This I Believe: Leadership Edition

I believe leadership is more than a title. You see, anyone can be a leader, as a leader comes in various forms. Whether you take the time to get to know someone you’ve never talked to before, or are the CEO of a company, leadership is found in a lot of the things we do.

Leadership starts with you, as identity impacts behavior. This does not mean to be a great leader you must know everything about yourself, because I don’t think many 22-year-olds do. But what it does mean is that you must be committed to learning more about yourself and maintaining self confidence and respect.

As a leader, you do this to “model the way”.You are to serve as inspiration to your peers to work on themselves as well, and with this they will also enhance their own leadership styles. This also goes to say that it is important to keep hearts in mind; show everyone that they are valued.

Most importantly, give everything your best effort, even if your best effort today is a little less perfect than yesterday. We have to remember to be kind to ourselves; perfection is not always perfect. Sometimes we drive for perfection so hard that we hold ourselves back.

What I believe about leadership stems from my top 3 values: Growth, Community and Authenticity. I believe that without growth there is no innovation or progress; sometimes the hardest situations are the easiest to learn from. I believe that community is essential to anything we do; there is strength in numbers, especially when you are giving it your all and need a little extra push. Community not only strengthens us as leaders, but motivates us to learn from one another. I believe that authenticity is needed to serve as the glue; it allows us to trust ourselves and each other. Authenticity empowers us to be who we are to our maximum potential, and therefore empowers others to do the same.

I have come to form these beliefs through trial and error; to learn is to live. My college experience in and of itself has served as a testimony to these beliefs. I started off trying to keep up with everything. I wanted to be the best student while also being the best at everything else, and that quickly resulted in reality slapping me in the face. As I began to work on myself, other things began to fall in place. I was making progress and it showed in all aspects of my life, but especially in my leadership.

I continue to demonstrate these three major beliefs about leadership in my everyday life with an understanding that these values can shift around at times. I have sought out therapy as needed and worked towards being my full authentic self. Quarantine has made it harder to stay on top of this, as it is easy to get sucked into a cycle of going through the daily motions without really thinking about anything. I have tried to make more of a conscious effort to practice mindfulness and self care. Sometimes this is achieved during workouts, and other times I may pour a glass of wine and enjoy the silence. I attempt to model the way during this time by being transparent about my struggles and the journey I take to work on them. Lastly, I demonstrate these beliefs by always giving my best to everything I do.