Good Deed report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Good Deed report - Essay Example The supervisor approved the commendation and agreed to send it the next day; furthermore, he added a $300 bonus for Roseanne’s actions and a commendation for her trainer. The supervisor is pleased with Roseanne’s handling of the concerns of the customer, which shows her training and personal work ethics, so he includes a bonus for her and a commendation for her trainer. He describes the work of customer representatives as sensitive emotional labor. He emphasizes the importance of bonuses in financially compensating excellent workplace actions. This bonus shows that the company values exemplary employee attitudes and behaviors. In Roseanne’s case, it is impressive that after only two weeks in the job, she shows remarkable dexterity in handling complex cases and infuriated customers. The supervisor further commends her trainer, who is also happy with Roseanne’s performance. The trainer uses Roseanne as an example for new trainees. Customer service agents are at the forefront of serving and making customers happy. If they do something right, they get a commendation and positive performance review. But if they go beyond their duties and excel in doing so, they deserve a bonus. Hence, the supervisor approved the request and positively reinforced commendable workplace behaviors. Employees, who go above and beyond the call of duty, have to be properly commended to reinforce their good behavior. Reinforcement studies in the workplace suggest the importance of timing positive rewards in sustaining and spreading positive behaviors. On 25 September 2012, Roseanne Blythe, a customer service and sales agent, was about to end her shift when an irate customer called in. She did not only restore a disgruntled customer’s faith in the company, she also increased revenues, when that customer opened twenty accounts amounting to $5,000 every month. Hence, I recommend for her to get a public commendation for the positive performance

American History Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 4

American History - Assignment Example 1800s, soldiers stationed at the former mission named the place as the Alamo which means â€Å"cottonwood† in Spanish — in reference to where these men came from, Alamo de Parras, Coahuila. For years, the Alamo became the home of Mexican revolutionaries and royalists during the war for independence. The military — Spanish, Rebel, and then Mexican — continued to occupy the Alamo until the Texas Revolution. Though Texians and Tejano volunteers were able to successfully occupy the Alamo in 1835, they were greeted by a surprise attack from General Santa Anna’s army – an assault which was held out for 13 days. Because of the intensity of the battle, the commander of the Alamo, Col. Travis sent forth couriers asking for help to communities in Texas. However, as the hope for outside help faded, Col. Travis drew a line on the ground and asked those who were willing to fight to step over. All of them except one stayed to defend the Alamo. The defenders risked their lives to protect the key to Texas’ defense. They would rather die than surrender to General Santa Anna’s army. Before the daybreak in March 6, 1836, the final assault of Mexican soldiers came as they scaled the walls and rushed inside the compound. The battle still continued as defenders continued to desperately fight the enemies. However, by sunrise, the battle ended as General Santa Anna entered the compound to proclaim his victory. At first, I found it rather odd that defenders wrote extensively about the weather in Texas. However, in my view, the defenders found Texas weather to be rather odd and new for them. That is why, in their journal entries, defenders took time to note and comment heavily about the weather. For historians, the weather diary is important to dispel the myth that in 1835 the coldest winter swept through Texas. This idea was held on because Mexican troops encountered a freak blizzard as they were on their way to Texas during the night of February 13 onwards. However,

The Influence And Leadership Management Essay

The Influence And Leadership Management Essay Just possessing an impressive title or position does not equate to someone being a leader. Leadership is influencing others to follow your vision. The quality of ones leadership is measured by their followers perception of the leaders effectiveness. This perception is driven by the different characteristics and skills that a given leader has as well as the style they use. Which traits they possess and their chosen approach will have a direct impact on the effectiveness of their leadership. This paper will explore the different aspects of a leaders personality and their position in an organization and how those factors impact the levels of influence gained. It is important to make an early distinction, Leaders and managers are not the same. Management focuses on systems and processes, organising and staffing. John Kotter in discussing what leaders really do describes the focus of leadership as motivating and inspiring keeping people moving in the right direction, despite obstacles to change, by appealing to basic but often untapped human needs, values, and emotions (Kotter, 1999, p. 54). There is overlap however, in that both managers and leaders