Flash Mobs

Flash mobs are something that have become very popular over the country. A flash mob is when a large group of people suddenly assemble in a public place and perform an unusual act. I have seen videos of these and have even witnessed one at our campus but I just realized today that these flash mobs can be viewed as leadership. There has to be one person to start the act going and then there have to be followers also. In the video that I have attached you can also see the communication between one another but it is all nonverbal. Also in this video you will notice that there are some people who begin to join in on the song even though they were not a part of the original group. I feel like this greatly represents how leadership can inspire people. The flash mob was inspiring the food court habitants to join in on the holiday cheer. I now not only look at these flash mobs as something fun but also as an act of leadership.
Enjoy the video! It inspired me to go out and spread some holiday cheer :)

http://www.godvine.com/Flash-Mob-Surprises-Everyone-by-Singing-Hallelujah-in-the-Food-Court-90.html

I cannot believe that this semester is coming to a close! I have learned so much about leadership and I feel like I now view the world in a different way. I hold myself to higher standards than I did before and I want to be the best leader that I can be in every aspect of my life. Whether that is just being a good role model to someone or to help organize a big event. I look forward to taking all that I have learned and put it into great use! Thank you for a wonderful semester!

Power of Optimism

One day after school in the 8th grade I went shopping at Borders Bookstore with my mom, brother and grandma. We were all browsing the books and talking when my mom's cell phone began to ring. She picked it up and after a minute of listening to the person on the other line her face went blank and she dropped the book that was in her hand. We all soon learned that my mom had been diagnosed with breast cancer. After the initial shock had passed my mom became very calm and believed that everything was going to be ok. She started to take aggressive action to conquer this disease.
While doing chemotherapy she began to lose her hair. As her hair started rapidly falling out she decided that she didn't want to resist the process, so her and my little brother went to the local barber shop and shaved their heads together. My mom would joke that she was lucky that she had a nice shaped head and that there weren't any warts under all her hair. Although this was a very hard thing for a woman to do, she remained optimistic the entire time. After a few days she noticed that my brother's and my friend's (who were 9 and 12 at the time) would look at her bald head with sadness or fear. My mom didn't want people to be sad because she was so confident that everything was going to be ok. So the next day our family went to a place that did airbrush tattoos and she had a vine of red roses tattood on her head. After this, people began to start having the same optimism that my mom had and little neighborhood boys wanted to shave their heads to "see what picture they have under their hair".
I look at my mother and think that she is a true leader. She exuded such optimism that it was hard for other people to not start feeling the same way. She also took a tremendous risk. Most women have a very hard time when they start losing their hair and often times wear wigs and hats. My mom embraced what was happening while also empowering others to do the same. The amount of confidence she had was unreal and this was communicated very clearly to others through her actions. I really look up to my mother and hope to someday turn into a woman as strong as her.

(I have attached photos of me and my mother after she had her head "tattooed")

Michael Jordan

This past week I was recognized for my own leadership qualities. I was nominated to join a leadership honor society on campus called Rho Lambda. I am really excited to be given this honor and to better myself as a leader through this organization.

A leadership lesson I came across this week is that it is okay to fail as a leader and that it actually is usually beneficial. Michael Jordan's "Failure" commercial led me to this realization. Failure makes you grow as a person and learn from your mistakes. Everybody fails throughout life. But I think that one key aspect of failure that will help a leader is admitting when they have failed. In this clip Michael Jordan speaks of all the times where he failed. Followers respect someone that is humble and takes responsibility for these short comings. On the other hand, if a leader pretends to be perfect at everything, then the followers will be discouraged and think that anything they do short of perfection is a failure. I also loved how at the end of this clip Michael Jordan says that it is wasn't for his failures he would not have been successful.

Dr. Snavely

This week Dr. Snavely came to talk to our class and it was the first time I was fortunate enough to hear him speak. Dr. Snavely is the type of leader I strive to be. I already consider myself an optimistic person but I do have my times of weakness. Listening to Dr. Snavely motivated me to become an even better person. It is so true, as he stated, that your attitude is your choice. You should keep a positive attitude for everything that you do and it will make the tasks much more enjoyable. I loved that he was so optimistic about his broken foot! His analogy of leaving your problems in a bucket by the door was also great. My downfall is stress. I need to remember that the things I need to get done are not going anywhere so it is okay to push them aside at times and not let it effect my attitude. Dr. Snavely also spoke on not "lighting up a room by leaving it". That night I went out to a bar with a couple friends and I saw this idea happen right before my eyes. One of the girls was just whining and putting people down the whole night. The second she left, the whole group was so relieved and was able to loosen up. I thought this concept was so obvious but clearly some people are not aware of it. I really loved Dr. Snavely's energy and strive to be like him! Thank you Dr. Geist-Martin for asking him to speak with us!

Leadership for the Greater Good

On Friday I volunteered for a program called Project Connect. We set up a Thanksgiving dinner for homeless families, ate with them and then volunteered at a carnival afterwards. It was so eye opening and impacting being able to spend time with the families. As we were going on with the evening I could not help but notice that this event would not have been successful without the extreme amount of leadership. One leadership trait that I think all of the organizers possessed was character. They were not doing any of this for themselves, they truly wanted to help others. I think that it is so important that leaders have good character and do things for the group. In my eyes, someone who is able to lead an event like this and to give to others is the ideal leader.

