There
is no one definition of leadership; just like there is no one way to be a
leader or follower, no one way to accomplish a goal, and no one way to be an
effective group. What I've learned in this class is that leadership is an
experience that is felt when a group of people come together to work towards a
common goal. The idea of the group as a whole is the biggest part of leadership,
because nobody can be a leader without the support of his or her followership. The
group itself decides what kind of leadership it is going to follow, whether
that is one person taking the lead or coming up with a path together.
This
class is what first fostered my understanding of leadership now. I thought it
would be easy to transition the theory to everyday activities like group
projects and student organizations especially given that we experienced our own
leadership abilities and the reactions of others in class. However, it’s very
difficult to change the interactions of well-established groups especially when
they have not been through the same leadership class. This showed me that those
in my class inherently had experiences and beliefs in common because we went
through the class together, but in the real world, we have to recreate those
positive learning and relational experiences in order to be on the same page
about how the organization will be run. In the case of short term group
projects, that doesn't have to be quite as extensive as long term
organizations. This is why I hope to bring the activities from class to some of
my student organizations as a way to bond during retreats.
One
thing I have drawn through my experiences is that communication as it is received
by others is the most important part of succeeding as a group. Misunderstanding
is often the root of all problems, whether that misunderstanding is in
deadlines, tone of voice, or overall goal of the group. Nothing can function if
even one person doesn't feel involved, empowered, or useful. A lot of
communication has to do with understanding how everyone feels, something I have
disregarded in the past. The leader of the group may believe that everything is
running smoothly but does not know that a follower feels excluded or that a
part of the process is broken.
Through
my experiences in this class and the “real world,” I have concluded that
leadership is hard. Yes, this may be a simple realization but it’s important to
note that something is going to difficult before you can begin to tackle it as
a concept. I went into the class believing that leadership could be taught in
one course and that there were simple ways to become a great leader. The reality
is that there is no simple way, no one path, and no right leader.
