MAC Week 3 Reading

For this week’s blog, we will journey through the chapters.  For Chapter 5, which is entitled, Leading from Any Chair, interesting questions were posed:  How can we make a difference in the people we’ll influence each day? How do we listen to those who help us make our dreams become reality?

I believe the biggest difference that we make in people’s lives is to recognize their strengths and to support their weaknesses.  I believe it is the jobs of leaders to be chief observer of those they are responsible for leading.  In my career switcher program, our teacher always told us that teachers have the ability to speak students into existence.  Sometimes people have been so discouraged and degraded that they don’t have confidence in their abilities.  It is empowering for leaders to tell people how valuable their specific skill set is to the organization. I also believe it is the leaders’ responsibility to help their colleagues, employees, etc. become strengthened in areas where they are weak or need improvement. Encouragement, not criticism should be the operational mode.  Instead of constructive criticism, I prefer offering feedback.  I’m not trying to be politically correct, I just know words are powerful. Criticism is so damaging, and I don’t like the idea of people being critical of others. I believe leaders should offer people feedback on how to improve their practice, not tear people down with demeaning words and personal opinions.  I believe in practicing the highest regard for human life and dignity. The human resource is our most valuable Earthly resource. We should do everything in our power to honor and respect people and the unique gifts, talents, and abilities they contribute to the world.

On to the next question:  How do we listen to those who help make our dreams become reality?  I love this question!  We pay attention to them.  We pay attention to what they say.  We process what they say.  We pay attention to their actions.  We pay attention to what they don’t say.  We listen for who they are and look beyond their personal idiosyncrasies to see their heart and their intentions.  As leaders, we help them develop into people whose intentions and actions are aligned.  We listen for their fears and help them see beyond them to believe in themselves and their abilities.  This really ties in with one of my favorite quotes from Chapter 5…

…the true power [of a conductor] derives from his ability to make other people powerful… [Zander] began to ask [himself] questions like “What make a group lively and engaged?” instead of “How good am I?”

Shaka Smart, coach of the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) basketball team said, “It’s amazing what a team can accomplish when no one cares who gets the credit.” I believe comments like this epitomize the nature of leadership. They are demonstration of a philosophy that obviously focuses on the power of the collective.  Of course, in order for the collective to be strong, each individual member must be strong, but not strong for self.  The strength is in knowing that their individual contribution is necessary for the collective to be successful.  What makes a group lively and engaged?  I believe a group is lively and engaged when they know they are valued and that their individual contributions are significant, necessary and appreciated.  It is each individual member knowing that for their team to be the best, they must aim to be the best in their particular role.

So, on to the gleaning from Chapter 6… It was this: “Don't take yourself so seriously. Life is a journey--enjoy and learn along the way. Live, laugh, and love!!”  Wow!  This week I am at a conference.  I was speaking to one of the students.  He is a colleague to my student who is attending the conference.  He wanted to know which student was my student. When I told him, he said, “I’ve talked with Tyesha. She’s pretty funny. We need some humor during these things.” I love youth!  They will tell you how it is.  Sometimes we just need to relax and laugh and free ourselves to have a good time.  Often, being a responsible adult isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.  Whenever we can take a break from the serious issues of life and just enjoy ourselves like children, I think it reenergizes us toward our purpose and gives us fresh vision to see beyond ourselves. If we begin to take it easy on ourselves, not take ourselves so seriously, then we will not be as afraid to make mistakes.  We will be freer to learn and explore and take risks, instead of playing it safe all the time.  We will reap the freedom to leave our comfort zones and venture out into the land of possibilities!

For Chapter 7, The Way Things Are, there was a thought provoking statement followed by a question:  “Sometimes settling for the way things are is a lowering of expectations, sometimes it’s finding a starting point so that one can make things better. Where are you in this continuum?”  Here’s my answer:  I don’t settle well.  I need to see things around me improve.  I don’t like stagnation. It’s not a good sign. It symbolizes a build-up of harmful bacteria and there is not an atmosphere for growth.  Problem! So, I would say that I come to terms with how things are, so that I can deal with situations from a realistic standpoint, identifying where we are and envisioning and planning for where we need to go.

Finally, we move on to matters regarding Chapter 8, Giving Way to Passion. “Control says that the only way to avoid disappointment and frustration is to not care at all. No hits, no runs, but most importantly, no errors. What are you doing in your daily life that expresses your passion or the things you are passionate about?” I am extremely passionate about educating students. So, I work very smart and very hard to provide life-changing and skill-developing opportunities and experiences for them. I put a lot of heart and a lot of passion into making sure that students are aware that they gain something real and valuable from my instructional program.