Leaders at All Ages

Every summer I work at a salon in my hometown. This summer there was a woman who would always come in to get her hair done and bring her 5 year old granddaughter, Juliette, with her. Every time they came in Juliette would always sit at the front desk with me and we would play tic tac toe for hours while I answered the phones and helped customers. Just from talking with her I could tell that she was not like the average 5 year old. She seemed very smart and had such a positive energy to her. I eventually found out that Juliette was battling leukemia. She had participated in a Walk 'N Rock for Kids in Sacramento and had a goal to send 21 kids to a camp for children battling cancer. It costs $1,000 to send one child to the camp but through fundraising for the camp Juliette succeeded goal. Althogh she is only 5 years old I think that she is a leader and has many qualities to be valued. Her positivity and high goals are something that many adults lack. Through these qualities she was able to reach her goal. As we have mentioned in class, children possess the belief that they can accomplish anything they put their mind to. I think that the only thing seperating children and adults is extreme positivity and big dreams. Maybe adults should start dreaming bigger and BELIEVING that their dreams can become a reality.

http://www.examiner.com/sacramento-river-cats-in-sacramento/walk-n-rock-for-kids-making-a-difference-sacramento

Will's Wisdom

This video is something that I think everyone should watch. Will Smith explains the importance of being passionate about something and being willing to do anything for it. Most of the things that he speaks about are common sense but often times people forget about this "wisdom". I like to watch this video every so often to refresh myself of how I want to live my life and to remotivate myself. Like I spoke about next week, I think that people are leaders through the ways they live their lives. To me Will Smith is an exceptional leader and is someone I like to follow. I highly reccommend this video to everyone! Enjoy! :)

Role Models

Lately I have had a lot of people come into my life who I really admire. These people all have a few things in common that make me look up to them. They are all positive, driven and interesting people. All of them are following their hearts and doing what makes them happy in life. I find myself constantly wanting to be in their presence. I believe that some people can be leaders without even trying. When a person lives their life in a positive way, others begin to notice this. Others begin learning from these role models and emulating their lives. I think that these role models are leaders without even trying. They motivate others to take risks and to lead the life that they want. This is a prime example that there are endless opportunites to possess and exude leadership qualities.

Colin Powell's 18 principles

I was reading this article earlier and it really made me realize how important it is for a leader to know how to balance his/her life. A leader must know how to have fun and have passions outside of work. People are more likely to follow and look up to someone who has a multi-dimensional life opposed to being a workaholic. Nobody wants to be aronud someone who is always extremely stressed and wound tight. Also, this connects with how the article said that attitude is contagious. It is important for the leader to stay optimistic to keep his followers in high spirits. If followers are happy then they are more likely to perform better when it comes to work because they will want to be there. I think that this aspect of leadership is often overlooked but it is so important to practice.

Dance is Leadership

Today in class we looked at leadership in the form of dance. We spoke about how there is a relationship between partners which is like realational leadership. We also discussed that there are always followers and leaders in dance. As we were watching the videos and having this discussion I kept thinking of the quote, "Dancing: a measure of confidence, not a measure of talent." I feel like this parallels perfectly with leadership. When it comes down to it, a person needs to have confidence to be a leader. Anybody can be a leader if they are willing to be confident and take a risk. The boy in the video showed a high volume of confidence by starting to dance alone. He took a risk that nobody else did. The boy didn't just go up an sway back and forth... he got up there and danced crazy. I feel like this reflects leadership perfectly. To be a successful leader you can't just half-ass your confidence, you have to go out on a limb and be willing to look dumb. Those who are most confident are the best of dancers.

The Next US

This past week in class the creators of The Next US came and spoke to our class. David and Susan travelled America and found people who are following their dreams and doing what they are passionate about. After studying abroad in Spain last semester, and seeing different ways of life I promised myself that I would live a life of happiness. Going to another country made me realize that the world has so much to offer and at the end of the day the only important thing is that you are happy. Although this is something that I believed prior to hearding Susan and David speak, it was so nice to see people who turned this belief into a reality. These people showed that it is possible to live my dream. My parents always told me that I could do anything I want in my life and I think that is the best thing you can tell a child.
After I graduate in May I plan on moving to Santorini, Greece to work during the high season and to make some money. I am passionate about travelling and learning about cultures but I don't know what kind of job could allow me to do this. The Next US has really inspired me to do some soul searching and figure out what I want to do.
I have seen too many adults that are "successful" by society's standards but they never seem to be happy and fulfilled. I have even had adults tell me of things they regret missing out on when they were younger. They didn't seize the day and take every opportunity presented to them. I want to make sure that when I am older I am successful and without regrets. When I think of success in my life I think of being healthy, happy and having the people I love near me.
This leadership class has given me more motivation to search for a passionate life. Often times in our society people think that straight out of college you should go into the business world, working 40+ hours a week and striving to make the most amount of money possible. Constantly having this belief around you and pushed on you can start making someone lose hope for their passion.
Today I met with a woman that I am going to start babysitting for. She told me how she went to school for engineering because that is what her parents pushed her to do and then out of college she got a mundane engineering job. She told me that she is a bubbly person who loves to be around people and that the environment didn't fit her personality. The thing that she had been passionate about her whole life was interior design. After several years, she finally quit her engineering job and is now an interior designer. She told me how it is so important to do what you want and that there is no such thing as "practical" and "realistic". If there is something you want to do, then do it!
I love meeting people like this and I think that everyone in the world would be much happier if they approached life in this manner. I cannot wait to figure out how I can follow my passions!

