So I had an old blog. And sometimes I posted some interesting things on there. Recently I've been asked a lot about leadership. Come to find out... that's what employers want to know. So I write about it in my cover letters. I explain it in interviews. And then I re-evaluate my answers in my head. I wrote something in the midst of my Colleges Against Cancer experience as a President. Truly, one of the most educational experiences I've ever had in my life. No class could ever teach me what I learned leading CAC. The backstabbing, the laziness, the amazing people I worked with, the learning experiences... definitely priceless and probably the most educational aspect of my entire time at Iowa State.
So here's an excerpt from my old blog. It's exactly how I feel leadership should be.
"Leadership." It's an interesting topic. Something so many people are scared to try and many others have a natural knack for it. My leadership skills have been tested to the brim in the past few months. I took the president position with Colleges Against Cancer with a lot of doubt in myself. I was worried I'd disappoint people or I wouldn't have the right attitude. I was partly right. I didn't have the right attitude about myself. Leading people is one of the toughest jobs there is, I'm sure of that now. Balancing friendship with sternness is a fine line. A fine line that you dance on constantly. As annoyed as I may get with some people's work ethic, I must take a step back and really look at how I'm going to handle the situation. That alone has helped me in not just my leadership skills, but also in my personal life. It's taught me that no matter how fuming I may be at a point in time, I need to step back and just breathe. But what it is a good leader? I feel like that question gets asked in interviews a lot. How do you answer that? A leader is such a different person in various situations. A level head is for sure a characteristic that each leader needs to possess. But what else? Do they need to look the part? I'm sure that doesn't hurt anything. Do they need to be extremely stern in order to get people to do things? I don't think so. I think being a good leader is understanding that each person you meet is different. A good leader molds their leadership to each individual they work with. That way they don't have a solid platform that they expect to work for each individual person. We're all unique, we've been told that since we were kids. So why wouldn't a good leader mold themselves to each person's uniqueness. A good leader needs to be able to make decisions too. I've never been good with that, but I'm learning. I'm learning to look at all sides of the situation and assess the potential risks and benefits of the decision I'll be making. Once again, it's helped me in my personal and professional life.
I never expected taking the position in CAC would have such a drastic affect on me in so many ways. I've never done anything in my life before that has taught me as much as this has. Real world, look out. Nicky's coming!
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