INSPIRATIONAL LEADERSHIP VIDEOS
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MY 3 LEADERSHIP THEMES
Follow Your Heart
Part of the adventure in life is that it's full of obstacles and critical decision making. Sometimes these unexpected obstacles get in the way of normalities in life and force individuals to adapt, for instance having to undergo heart surgery as a child. But these barriers shouldn't stop anyone from following their dreams, and it certainly hasn't stopped me. Growing up after my surgery, I soon realized it wasn't my path in life to be the big time football lineman my dad had been at the University of Michigan. So I turned my attention to sports that would be more beneficial to my heart, such as soccer and basketball. I opened other doors of opportunity by adapting to the situation that was dealt to me and following my passions.
To me, follow your heart can be interpreted as viewing life's challenges as opportunities and not letting obstacles get in the way of the people and commodities you love in life. Mrs. Kuhn, my 6th grade teacher, used to say, "When you're not sure about a problem, cut the obvious, think critically, and choose." I've haven't forgotten this because leaders often have to make important decisions for their team and don't always know which path is the right one to take. This is similar to how I didn't know which path to take after deciding not to play football. However, by eliminating the wrong courses of action, considering all the stakeholders involved, and confidently making a decision, leaders can make a positive change while still following their heart.
Authentic leaders would agree that following your heart would lead to effective leadership because sticking true to the true character of oneself when making decisions is what makes authentic leaders easy to follow. They would also agree that obstacles should never get in the way of pursuing one's goals and that they should instead be viewed as opportunities. This positive outlook is important when a leader is mission driven and has the desire to succeed.
Practices of Exemplary Leadership
Part of the adventure in life is that it's full of obstacles and critical decision making. Sometimes these unexpected obstacles get in the way of normalities in life and force individuals to adapt, for instance having to undergo heart surgery as a child. But these barriers shouldn't stop anyone from following their dreams, and it certainly hasn't stopped me. Growing up after my surgery, I soon realized it wasn't my path in life to be the big time football lineman my dad had been at the University of Michigan. So I turned my attention to sports that would be more beneficial to my heart, such as soccer and basketball. I opened other doors of opportunity by adapting to the situation that was dealt to me and following my passions.
To me, follow your heart can be interpreted as viewing life's challenges as opportunities and not letting obstacles get in the way of the people and commodities you love in life. Mrs. Kuhn, my 6th grade teacher, used to say, "When you're not sure about a problem, cut the obvious, think critically, and choose." I've haven't forgotten this because leaders often have to make important decisions for their team and don't always know which path is the right one to take. This is similar to how I didn't know which path to take after deciding not to play football. However, by eliminating the wrong courses of action, considering all the stakeholders involved, and confidently making a decision, leaders can make a positive change while still following their heart.
Authentic leaders would agree that following your heart would lead to effective leadership because sticking true to the true character of oneself when making decisions is what makes authentic leaders easy to follow. They would also agree that obstacles should never get in the way of pursuing one's goals and that they should instead be viewed as opportunities. This positive outlook is important when a leader is mission driven and has the desire to succeed.
Practices of Exemplary Leadership
- MODEL THE WAY - Being confident in decision making and seeing opportunities at every corner is important because it keeps the motivation and optimism high on a team and gives a sense of direction for individuals to believe in.
- INSPIRE A SHARED VISION - Individuals don't follow people that they can't relate to or believe in. Luckily, leaders that follow their heart are naturally passionate about their goals and truly believe they can accomplish them with their team.
- ENCOURAGE THE HEART - Pursuing passions often leads to success because of the willingness of individuals to sacrifice for something they believe in. With success comes celebration. Leaders need to create a culture where everyone feels they are a part of a winning team.
Remember The Team
Glenn "Bo" Schembechler, who played football at Miami University and coached my dad at the University of Michigan, has had a lasting impression on the hearts of everyone he came in contact with. This includes my dad, who earned his spot on the Michigan football squad and was privileged enough to be coached by Bo. The life lessons, speeches, and mentality of this coaching legend live on through those who believed in him and his vision of success. My father is one of those people who shared that vision, so I consider myself to be the product of someone who developed as a leader under Bo. I was raised everyday by my parents that the values of sacrifice, hard work, and consideration are necessary in living a wholesome and healthy life with others.
These virtues are a part of who I am as a leader and are why I love being a part of a team. It should come to no surprise then, that there was nothing more important to Bo than the team, the team, the team. Being a member of a team is deeper than just spending time with friends and accomplishing goals. It is about building transformational relationships, developing others, learning from failures, and sharing the fruits of success. To do this it helps if teammates are willing to work hard, sacrifice for each other, and be considerate of one another. I had felt the support of teammates from soccer and basketball my whole life, but when I came to Miami University it was missing. When I work on a group project I often view it as a team, where we all need to be responsible and support each other to success. Individually it could take hours to finish a project, but as a team it might take 30 minutes. That is why no single man or woman is greater than the team.
Charismatic leaders would agree that remembering the team would lead to effective leadership because in a crisis situation they normally emerge as leaders, which is similar to how a captain of a sports team needs to perform. They tend to be vocal and have a lot of non-verbal traits that others can observe and decide to support or not.
Practices of Exemplary Leadership
Glenn "Bo" Schembechler, who played football at Miami University and coached my dad at the University of Michigan, has had a lasting impression on the hearts of everyone he came in contact with. This includes my dad, who earned his spot on the Michigan football squad and was privileged enough to be coached by Bo. The life lessons, speeches, and mentality of this coaching legend live on through those who believed in him and his vision of success. My father is one of those people who shared that vision, so I consider myself to be the product of someone who developed as a leader under Bo. I was raised everyday by my parents that the values of sacrifice, hard work, and consideration are necessary in living a wholesome and healthy life with others.
