This January, I was lucky enough to be chosen to attend the Leadershape Institute offered through the University of Cincinnati at the Higher Ground Retreat Center.
At the beginning of this week long experience, I boarded a bus for Higher Ground with 59 other UC students. Most of them were strangers, and I had no idea what the week would entail. In my application essay for LeaderShape I wrote "I think that leadership can be defined in several ways. There are obvious leaders, like coaches and teachers, presidents, etc. However, I think that what makes someone a leader is not necessarily the position they hold but what they do within the means they are given." I was reminded of this all week as I watched the visions of the brilliant minds around me unfold. People my age, who I knew only from brief encounters on campus had wonderful, inspired ambitions and dreams for a better reality and I never would have guessed it.
LeaderShape defines leadership as "living in a state of possibility making a commitment to a vision, developing relationships to move the vision into action , and sustaining a high level of integrity. Effective leadership takes place in the context of community and results in positive change." (Copyright LeaderShape) LeaderShape has helped me expand my definition of what it means to be a leader. I see a leader as someone who is actively living the life they preach about. Someone who is willing to work towards the world they want to see. In the words of Eleanor Roosevelt, "those who are crazy enough to believe they can change the world, are the ones who do."
The first few days were spent learning more about ourselves and the people around us. We completed personality tests and did group exercises, shared stories about our pasts and what we were currently doing with our lives. We learned the importance of a "healthy disregard for the impossible" in becoming who we want to be. In my personality inventory I found that I tend to give a lot of positive feedback and deliver negative feedback in a positive way, have an open mind, and am enthusiastic but could work on being more specific in my work and direction. On day two, we did team building exercises and learned about diversity. The lessons I learned this day can be summed up well in this TED talk:
At the beginning of this week long experience, I boarded a bus for Higher Ground with 59 other UC students. Most of them were strangers, and I had no idea what the week would entail. In my application essay for LeaderShape I wrote "I think that leadership can be defined in several ways. There are obvious leaders, like coaches and teachers, presidents, etc. However, I think that what makes someone a leader is not necessarily the position they hold but what they do within the means they are given." I was reminded of this all week as I watched the visions of the brilliant minds around me unfold. People my age, who I knew only from brief encounters on campus had wonderful, inspired ambitions and dreams for a better reality and I never would have guessed it.
LeaderShape defines leadership as "living in a state of possibility making a commitment to a vision, developing relationships to move the vision into action , and sustaining a high level of integrity. Effective leadership takes place in the context of community and results in positive change." (Copyright LeaderShape) LeaderShape has helped me expand my definition of what it means to be a leader. I see a leader as someone who is actively living the life they preach about. Someone who is willing to work towards the world they want to see. In the words of Eleanor Roosevelt, "those who are crazy enough to believe they can change the world, are the ones who do."
The first few days were spent learning more about ourselves and the people around us. We completed personality tests and did group exercises, shared stories about our pasts and what we were currently doing with our lives. We learned the importance of a "healthy disregard for the impossible" in becoming who we want to be. In my personality inventory I found that I tend to give a lot of positive feedback and deliver negative feedback in a positive way, have an open mind, and am enthusiastic but could work on being more specific in my work and direction. On day two, we did team building exercises and learned about diversity. The lessons I learned this day can be summed up well in this TED talk:
From the things learned over the past two days we were then asked to come up with our own vision for the world. As I mentioned before I was completely inspired by those around me. My vision is for a world whose environment resembles more closely the judgement free, accepting atmosphere that LeaderShape created. I am passionate about women's rights, diabetes awareness, and sustainability. I am currently becoming involved with TEDx Cincinnati to learn more about how to inspire social change on my own campus. I have watched these videos for years, and I am glad to be helping produce such a positive event. I also initiatied contact with an official at JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) and hope to pursue more volunteer work with the organization. LeaderShape has also inspired me to apply for future leadership positions in and around University of Cincinnati. I am hopeful and excited for these possible positions, but do not wish to post about them until I know whether I qualified for them. My 'future headline' and breakthrough blueprint can be found in the gallery below the text.