Quiet Leadership, By Katelyn Chapman

Colorado. Skiing. Friends. Quiet Leadership.

The last two words probably threw you for a loop. My exposure to experiential education had my wheels turning in “Reflective Observation” and “Abstract Conceptualization” mode (see Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle) after my trip to Colorado with friends.

I had an "Aha” moment on the flight home. While the rest of the crew was enjoying some shut eye, I got amped as I realized a cool connection between what I’ve been learning through David Rock’s Quiet Leadership and what I experienced skiing in Colorado. I will show how 3 components contributed to having one of the best trips ever!

To explain how my Colorado trip rolled out and connected to quiet leadership, I’ll back up to share my story of skiing…

On the first day, I had the normal first day jitters. Besides being my first time skiing out west, I experienced the typical, “Oh, I hope my body remembers how to ski.” Some of you super confident people may not experience that quick moment of self doubt. For me, I usually experience it on the first chair lift up the mountain, hoping that I make a first smooth exit off the chairlift. I know my friends and random spectators would enjoy some free entertainment, but I’d prefer if it didn’t come from my direction. For those non-skiiers/snowboarders, you can equate it to riding a bike… or rollerblading… something that you may not do a regular basis but you just ‘pick it back up.’

Having successfully exited the first chairlift, I sighed relief. Now it was warming up the legs and experiencing the difference of skiing out west. Friends agreed about using the first day on the slopes to effectively warm up. We enjoyed exploring the new terrain, focusing on green circles and blue squares coined “Easiest Terrain” and “Intermediate Terrain” respectively. At the end of the day, I felt thrilled but excited about trying more difficult trails the next day.

During the second day, I continued to ski blue squares and bumped it up a notch with black diamonds on “Expert Terrain.” The Expert Terrain challenged me with much steeper trails and moguls. During the last run of the day, two of the more experienced skiers in our group chose to go down a double black, “Expert Only”. I started the trail and then changed my mind. My legs already felt tired- I realized it wasn’t the best time to try something I was uncomfortable with. At the end of the day, I felt excitement but also yearning for the rest of the mountain. A part of me respected the fact I chose not to do the trail on tired legs, but was determined to “achieve” it.

During the third and final day of skiing, I woke up beaming from ear to ear. I was READY but still had self doubt- Was I truly prepared for a Double Black Diamond? We hit the lifts as soon as they opened and proceeded to savor our last day skiing out west. We created our own tracks with the fresh powder – in this, I truly felt like I was crashing an X Games competition or something of that sort. Ha!

Following a few warm-up runs, we proceeded to the Super Bee (a chairlift that runs to the more difficult terrain on the mountain). At the top, we spotted the double black signs and the same trail the two friends had done the prior day. My gut started to sink and the three friends proceeded to help me by incorporating three principles in Quiet Leadership:

1. Stretch people- My friends looked at me for ‘what they thought I could do.’ They didn’t limit my capabilities based on “what I had achieved” in the two prior days. They didn’t assume I wouldn’t ski a double black. They “stretched” me beyond my current position, away from my comfort zone. By them stretching me, they helped me focus on an outcome that I wanted deep down but was nervous to achieve.
2. Be solutions-focused- Instead of focusing on the worst-case scenario, like if I caught a ski and then enjoyed a hamster roll down a mountain….or reminiscing about how injured people have got in the past- they focused on how nice the trail was. They emphasized that the first part was the steepest and after that, it wasn’t bad at all. (i.e. Katelyn could take a breath of fresh air after the first bout). They also led the group, showing us a specific line that they knew would be most manageable for us. By being solutions focused, they provided me support to meet my stretch goal – “the double black.”
3. Provide positive encouragement- “Katelyn, I’ve skied with you the past 3 days and I know you can do this.” Naturally when we are outside of our comfort zone, we are afraid of the unknown, the failure, our anxiety ramps up and we doubt our capabilities. By providing positive encouragement, we reinforce positive thinking and help stretch people.

They helped me enjoy the ride of my life (and I have awesome pictures to prove it!). How will you incorporate the 3 principles to INspire change?

Author:
Katelyn Chapman, MBA

Service: The Quantification of a Life Well Lived, By John Bratton

Five years seems like an eternity in the life of a 24 year old graduate student. Five years spans an amount of time that I am just now beginning to comprehend. Five years could get me from high school to college, from college to the “real world.” The quantification of time is a funny thing though. Five years is almost a lifetime to me, but may merely be a glimpse in time for another. Some might remember five years ago as if it was yesterday. In fact, today could physically look like five years ago (believe it or not). August 29, 2005 is a day that for many in the Gulf States might quite literally feel like yesterday. Why? This is the day that Hurricane Katrina greeted the residents of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama with a hellacious fury. Perhaps the depiction of destruction and devastation that followed seems like yesterday to you.