These virtues are a part of who I am as a leader and are why I love being a part of a team. It should come to no surprise then, that there was nothing more important to Bo than the team, the team, the team. Being a member of a team is deeper than just spending time with friends and accomplishing goals. It is about building transformational relationships, developing others, learning from failures, and sharing the fruits of success. To do this it helps if teammates are willing to work hard, sacrifice for each other, and be considerate of one another. I had felt the support of teammates from soccer and basketball my whole life, but when I came to Miami University it was missing. When I work on a group project I often view it as a team, where we all need to be responsible and support each other to success. Individually it could take hours to finish a project, but as a team it might take 30 minutes. That is why no single man or woman is greater than the team.
Charismatic leaders would agree that remembering the team would lead to effective leadership because in a crisis situation they normally emerge as leaders, which is similar to how a captain of a sports team needs to perform. They tend to be vocal and have a lot of non-verbal traits that others can observe and decide to support or not.
Practices of Exemplary Leadership
- INSPIRE A SHARED VISION - In order for a team to perform at their full potential everyone needs to be in agreement with the goals and expectations. Many team leaders realize this in times of stress and remind the team of their shared vision of success .
- ENABLE OTHERS TO ACT - Times of need call for someone to take initiative, and that's exactly what team leaders do. They can mitigate future problems and suggest possible routes of action for the team to take.
- ENCOURAGE THE HEART - When times get tough for a team, leaders stay positive and believe they can succeed. When the team succeeds in their goal, leaders celebrate the victory, but stay focused and makes sure the team doesn't become complacent.
Think Bigger
Visiting different countries opens a door of learning that is very immersive and exciting for me. I enjoy educating myself on the local cultures and really pushing myself to go out of my comfort zone. As a child, I would always want to do the crazy excursions on family vacations, like swimming with dolphins or snorkeling with sharks. Adventure has always been a part of who I am and is the reason why I decided to study abroad at the Miami University Delibois Center in Luxembourg my junior year. Every weekend I traveled to an exotic country that I had only previously been exposed to in text books and on Wikipedia. None of the 13 countries I visited were similar because they all had their own heritages and were proud of them, especially the Irish.
After traveling week after week, I began to realize that all the cultures I was experiencing had different perceptions on everything. For example, how Americans are viewed is different in France than it is in England, or Turkey. But it's not only cultures that see the world through different lenses. Realizing that individuals also have different views and ways of approaching problems is an important part of becoming a leader. For example, one person might be very analytical when faced with a project, but another person may be more creative. To me, keeping a global mind is not only about considering other cultures, but also about being emotionally intelligent and considerate enough to include the perspectives of people closer to home when making decisions. Leaders understand this concept and embrace it to satisfy as many individuals as possible when making determining solutions.
Leaders that possess the 4 qualities of connecting followers, which are to reveal your weaknesses, become a sensor, practice tough empathy, and dare to be different, would agree that keeping a global mind would lead to effective leadership because having emotional intelligence is very important when trying to understand different kinds of people. It is also helpful that these leaders tell individuals what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. This will be important when trying to create a more open minded culture.
Practices of Exemplary Leadership
Visiting different countries opens a door of learning that is very immersive and exciting for me. I enjoy educating myself on the local cultures and really pushing myself to go out of my comfort zone. As a child, I would always want to do the crazy excursions on family vacations, like swimming with dolphins or snorkeling with sharks. Adventure has always been a part of who I am and is the reason why I decided to study abroad at the Miami University Delibois Center in Luxembourg my junior year. Every weekend I traveled to an exotic country that I had only previously been exposed to in text books and on Wikipedia. None of the 13 countries I visited were similar because they all had their own heritages and were proud of them, especially the Irish.
After traveling week after week, I began to realize that all the cultures I was experiencing had different perceptions on everything. For example, how Americans are viewed is different in France than it is in England, or Turkey. But it's not only cultures that see the world through different lenses. Realizing that individuals also have different views and ways of approaching problems is an important part of becoming a leader. For example, one person might be very analytical when faced with a project, but another person may be more creative. To me, keeping a global mind is not only about considering other cultures, but also about being emotionally intelligent and considerate enough to include the perspectives of people closer to home when making decisions. Leaders understand this concept and embrace it to satisfy as many individuals as possible when making determining solutions.
Leaders that possess the 4 qualities of connecting followers, which are to reveal your weaknesses, become a sensor, practice tough empathy, and dare to be different, would agree that keeping a global mind would lead to effective leadership because having emotional intelligence is very important when trying to understand different kinds of people. It is also helpful that these leaders tell individuals what they need to hear, not what they want to hear. This will be important when trying to create a more open minded culture.
Practices of Exemplary Leadership
- INSPIRE A SHARED VISION - Creating a culture where everyone is considerate of each other and open to new perspectives is a tough job for anyone. Leaders begin this process by setting the example and being the driving force behind being inclusive towards new ideas.
- CHALLENGE THE PROCESS - By considering other view points when making decisions, leaders naturally challenge the process of being narrow minded. They view this process as an opportunity to benefit everyone involved and they enjoy the challenge of figuring out a solution.
- ENABLE OTHERS TO ACT - It can be difficult to always get everyone involved when making decisions, but a good leader encourages as many people as possible to participate. They get people to collaborate and work together to get as much input as possible, which usually results in more creative ideas.
