiousness, like he wants to achieve his goal no matter what, after his failures, he did not stop doing that, he tried too many times, now we can see him big multi-faceted artist and businessman. What personality traits do leaders like Todd McFarlane possess that distinguish them from other individuals?

McFarlane attributes his achievements to a little talent, being in the right place at the right time, a lot of hard work and perseverance. Todd's biggest influences have been comic book artist Frank Miller, hockey legend Wayne Gretzky and most importantly, his wife.

"My ability to deliver a good product is my greatest strength," said McFarlane. "I'd like to be remembered as a guy who turned out some quality comics and toys, while doing a few different things even if it wasn't the easiest road to follow."

Openness to experience - (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious). Appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, curiosity, and variety of experience. Openness reflects the degree of intellectual curiosity, creativity and a preference for novelty and variety. Some disagreement remains about how to interpret the openness factor, which is sometimes called "intellect" rather than openness to experience.

Conscientiousness - (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless). A tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully, and aim for achievement; planned rather than spontaneous behavior; organized, and dependable.

2. As competition and technology have changed and become more complex, business leaders have to become more technologically savvy in order to keep their business functioning and in the mainstream. This means being more competitive, being ahead of the game technologically, especially in certain industries, and being willing to completely change your game plan if need be to keep up with the ever change business world.

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