I reflect back on these images because I recently had the privilege to serve as a learning partner on a service trip organized through The University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s Office of Leadership and Service-Learning. I, along with another graduate student, accompanied 12 undergraduates for a week of service spent in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward. Much to my dismay, the Lower Ninth Ward vastly still resembles the landscape of over 5 years ago after the flood waters had receded. Empty lots filled with debris, shambled structures, and spray-painted Xs haunting the doorways that now house residents again are all common sites found in the Lower Ninth, not 5 years ago but today. Sure, the cleanup efforts have provided the city of New Orleans with millions of dollars, thousands of volunteer hours, and a sense of hope for a brighter, safer tomorrow but one cannot visit the Lower Ninth without feeling the same loss, the feeling that somehow its residents have been forgotten.

However, the residents I encountered were the first to remind me that these feelings of loss are not to be confused with despair. After all, here it is over 5 years later and the young and old alike still flock to this hallowed ground in an effort to help the Lower Ninth continue its renewal. A sense of service permeates the individuals who still hear the calling to help those directly impacted by the life changing events of over 5 years ago. While the story of the individuals impacted could be expounded upon along with the physical situation that many parts of New Orleans still experience, a larger question arises from this experience. Can service be a solution? Rather, this question is already answered by many individuals across all walks of life. Instead the framework must become how can service be a solution?

There is little doubt that many challenges currently face our nation, let alone the world. Economic hardship continues to affect millions of Americans. The tsunami in Japan is quickly becoming one of the costliest natural disasters in history. Uncertainty is abound. However, those willing to make a difference and help another out are also ever increasing in number. The call to serve one another is resonating across generations in the US. As baby boomers head towards retirement and Millennials figure out their own place in society, it is clear that a national movement of service is taking hold in every generation in between. The goal of any successful leader, community organizer, or change agent should be how to harness this potential. This is no easy task and it is not designed to be. However, human capital is going to remain a strength found across cultures and generations to come, so to not harness it for the betterment of the social good would be to the detriment of all. So I encourage everyone (whether you view yourself as a leader or not) to think about how we, as humans, can put service at the forefront of our lives. Five years is a mere quantification of time, and a short one at that. Service has the unique ability to span eternity, so why don’t we put it to use?

Author:

John Bratton

Service-Learning Graduate Assistant

Taking Risks, By Lara Amshay

“Expect the unexpected” is a phrase I’ve heard many times from various teachers, mentors, and family members throughout my whole life. Recently, in pursuing the silver level in the Leadership Challenge, I have learned the importance of leaders taking risks. This revelation came into play in reflecting on my time I spent volunteering as a Media Assistant at the U.S. Figure Skating Championships this past January (2011) at the Greensboro Coliseum. As my coach Ryan pulled out a tape recorder at the beginning of our session, I narrowed my focus to the recorder and strongly gritted my teeth. “We meet again!” I slyly told the tape recorder. Like Ryan, you may be wondering why I was talking to a tape recorder. For the past two weekends, I spent a lot of time “getting to know” the tape recorder and other technological devices. I had no prior experience in using a tape recorder before that weekend and I had never touched a Nikon or a Canon Powershot before either. To give a little background, handing me an expensive camera is similar to a scared, hesitant parent giving their newly turned sweet sixteen year-old their precious car for the night. On my way to the Coliseum the first day of work for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, I had no idea what I would be doing. I was slowly approaching “The Unknown Zone” and I didn’t like it. Whenever I approach a task, I generally have an idea of how to do it or what it involves doing. With the figure skating, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be helping interview skaters, escorting the skaters to the press box, and I had feelings that I was going to fail at whatever task I was assigned. Despite these apprehensions, I zipped up my blue figure skating jacket and pulled my press pass over my head and slowly walked down to the Media Zone.

Later that weekend, when I got off from my shift, a friend of mine who was also volunteering texted me saying that my pictures were online. As I waited for my computer to boot up, I couldn’t stop smiling. For the past two days, I got to stand right off the rink and take pictures of the skaters warming up, talking to their coaches and other skaters, on the ice, and I was there the moment they got off the ice to capture their reactions. It truly was an amazing experience. I grew up going to see skaters perform such as Kristi Yamaguchi, Brain Boitano, and Michelle Kwan, but as I got older, skating wasn’t my first choice of sport to watch when Duke Basketball was on TV. Being right by the judges, I saw how disciplined the skaters were and how beautifully crafted their jumps and axels were. I felt the pressure of thousands of eyes on them as they gracefully commanded the ice. It was an honor for me to capture the sacred moments with their coaches and hugging their coaches right when they landed the jumps of their dreams. Just as the skaters took risks adding new jumps, lifts, and axels into their routines, I was taking my own risks by completing and excelling at tasks which I had never done before and had only been given little direction.

The next weekend, the final weekend of the championships, is a pretty big deal. The competition was broadcasting live on NBC and on Sunday the champions were crowned. I took a trip back to the “Unknown” once again when I met my perceived opponent, the tape recorder. I generally tried to avoid eye contact when the team leaders asked if someone wanted to record and transcribe interviews. I desired to be right off the ice again, front and center for the action, but instead I got stuck backstage with my new friend, the recorder. As soon as the skaters received their scores, a volunteer escorts them to the media mix zone where reporters from around the world are waiting to grill them on their performance. My job was to make sure the microphones were working and to be front and center to make sure my recorder picked up good sound. After the reporters were done asking questions, I was to run back to the Media room and transcribe the interviews. It was hard at first, because I was rushing myself to get everything down and to get it done correctly. After awhile, I got the hang of it and let my guard down. Things got really exciting when the top three skaters came back. Ryan Bradley, the overall champion, is one of the funniest skaters to be around. He was always smiling and making jokes, which really made me enjoy doing my job. And to top the day off, I got to touch the championship trophy before Ryan did!