must communicate the direction, but its a leader who will gain the commitment from followers to do what is needed to achieve the vision. Leadership can be referred to as the process of moving a group of people in a certain direction, and if it is to be sustainable it must be done through non-coercive means, thus by gaining influence from the group. Leaders need to create commitment from their followers through motivation and inspiring them to achieve collective goals. Different circumstances may require leaders to use different styles. They may even behave in a different manner depending on who they are interacting with. That being interaction between a leader and a follower may be different than that between a colleague or supervisor. This is referred to as situational leadership, where there isnt always a single approach that will satisfy all tasks, or influence all followers. According to Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard, situational leaders should be able to place more or less emphasis on the task, and more or less emphasis on the relationships with the people theyre leading, depending on whats needed to get the job done successfully (Blanchard Hersey, 2012). In a given situation a leader may be more commanding and tell the employee exactly what to do, and how to do it. This is often referred to as an authoritative style of leadership. In another situation the leader may try to sell their message to gain greater commitment while still giving direction and providing information. Sometimes a participative style is the best fit, where the leader focuses on the relationships in the group and is prepared to share the role of decision making. And finally, a situation may call for a leader to delegate responsibilities to their follower, and take the role of a manager and monitor progress. What style to use will depend on what Hersey and Blanchard refer to as the maturity of the individual or group. This would be the levels of knowledge, skills, and confidence that the followers have (Blanchard Hersey, 2012). If the wrong style is used a leader may be faced with failure as too much responsibility was given to an employee with too low maturity, or being too authoritative to a follower with high maturity can damage the relationship through a lack of trust. Matching the leadership style with the appropriate maturity level (situation) is key to success and can strengthen leader follower relationships that will sustain future success. A strengthened relationship between leaders and followers has proven to be indispensable for an organisations success, as Bass argued the importance of this by highlighting survey results where employees favourable attitudes toward their supervisors contributed to the employees satisfaction. In turn, employees favourable attitudes toward thei r supervisors were usually found to be related to the productivity of the work group (Bass, 1990). Stogdill (1974) argued that Leaders are born, that they posses inherent traits that make them suitable as a leader. This is referred to as trait theory. In Handbook of leadership: A survey of the literature, he observed successful leaders and identified skills and traits that these leaders had. It was thought that if people were selected for leadership positions who also had a combination of these traits, than they too could be great leaders if given the chance. The table below contains Stogdills findings: Traits Skills Adaptable to situations Alert to social environment Ambitious and achievement-orientated Assertive Cooperative Decisive Dependable Dominant (desire to influence others) Energetic (high activity level) Persistent Self-confident Tolerant of stress Willing to assume responsibility Clever (intelligent) Conceptually skilled Creative Diplomatic and tactful Fluent in speaking Knowledgeable about group task Organised (administrative ability) Persuasive Socially skilled   Source: Handbook of leadership: A survey of the literature (Stogdill, 1947) McCall and Lombardo (1983) looked to focus on why some leaders succeed and others fail. They compiled their own list of traits for successful leaders. They argued that a leader needed to be emotionally stable and show composure in difficult situations. The leader should be calm, confident and predictable when under stress. They also saw that successful leaders were able to admit their own errors. That being prepared to own up to mistakes made, rather than focusing energy into covering up their errors. Another key skill they observed was good interpersonal skills. Being able to communicate clearly and persuade others without resorting to negative or coercive tactics is key to successful leadership. And finally McCall and Lombardo see a great importance in a leader possessing intellectual breadth. They describe this as being able to understand a wide range of areas, rather than having a narrow area of expertise. (McCall Lombardo, 1983) This idea that leaders are born has been challenged. Skills and traits can develop over time through life experiences such as a dramatic event, family upbringing, positive role models, work experience, education and training. These experiences can shape and alter an individuals personality. Fiedler and Garcia argue that when there is high uncertainty, or little time to think, we generally fall back on what has worked in the past. Leaders with a large repertoire of previously successful behaviours are more likely to perform better than those who lack this fund of experience (Fiedler Garcia, 2005). This highlights both the importance of experience and decisiveness in being a leader. Most of the skills and traits observed by Stogdill can be developed and shaped through life experiences. However, some skills and traits are more likely to be seen in leaders who are born with a particular personality, such as an extraverted personality. Leadership is a relationship between a group of people and an individual. This relationship is based on both influence and power, but like any relationship, the personalities of its members will dominate its long term success. A leaders personality must fit both the group and the situation. However, as previously referenced there are personality traits that have been consistently observed in successful leaders. Having an extraverted personality is not necessarily a requirement of a leader, just as possessing an introverted personality is not a disqualification. However, extroverts are often associated with some of Stogdills traits. Extroverts are commonly perceived as those with high levels of energy, expressive, and seek close relationships, where as introverts are more low key and prefer solitude (Riggio, 2011). A certain personality may not guarantee one being a better leader, but what it can determine is what type of leader one may be. When we think of great leaders many of the examples would fall into the category of extroverts; Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Jobs, and Bill Clinton. But they also come in the form of introverts; Abraham Lincoln, Bill Gates, and Mahatma Gandhi. All these men were/are great leaders, the difference is in how they approached their position as leader, and thus the relationship in the group. In a recent study by Psychology Today, it was found that social skills may be a better indicator of potential leadership. In the report, Ronald E. Riggio discusses misinterpreting the potential social effectiveness of an extroverts social energy. Riggio argues that if the person lacks the social skills to direct that energy, then the person will not be socially effective. Conversely, socially skilled introverts should do well in social interaction, but in a more low-key manner (Riggio, 2011). Most leadership theories in business environments are based on a transactional relationship between the manager and employee, with the manager being the leader to the employees position as follower. The transaction occurs by the leader offering a reward for the employees performance, this being a wage or bonus. To increase motivation they may pay higher incentives or increase perks. Path goal theory is based on the idea that an employees perception of what is expected regarding their effort and performance is greatly affected by a leaders behaviour. A leader helps his followers (employees) attain rewards by clearly outlining paths to goals and removing obstacles that could negatively affect the followers performance. Leaders do this by providing support, information, and other resources which are required by employees to complete the task and reach their goal. Robert House developed path goal theory and identifies two major dimensions of leadership, those being initiating structure and consideration. Initiating structure is the degree that a leader assigns tasks, specifies procedures, clarifies expectations, and schedules work to be done by their employees (House, 1971). As for consideration, House described this as the degree a leader provides a supportive environment through warmth, friendliness, helpfulness. Leaders do this by being approachable, considerate to the followers personal welfare, and when change is on the horizon, giving advanced notice (House, 1971). House argued that Leaders who initiate structure for subordinates are generally rated highly by superiors and have higher producing work groups than leaders who are low on initiating structure; and that leaders who are considerate of subordinates have more satisfied employees (House, 1971). In this theory leaders are seen more as coaches who want to help their employees succeed. In the text Management: ideas and actions, in contrast to transactional, Duncan offers a definition of transformational leadership as a process whereby individuals create a connection that raises the level of motivation and morality of both the leader and the follower with the primary goal to assist followers in attaining their maximum potential (Duncan, 1999). At the heart of transformational leadership is charisma. Sociologist Max Weber (1968) introduced the term charisma in the nineteenth century and described charismatic leadership as a non-rational form of authority. According to Weber, charisma is defined by a specifically supernatural trait that emerges in natural leaders during times of distress (Weber, 1968). But charisma is almost more in the hands of the followers in that they must buy in to the leaders personality, or vision. It is the followers perception that ultimately decides whether the leader is charismatic. Rukmani argues that transformational leadership is composed of idealized influence and inspirational motivation, which serving as a charismatic role model and articulating a vision of the future that can be shared (Rukmani, et al., 2010). Each style has its place in organisations and at times a leader must be able to be both transformational and transactional at different times. During times of change in organisations, transformational leaders are required to inspire the masses to share their vision. Kotter argues that motivation will be more sustainable when people are energized not by pushing them in the right direction as control mechanisms do but by satisfying basic human needs for achievement, a sense of belonging, recognition, self-esteem, a feeling of control over ones life, and the ability to live up to ones ideals (Kotter, 1999). For that reason, once systems are in place a transactional style is more appropriate to manage the work that now must be completed by those who have the knowledge and skills to do it. Leadership is the process of inspiring others to work hard to accomplish important tasks. Graen and Ulh-Bien (1995) propose three approaches to leadership, which a leader can adopt for effectively leading his or her employees. These include leader-based, relationship-based, and follower-based approaches. The approaches can be used in combinations at the same time with different followers. Effective leadership requires flexibility to employ these approaches in an honest and open manner. The leader-based approach is concerned with establishing and communicating a vision for the company, inspiring the employees commitment and enhancing group cohesion. By doing so, the leader and the followers raise one another to higher levels of motivation. Entrepreneurs who are gifted leaders are extraordinarily good at turning their visions into concrete results. A drawback of this approach is that when people are highly dependent on the leader, they may follow an inappropriate vision without question. The leader-based approach works best when there is a need for fundamental change requiring uniform direction by a charismatic leader and limited diversity among followers. The relationship-based approach is based on developing mutual trust, respect, and obligation between leader and follower, which generates influence between the parties. It emphasises building strong relationships with followers and on mutual learning and accommodation. It works best when there are different types of people with different kinds of needs who have to be managed. Relationship-based leadership can be seen as a sort of partnership between leader and follower. But, it is often time-consuming and relies on long-term relationships between particular leaders and followers. With the follower-based approach, leadership involves empowerment, coaching, facilitating, and giving up control. Accordingly, it requires the ability and motivation of the leaders followers to manage their own performance. Often, this approach makes the most of the followers capabilities, enabling leaders to focus on other responsibilities. The follower-based approach is most effective for performing unstructured tasks, in cases of weak position power of the leader, or non-acceptance of the leader. In a business environment, the leader of the organisation may also be the founder of the company. In this case they are an entrepreneur and a leader. This situation demands that the leader takes on different roles in a new organisation. It often happens that the founder entrepreneur is unable to adapt to the needs of the growing organisation. If the entrepreneur is unable to learn a new set of skills or to relinquish authority, the ventures performance can suffer. Many entrepreneurs cannot or will not break old habits in order to learn the roles they have to play in order to develop the venture, causing the company to lose control and turn profits into losses. The main problem seems to be that all too frequently the founder is reluctant to lose control of the business, wanting to do everything him or herself rather than manage others, so the growth potential of the business is strictly limited by his or her personal energy and capacity. Chandler and Jansen (1992) suggest that there a re three distinct leadership roles that an entrepreneur has to develop adequately. Or, which members of the entrepreneurs management team have to develop. The entrepreneurial role requires the ability to recognise and envision taking advantage of opportunity. This ability has been referred as the core of entrepreneurship and may be contingent on the entrepreneurs familiarity with the market. It can also be described as the drive to see firm creation through to fruition, which requires the willingness and capacity to offer intense and sustained effort. A second role the entrepreneur must fill is the managerial role. This requires the ability to develop programs, budgets, procedures, evaluate performance, and perform other tasks essential to implementing strategy. Individuals with strong managerial skills enjoy high levels of responsibility and authority; they seek positions involving delegation and motivation. The effective manager must be competent in three areas: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Conceptual competence: The mental ability to co-ordinate all of the organisations interests and activities, for instance, effective management of the ventures cash flow. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Human competence: The ability to work with, understand, and motivate other people, both individually and in groups. The manager must be able to clearly communicate the goals to be achieved and motivate others to behave in a synergistic manner. For instance, this requires the ability to delegate, manage customer and employee relationships, and exercise interpersonal skills. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¢ Political competence: The ability to enhance ones position, builds a power base, and establishes the right connections. This may be particularly important in start-up firms, because the founder must enlist the support of network members. Establishing connections with people who control important resources and possess important skills and abilities is important to the performance of the new venture. Finally there is the technical-function role. To function effectively in the technical-functional role, the entrepreneur/leader must have the ability to use the tools, procedures and techniques of a specialised field. The specific skills required are determined by the industry within which the venture operates. Consider for instance a restaurant spinoff with a strong technical entrepreneur who only has bartending experience. If such an entrepreneur is unable to develop his or her entrepreneurial and managerial role, and if there is no one else in his or her team to fulfil this, the restaurant spinoff is likely to fail. Generally, the entrepreneurial and the technical roles are of the greatest importance at the start of the business. However, in order to grow, the managerial role is of eminent importance as well. If these roles are lacking yet the venture is determined to grow, a strong manager is needed who has the necessary knowledge and skills to fulfil these roles. But this is easier said than done. Most founders hate to step aside even though they are temperamentally unsuited to be managers. Clarysse and Moray (2004) suggest that investors have to be careful when they want to remove the founder-entrepreneur. This is because the initial team often only accepts a newcomer as a CEO once they have been convinced of the shortcomings of their friend as a boss. Business Leaders today face multiple challenges of recruiting and retaining competent employees. In order to succeed both in reaching a common goal and creating commitment amongst their followers, a leader ability to inspire and motivate is crucial. Whether it comes naturally or developed over time, there are skills and traits that an effective leader must have in order to inspire their followers. They will need to be flexible, both for different task requirements and for the differing personalities and skills of their employees. If a leader cant influence their employees then they will have no followers; so then if the leader has no followers than they really arent a leader at all. Without influence there is no leadership.

job apllication letter :: essays research papers

– Support Analyst: Retail Credit Support Dear Recruitment Manager: I have currently completed my final year of study doing a Bachelor of. I’m applying for the graduate Support Analyst position within the Retail Credit Support Department. Being an Information Systems graduate I believe my skills would be ideal for the position and organisation. Through my studies I have completed several projects as a team leader that involved working in large groups. The least was to develop a database system and interactive system for the Community Legal Centre as part of a full year project. My responsibilities included coding, documentation, testing and general project management. Along with this I have participated in ‘Open Day 2002-03’. While studying, I further developed my business and information technology experience by participating in various roles, namely my current employment within the N gaining experience as a customer service representative for personal and business customers, my voluntary 4 month term as a technical consultant and web developer at, and five years spent managing the family business. In each of the employment environments I gained a great amount of professional business acumen including working as part of teams in a diverse atmosphere and knowledge of the latest technologies in IT &T. Lastly, my particular strengths lie in being a fast learner, pro-active, sociable and organised. I am not afraid of hard work and motivated to face new and different challenges. By gaining entry into the, I will strive to not only integrate these strengths but also broaden my skills and knowledge base. As my current employment is within a large financial institution I believe my skills and knowledge in the field would complement the role and allow me to further my skills.

Diego Armando Maradona

Sports play an important role in people’s life. This is attributed to the fact that both the players and audience or spectators are fulfilled with the experiences of sport. Sport is activity that is controlled by sets of customs or rules that are usually engaged in competitively. Sports are not only used for social benefit or amusement but also a way that people earn incomes. Famous players such as Tiger Woods – Golf and the William’s sister in tennis illustrates the influence that sports have in appreciating and been a form of income to the sportsmen.Thus, different people contribute differently to the sport world and one of them is Diego Armando Maradona who was a soccer player and currently a manager. Thus, the aim of this paper is to analyze the contribution of Maradona in the soccer world and extrapolates it to the sport world (Maradona et al, 2005). Maradona’s early life and family capability did not illustrate the influence that he had on soccer and fraternity of sports. He was born on October 30, 1961, Buenos Aires in Argentina.Maradona’s family was poor since the breadwinner – the father was a factory worker and bricklayer and through this job was providing for a family of nine (five girls, three boys and the wife). He (Maradona) used to dream of becoming a soccer player and the family situation did not deter his dreams. In fact, his cousin shaped his dream when he was given a soccer ball for his third birthday. At the age of nine, he was a good player in which he was recognized by Little Onions coach.Little Onions was the youth team of Argentinos Juniors (Maradona Website, 2009). When he was playing for the Little Onions, he lead the team to win a straight 140 games and played a major role for Little Onions in winning the Junior Championship in 1972, whereby he was awarded by the team a number 10 jersey. Between 1976 and 1980, Maradona played for Argentinos Juniors and he became a major boost for the team thro ugh winning games and increasing the spectators. In 1978 World Cup, he missed slight the chance to play for his country.Nevertheless, in 1981 he transferred to Boca Juniors and contributed in the team winning the 1982 first league game and earning himself a winners’ medal (Maradona et al, 2005). Maradona contributed a lot in the success of the Argentina national football team – Albicelestes through the participation of four consecutive FIFA World Cup tournaments. His first internal game for Argentina was against Hungary when he was 16 years old. He played an important role in the 1979 World Youth Championship and which Argentina worn 3-1 against Soviet Union.In the same period, he was involved in the winner against Scotland, his first game as a senior. In 1982 World Cup, Maradona played five matches without being substituted and scored two goals against Hungary but was sent off for foul play against Brazilian player; the game that they also lost. In the 1986 World Cup, Maradona was the captain and contributed a lot into the winning of the 1986 FIFA World Cup. They won against West Germany in the finals. He played all the games in the 1986 World Cup, being dynamic and asserted his dominance throughout the tournament.In the same tournament, he scored five goals and assisted in five goals, two of the goals originating from the quarterfinal win against England. This game was played when there was tension between Argentina and England because of the Falklands War. The first goal was a controversial because it is believed and replays show that his hand played a major role. In fact, it is commonly referred to as the â€Å"Hand of God†, which was accepted by the referee to the wrath of the English players (Burns, 1997). The second goal was outstanding was voted the FIFA greatest goal of World Cup.He ran half through the field, drilling through five players and the goalkeeper with eleven touches scored the winning goal. In 2002, a poll that was con ducted by FIFA concluded that this goal was the â€Å"Goal of the Century†. Nevertheless, he led his country to winning the 1986 World Cup through passing the ball to Jorge Burruchaga. Thus, Argentina won 3-2 against West Germany in Azteca Stadium in front of 115,000 spectators. The authorities of Azteca Stadium built statue that showed scoring the â€Å"goal of the century† and the statue was placed at the stadium’s entrance.Moreover, he participated in the 1990 FIFA World Cup but due to injury, his performance was not excellent as that of 1986. Nevertheless, he captained the team to reach the finals where they were defeated by West Germany through a controversial goal. In the last World Cup of 1994 that he participated, he only played two goals (Maradona et al, 2005). He was sent home when he failed a drug test – ephedrine dope. He claimed that a drink that he had taken had the said chemical and it was not his fault.At the USA 94, where the world cup wa s played, Argentina was eliminated in the second round. Apart from the World Cups, Maradona has played for various clubs. Maradona played for Argentinos Juniors and later Boca Juniors. In 1982, he was transferred to FC Barcelona in Spain whereby he contributed a lot to the success of the team winning the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup. In 1984, he was transferred to Napoli in Italy in which he helped to win the Italian championship in 1986/87 and 1989/90 and the team was second in 1987/88 and 1988/89.Other awards that the team was able to win with the help of Maradona were the UEFA Cup (1989), Coppa Italia (1987), runners up Coppa Italia (1989) and Italian Supercup (1990). At this period he faced various personal complications and other complications with the club. He was transferred in 1992 to Sevilla. Other teams that he played with are Newell’s Old Boys (1993) and Boca Juniors (1995) (Burns, 1997). Body structure and physique played a major role in ensuring that Ma radona was successful in the field.His lower center of gravity, physical strengths and strong legs helped him to overcome his opponents and sprint towards the goal. Through the success of the teams he played for, it illustrates that Maradona was a strategist, team player and technical player. Wherever he played, he used to dribble full speed towards the opponents’ goal and either score or deliver accurate passes to the teammates. Nevertheless, these capabilities were compounded by his capability of taking free kicks. Apart from the field, Maradona has contributed a lot in television shows and helping people.He hosted the Argentina television show â€Å"The Night of the no. 10† in which some of his guests included Pele, Fidel Castro, Zidane and Mike Tyson. Nevertheless, apart from the television show, he took part in 2006 in the UK’s Soccer Aid and in the same year, he captained three-day World Cup Football tournament in Spain. Also in 2006, he was appointed the Intergovernmental Goodwill Ambassador (IIMSAM) (Maradona Website, 2009). He contributed a lot has a leader for various teams. In 1994 and 1995, he coached Mandiyu and Racing Club respectively with minimal success (Burns, 1997).However, in 2005, he became the sports vice president in charge of Boca Juniors. At the time, Boca Juniors were not functioning well and had poor results. However, when Maradona was involved with the management of the team and built a close relationship with the players, the team fostered. Under his guidance, the team won 2006 Clausera, 2005 Apertura, 2005 Recopa Sudamericana and 2005 Copa Sudamericana. Nevertheless, in 2008 he became the coach of Argentina national football team. His team won the three consecutive matches but was defeated by Bolivia 6-1 on 1 April 2009 (Maradona Website, 2009).Moreover, Maradona was acknowledged, received various prices and awards. Some of the awards that he received include Argentina league top scorer (1979 to 1981), Golden Ball for Best Player (1979), Best Footballer in the World (1986, 1987), World Player of the Year (1986), FIFA Goal of the Century (2002) and Argentine Senate (2005) to name accolades and honors that he received (Maradona Website, 2009). Thus, from this perspective it is clear that Maradona has contributed a lot to the sport world through his participation in soccer.He was able to play for various teams and ensuring that in each team that he played for usually succeeded. This can be illustrated by the fact that in each team that he played for, the teams usually won awards and honors. He played for Argentinos Juniors and Boca Juniors in which they worn various award a replication of other teams that he played. In fact, in the case of Napoli, the period that Maradona played became the greatest successful period of the club. His position in the society and many people aiming to imitate him illustrates that like the legend Pele, Maradona is associated with soccer.

AP Language Adversity Essay Essay

Adversity causes people to act differently. Some may choose to concede and run away from their problems. Others may try to fight and overcome the obstacle in front of them. According to the poet Horace, adversity will cause a person to reveal their true colours. However, there are also cases where adversity will impede one’s actions. I believe that adversity can cause one to rise to the occasion, but also can lead to one’s downfall. We can look at famous handicapped individuals and the struggle they got through to reach success. Terry Fox is an example of a person who faced adversity and achieved something amazing. Terry Fox was diagnosed with bone cancer and eventually had his leg amputated and replaced by a prosthetic leg. By refusing to give in to his cancer, Terry Fox was able to raise millions of dollars to support cancer research and prevent cancer cases like his own. Another prime example is Helen Keller. Helen Keller was blind and deaf, so it would seem like her life was a mess. However, Helen Keller didn’t want to give up, and she overcame many obstacles, and became the first blind and deaf person to obtain a bachelors of arts degree. Without the illnesses that Terry Fox and Helen Keller contracted, they wouldn’t have had an incentive to do what they did, thus they wouldn’t be able to reach such heights. While adversity can indeed help people discover themselves, there are times when adversity won’t. During the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989, the protestors had to face a huge obstacle: the Chinese government. The protests were led by students and were increasingly popular for a while before 1989. To stop the protests, the Chinese government decided to use force. They had hundreds of thousands of troops and a number of tanks across areas of Beijing, arresting protestors and in some cases, protestors were killed in the process, however the Chinese government claims there were no deaths. The â€Å"failed† protests and â€Å"massacre† of Tiananmen Square, depict that in some cases, adversity can be a slippery slope to failure. After looking at both sides of the argument, the conclusion is that Horace’s statement sometimes holds true. While it is true that adversity influence people to do great things, we can also see how adversity can inhibit one’s  ability to create change. Thus, I believe that adversity can indeed reveal one’s true abilities, but copious and extreme amounts of adversity can have the opposite effect and prevent the discovery of dormant abilities.