Importance of Delegation

When my little brother and I were 5 years and 8 years old we started to put on neighborhood fairs in our front yard. It started out as something fun to occupy our time but soon became a huge community event. Our first year we only raised $30 but we only went up from there. The following years we began to get sponsors and support from the community.  These fairs included carnival type games, bounce houses, dunk tanks, cotton candy machines, donkey rides, DJ, fire truck tours and hundreds of dollars worth of candy, toys and raffle items-all which were donated. Our last several years of the fairs we would make over $8,000 in one day! We donated all of the money to cancer research. For the past five years I worked closely with Dr. Ernie Bodai,the man pioneering the Breast Cancer Stamp, and donated the money from our fair to his foundation, Cure Breast Cancer, Inc

As the fairs got bigger, my brother and I had more help from our friends with setting up, cleaning up and working the fairs. As a leader, I lacked in the delegation department because I had a hard time trusting others. I wanted to do everything myself to ensure that it got done correctly. My lack of trust usually upset the other kids. Although it was so long ago, I still remember how I acted as a leader and it has helped me in current leadership roles because I don't want to make that mistake again. I think of Maya Angelou's quote-- I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel-- and this is how I want to conduct myself as a leader.
FOr more information you can view Dr. Bodai's website:
http://www.curebreastcancer.org/cms/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=759&Itemid=76

Importance of Trust

Everyday I receive quotes in my email and when I read this one I instantly thought of leadership.
To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved -George Macdonald
I think that the most important quality that a leader can have is to be trustworthy. It is also very important for a leader to be loved but if there is no trust then the leader will not be successful. Trust is needed in every type of task. I instantly think of leadership roles that can be dangerous, such as the Mt. Everest climb, as needing trustworthiness in their leaders. But it is also very important for business leaders to have trust in order for a company to run smoothly and successfully. 
Often times people confuse likeability with leadership. I think of our country's presidents. There have been elections where the president has been elected because he is well liked. It is important for people to know that just because someone is likeable does not mean that they will do a good job as a leader. 
It is very important for people to be reminded that trust is a crucial quality for leaders which is why I like this quote by George Macdonald so much.

Conflicting Leadership

Last week in class we heard excerpts from the book "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer and watched a video of Dr. Kenneth Kamler, which both spoke about the 1997 climb of Mount Everest that resulted in the death of twelve people. During this climb, there was a tremendous amount of leadership skills being portrayed but not all were conventional leadership roles. 
After listening to the accounts of the people who were involved in this tragedy I began to realize that leadership comes in many shapes and forms and just because someone is appointed a leader, it doesn't mean that they actually are a leader. 
Rob Hall was one of the leaders of the Mount Everest climbing group. This was a leadership position that was appointed to him because of his level of experience and expertise. But there is another leadership role that I believe he has that was not necessarily appointed to him.At home, Rob had a wife and a baby waiting for him. In a sense Rob had a role of leadership within his family. He needed to be a good example for his child and help guide him through life. Unfortunately during the climb one of Rob's climbers, Doug Hanson, became extremely ill and was dying on the top of the mountain. Other climbers had told Rob that he should leave Doug because it is better to lose one life than two. Rob felt that he had a task that he had to follow through with and that he would be a bad leader if he left Doug on the mountain alone to die. The outcome of this decision ended with both Doug and Rob dying on the mountain. Many would argue that Rob exuded the most magnificent leadership role because he did not leave his climber. Although I think that what Rob did was definitely an act that should be admired, I also think that he was letting down other people who also needed him as a leader. By dying, Rob was letting down his child and discontinuing the role of being a leader to his son. From this I learned that sometimes people will have conflicting leadership roles and will have to choose which one is more important. 
On the other hand, there was another climber named Beck Weathers. Beck was on the mountain flirting with death when he realized that he needed to survive for his family. With his family in mind, he was able to push himself back to refuge and survive. In Beck's situation he showed that the leadership role he plays in his family was one worth fighting for. 
Another leader that came from this experience was the pilot of the helicopter that saved Beck's life. Although he was not an appointed leader, he took the risk of flying higher than anybody has ever flown before in order to save someone in need. In this case Beck took it upon himself to be a leader. 
From the Mount Everest experience I learned that leadership comes in many different forms and sometimes conflict with one another. Often times leaders and forced to choose which role is most important for them to focus on. Being able to make that decision can sometimes be the most difficult job for a leader.