I really enjoyed my time spent volunteering at the Championships. Not only did I get to work around great people, such as the whole staff of the U.S. Figure Skating Media Department and NBC Sports, but I feel I gained more skills as a journalist through my experience. I can now put on my resume that I have over twenty photographs of skaters on Ice Network’s website. I can also list the various jobs I did with helping interview, transcribing interviews, and relaying information for reporters. I now have been there and back from the “Unknown Zone” and it wasn’t bad at all! It was me, just me in those moments. No one else was there to hold my hand while I completed my tasks or tell me how to do them the right way. Ultimately, it was my call and my responsibility to trust my own strengths and abilities and to put them to the test. Yes, they were huge risks, but I’m so glad I took them!

Author:

Lara Amshay

Experience is the Best Teacher…Wanna Bet?, By Preston Yarborough

“We learn from experience that men never learn anything from experience.” --George Bernard Shaw

Just like many leadership educators, I believe in experiential learning. That having been said, G. B. Shaw had a point. Visit my office and I’ll prove it.

Darren is a colleague of mine. He’s sharp, witty, focused, prepared, and maintains an air of comfortable composure. I admire his work ethic and would love to emulate him. His office is the picture of organized efficiency: clean desk, file folders labeled and systematically arranged, and he effortlessly processes his work. When I’m at my best, I feel like I’m in the “Darren Zone.” Unfortunately I don’t find my way to the DZ all that often.

Like a mythical beast, clutter blocks my path to the DZ. I feed the beast daily when I’m too hurried to file documents or when I refuse to throw stuff away. I gauge where files are by how recently I last used them. If it’s been awhile, it’s probably at the bottom of a stack. More recent items are likely on top. It takes a minute or three of shuffling to locate most anything. This amuses the beast.

I’m embarrassed and ashamed. Do I know why my office looks this way? Yes. Do I know from experience this system holds me back? Absolutely. But experience can be a lousy teacher.

If experience isn’t going to teach me, how might I slay this beast? Warren Bennis offered insight in his book, On Becoming a Leader:

Your accumulated experience is the basis for the rest of your life, and that base is solid and sound to the degree that you have reflected on it, understood it, and arrived at workable solutions.

Bennis’ quote bears repeating, “Accumulated experience …. is solid and sound to the degree that you have reflected on it, understood it, and arrived at a workable solution.” Reflection and Understanding are keys to upacking insight from experience.

Reflection is different from merely remembering, recording, or reporting experience. When we reflect, we take time to consider experience from multiple perspectives. Through this process, we can enhance our understanding of self and others.

We may reflect inwardly (on ourselves) on by examining our observations, thoughts, feelings, and actions. We reflect outwardly (on others) through examining our perceptions of others' actions and our interpretation of others’ thoughts and feelings.

Fine practitioners of the reflective arts are intentional and systematic. They choose a specific, personal development goal as a focal point for reflection. They will describe the experience, examine it, articulate their learning, and apply insights to improve their performance.* Consider this example:
GOAL: I want to keep a more organized office.
DESCRIBE ACTIONS: I can reflect on my day and consider the times I filed things away (constructive goal behavior) versus the times I did not (destructive goal behavior).
EXAMINE: What factors (thoughts, feelings, & conditions) helped me follow through on my goal? What factors hindered me? What decisions could I have made differently to perform better? How might I prepare myself so that I improve next time?
ARTICULATE LEARNING: I now convey what I learned from this personal inquiry. This reflective process helps me understand factors that influence my behavior, how to make proactive decisions, and to prepare myself for success. I will now set a plan according to these insights. Insights mean little if they aren’t converted into action.

Reflection is most powerful when it is objective. The point isn’t to justify one’s self—but rather to seek deeper understanding. Once we develop understanding, then we have increased our ability to develop workable solutions.

Those who learn the art of reflection turbocharge their capacity for self-growth. Reflection is at the heart of personal development, but it is not as easy as it sounds. It takes practice. Participating in group reflections (verbal), reflective journaling (written), and leadership coaching (verbal) are all excellent ways to practice reflection. Each of these processes helps you learn how to reflect on relevant issues, broaden your observational awareness, and enhance your ability to discern insights from experience. Don’t be discouraged if early efforts seem hollow, unsatisfactory, or even frustrating. It’s part of the process. Once it clicks for you, you’ll never turn back. And you will differentiate yourself from those who mistakenly believe that experience will teach them all they need to know.

* Describe, Examine, and Articulate Learning are described in the DEAL model of critical reflection by Patti Clayton, PhD
Author:
Preston Yarborough, Ph.D.
Assistant Director of Leadership
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG)