Management is a process aimed at achieving goals in an efficient and effective way, in a changing environment using other people's work and limited resources. There are five general functions that allow this process to take place: planning, organizing, staffing, leading and controlling. This paper's focus was set on the fourth function; leading and leadership styles. Methods of leading of several famous and successful leaders were studied, in order to compare the differences and similarities in the end. This was achieved ba researching biographies, carriers, used leading styles and experiences od co-workers of Jack Welch, Oprah Winfrey, Mate Rimac and Gordana Kovačević. The data collection method was based exclusively on secondary data, and the research is pursuant to its goal descriptive, to its frequency on one time-basis, and pursuant to the nature of the dana qualitative. The research was directed at leadership, which is not only a management function, but an ability of the leader to influence his team so they could target their activities on the execution of common goals. Leaders can accomplish that in many ways and by analyzing their preffered ways of influence, each leader can be attributed with several leadership styles. Leadership models that were observed are trait theories, behavioral models, contingency theories and modern types of leadership. The research showed that all four leaders use a mixture of leadership styles, with present characteristics of transformational leaders. However, Welch and Winfrey also showed qualities of charismatic leaders with traces of interactive leadership with Winfrey. Kovačević (second woman in the chosen sample) also uses interaction to lead, but shows significant traces of transactional leading. Rimac combines transformational style with servant leadership. These results could be used as an indicator of differences in leadership styles, and continuation of research on a larger sample would provide more accurate results that would contribute to a better understanding of the different leading styles used by American and Croatian leaders.