The business world is a strange and complex being, and the way you lead will vary depending the situation, circumstance, and person with whom you are dealing. In order to be a great leader one must be able to have a semblance of consistency despite all of these variations that may occur (see Basics of Modern Leadership). Considering this, many leaders have adopted a technique that behavioral scientists have dubbed the Situational Approach which describes the leader who can work on the fly and manage a litany of situations while still keeping an even keel and a clear directive. Leaders who apply the Situational Approach are able to mold their message and style to most effectively convey the necessary message given the criteria the given environment has presented. A situational leader may be directing in one instant and delegating in another, while also having to coach and support other individuals on the side. The situational leader gets the most out of his people because he is able to find the right "button" to push within each individual in order to motivate them and spurn them to complete whatever task may be necessary for the greater good of the team. The situational leader is able to get this done because he has the trust and confidence of his people, and they believe that he will not lead them astray. In the same light, the situational leader builds trust and confidence within his population because he is not a micro-manager, he gives orders, directs tasks, and supports those who need it, all with an eye at making the individual a better player in the overall scheme of the group. Once the situational leader has gained momentum within the group people will buy-in to this system and trust the leader so much that they will be overly committed to the cause, and have the competence to succeed and lead on their own.
In the movie "Robin Hood Prince of Thieves", Robin Hood (played by Kevin Costner) returns home from the crusades to find his life in shambles- his father has been murdered, his longtime girlfriend wants nothing to do with him, and his country is being ransacked by a merciless Sheriff. To combat the evils that have overcome the land that he loves he decides to motivate a rambling group of peasants and convince them that uprising against the establishment is the only way to survive and be happy. This clip shows Robin Hood's Situational Leadership style in action, pushing all the right buttons as he motivates his rabble for the cause.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yO0yM5VDosc
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