1.0 Leadership Theories A leadership theory is a clarification of some characteristics of leadership; Theories have practical importance as they are used to better understand, anticipate, and control successful leadership. Therefore, the fundamental principle of any theory is to inform practice (Lussier and Achua 2009). Leadership theories can be classified into eight main categories: Great Man, Trait, Behavioral, Contingency, Situational, Participatory, Relational, Management (Cherry 2010). 1.1 Great man theory (1840) According to this theory, great leaders are born, not made. These great leaders have inherited few or many favorable traits that distinguish them from ordinary people. For example, Napoleon and Mao-se-Tung are considered natural leaders, who had all the leadership qualities in them (Biju 2010). The notion of great man theory was first used by Carlyle in his article on heroes, defining the leader as someone endowed with a set of exceptional qualities that capture the minds and souls of the audience (Carlyle 1993). the theory has received support from some research (Biju 2010). In a study of 14 nations over periods ranging from 500 to 1000 years, it was concluded that a leader creates the nation and shapes it according to his unique characteristics (Woods 1913). In another study it was concluded that leadership is of undeniable importance and cannot be replaced, but it cannot be created or learned (Drucker 2010). At the other extreme, some researchers have pointed out some drawbacks such as (Singla 2010): • It has no scientific basis or any empirical strength • Born managers are almost a creation of fiction. In such a modern, dynamic and rapidly evolving business... half of the paper... carefully monitored and judiciously practiced, if used at all (Gustainis and Roosevelt 2004).2.2 Laissez-Faire Leadership StyleThis style has been defined as (Abdicates responsibilities by avoiding making decisions)(Robbins 2001). This would mean that leaders are not involved in making decisions at all and are only available to provide materials to their employees and answer questions, subordinates have complete freedom to make decisions and set goals (Chaudhry and Husnain 2012). In other words, this theory lacks any kind of powerful leadership. Thus, there would be lack of motivation, low levels of performance and inadequate work practices (Packard 2009). However, if employees are already motivated and have full understanding and a high level of knowledge regarding the mission at hand, the Lassies-Faire model could work well (Gustainis and Roosevelt 2004) .