For the Leadership and Social Change minor, I had to take various classes. Many of which will help me greatly in jobs and help me in my own personal life.

Class 3: Exploring Citizen Leadership

I took the course Exploring Citizen Leadership in the fall of 2019. “This two-semester interdisciplinary course offers an introduction to citizen leadership. 1015 explores traditional and contemporary leadership theory and competencies by comparing cultural contexts of leadership.” (HokieSPA) This class was an asynchronous virtual lecture. In this class, we had set groups that we worked with throughout the whole semester. In this group, we had to work with a community partner to achieve some form of goal. Through this class, we also had to take knowledge inventories once a week. We also had discussion boards to do as well.

This course had 7 objectives: 1. Describe historical approaches to leadership theory and provide examples of these theories 2. Appreciate diverse styles of leadership, including the ways personal preferences and stylistic differences of race, gender, and age affect leadership practices 3. Describe the relationship between the leader and follower 4. Effectively apply definitions and key concepts of citizen leadership to individual practices 5. Assess personal leadership styles, values, and competencies 6. Identify skills and reflective practices that assist in developing one’s leadership 7. Demonstrate servant leadership 6. Write a personal philosophy of leadership that demonstrates critical reflection on contemporary leadership challenges and that demonstrates knowledge of leadership concepts introduced in the course.

This class prepared me for working well within teams and with people in my community. This class had a big impact on many of my future classes as well. This class prepared me for many of the community-based projects that are completed for the Leadership and Social Change minor. The projects also helped prepare me for program planning for my future career in cooperative extension. This class also helped me fall in love with helping communities and other people.

In terms of the social change model, this class focuses on all three parts of the model, society values, individual values, and group values. Within society values, the class focuses on getting students out in the Blacksburg community. This was a good project for first-year students and students new to the area. It made you get to know the community you’re in. Within individual values, we had to commit ourselves to our teams and the organization that we decided to work with. Lastly, with group values, we had to collaborate with other members in our teams to reach a common goal. We also had to work out any issues we may have run into during the process of completing this project. This was vital because the class was online, communicating was very important.

Artifacts:

For the Leadership and Social Change minor, I had to take various classes. Many of which will help me greatly in jobs and help me in my own personal life.

Class 2: Dynamics of Leadership

The Dynamics of Leadership was a class I took in the Fall of 2020. This class was taught by Dr. Walz and Dr. Council. “ This course examines advanced leadership theories and leadership effectiveness in today’s organizations.” (HokieSPA) Although this class was taught virtually, participation was mandatory. This allowed us to learn better and get to know our classmates better. We had knowledge inventories every class to make sure we knew the material, as well as pre-class discussions. We had one big project due at the end of the semester as well, where we had to review an organization. This project was very insightful in figuring out how organizations and businesses worked.

This class has five main objectives. 1. Assess personal leadership values and competencies. 2. Identity, define and develop personal vision, mission, and goals. 3. Identify elements of effective and ineffective leadership behaviors. 4. Integrate main leadership concepts with case study situations. 5. Identify elements of organizational culture. All of these objectives helped me, and other students better understand the best practices of leadership within ourselves, other people, and in organizations. These objectives also correspond to other leadership classes I’ve taken over my time at Virginia Tech.

This class and the professors within the class had a big impact on me. I learned many things about my professors, and they learned much about me. This class gave me the opportunity to be insightful of the organizations around me and to do research about them. This class taught me how to be a good leader and how to avoid bringing a poor leader inside the workplace and outside. I have taken many of these skills already and have applied them to my personal life when it comes to interviews and guiding others. I hope to use these skills more in the future when I get my first job. Understanding how to lead even if you’re not a leader is important to me, this way you can show you are capable already.

In terms of the social change model, this class focuses on all three parts of the model, society values, individual values, and group values. Within society values, the class allows students to broadly look at themselves as citizens and how they interact as leaders, this also correlates with individual values. The class enforces the importance of committing to the people around you. With group values, we had a major group project in which we had to collaborate and have civility when making deciding factors about the project.

Artifacts:

For the Leadership and Social Change minor, I had to take various classes. Many of which will help me greatly in jobs and help me in my own personal life.

Class one: Social Problems

Social Problems is a sociology class taught by Dr. Williams. This class talks about social issues within the United States. This class “Examines the nature, extent, and causes of social problems in the United States and around the globe from multiple perspectives. Emphasizes the role of social structural forces including conflicting economic, racial, ethnic, national, and gender interests in the creation and perpetuation of social problems. Discussion of poverty, work, health care, drugs, terrorism, human rights, and social change.” (HokieSPA)

 This applies greatly to leadership, as being a leader, you must be able to adapt and change easily and also embrace differences in the people around you. This class taught me so much. Even though it’s not a leadership class, it still gave me a great number of skills to help me in my day-to-day life and helped me through many of my leadership and agricultural science classes. Some of those skills include the understanding of privilege, the importance of equal rights, how poverty is caused and affects people and families in more than one way, and much more. The class also taught me more about myself. I learned that I have privileges and disadvantages in this world.

 The class has allowed me to broaden my perspective on the world and allowed me to have a better view of people who are different from me. This class focuses a lot on all aspects of the social change model. With the social values aspect of the social change model, the class communicates to students about the importance of our own personal citizenship and relationship with society. With the individual values of the social change model, the class forces students to think critically of themselves and their perspectives on the world, knowing what is right and wrong. With the group values aspect of the social change model, the class has students collaborate on exams. Dr. Williams found the importance of collaboration on classwork, as this is how most work is done outside of school. With group values, the class also focuses on civility within the classroom. Dr. Williams always leaves the floor open for conversation and rebuttal. Being able to view other opinions from your own and being able to form your own opinion is vital in leadership. Also being able to stand up and share your opinion, teach others and listen to others is important when being a leader in today’s world.

Artifacts:

            Throughout my years as a leader, I have learned and experienced many things. I have developed and honed my skills as a leader. I’m aware I have many things left to learn and experience as I graduate school and start my journey into the workforce.

When it comes to values, I value five things, advancement, challenge, collaboration, friendship, and loyalty. Advancement to me is moving forward towards a goal and it helps create and meet small goals to further guide towards the main goal. Challenge to me is something that is more difficult than the rest and it helps build knowledge and endurance. Collaboration to me is working together towards a similar goal and it helps create more creativity. Friendship to me is a plutonic emotional connection and it helps build connections and comradery. And lastly, loyalty to me is having a full alliance with a person or group and it helps build trust.

I have had many experiences as a growing leader. Some positive and some negative. A positive leadership experience I’ve had was during my internship at a summer camp this past summer. When I first arrived at the camp I was greeted with many things to learn. I learned how to lifeguard, perform CPR, and how to address medical emergencies. Before camp started, I was assigned as an in-bunk councilor, this means I was living in the bunks with my own set of girls. During pre-camp as I was learning new skills to use at camp, I was pulled into the office. In this meeting, I was told I was ana client leader and everyone could see it. I was told I was getting a raise just after being there for two weeks and was given a higher position. I was the “lead” of Wilderness of Adventure and Discovery (WAD). I was basically a director and had the same tasks as one, but was paid less. However, I’ll take what I can get and gain experience. During the rest of the summer, I would sit with the other person from WAD and plan activities and field trips. I gained lots of knowledge through the things I did right and even more knowledge from the things I didn’t do quite right. A negative leadership experience I had was in high school. All through high school, I did color guard. In my junior year, I was given the position of captain. This was exciting and allowed me to start working on my leadership skills. During this time, I lead my team through the fall semester and even lead them through their other captain not showing up for the final competition. After she left, I was the only captain. During the winter season, we had four captains, which was weird and suspicious. It led to conflict and too many chefs in the kitchen. When it came time to select leadership for the next fall season, I was sure to get the same position due to my previous experience. I was not elected captain. I was pulled into the office and was asked about bullying. I was confused since I hadn’t bullied anyone and that I wasn’t approached about this sooner before leadership was decided. This was suspicious. I didn’t get along with one of the members of the guard and we would bicker, but it was in good spirit, and we are still friends to this day. I later put things together and figured out it was all nepotism. The two people who were selected as captains had parents in high leadership on the band’s board. The worst part was that I was barred from saying anything during practice to help the guard since I wasn’t leadership. I was yelled at many times for trying to make the guard look better. It was very discouraging and frustrating to see all my knowledge being thrown away, ignored, and punished. It was also frustrating to see the leadership sitting on the sideline, not working on the show because they were “tired”. I was putting in ten times the work they were. This experience has stuck with me forever and still makes me angry to this day. But I take this anger and put it towards being a better leader every day.

Leadership to me is the act of guiding a group of individuals with different skill sets, ways of thinking, background, etc. to a common goal. I came to understand leadership and its definition through the many classes and experiences I’ve had at Virginia Tech. I was once in the Corps of Cadets and was shown different levels of leadership. During my classes, I learned many skills and ways to be a leader. I even got to use these skills with my peers during projects. Many people have influenced my definition of leadership. Most of them were professors at Virginia Tech. Dr. Rateau, Dr. Walz, and Dr. Council have taught me many of the things I know about leadership today. Each of their classes has taught me new skills and given me lots of experience.

Over my three years at Virginia Tech, I have taken many kinds of assessments. Many in leadership classes or seminars. The most popular being the Clifton Strengths Finder. I took this assessment three years ago, but I believe my results still hold somewhat true today. My top five strengths are 1. Input 2. Futuristic 3. Communication 4. Relator and 5. Positivity.

Input is very useful in my day-to-day life. It allows me to take in information and hold on to it. I know many facts and find interest in learning about new things that I might not have a particular use for; However, you never know when you might need a random fact about artificial banana flavoring being from Gros Michel’s and not the Cavendish. Not only do I collect knowledge, but I also collect salt and pepper shakers. While this has no real use in my professional life, it does make me a great host for themed dinner parties. Overall, I collect information and objects because they may one day have a use in my life.

Futuristic is also useful because it allows me to look forward and find ways to get to a positive future. I may be busy daydreaming of the perfect future but I’m also finding ways to get there. Having an outlook on the future can bring positivity to myself and others. Being futuristic creates hope. This is great for program planning and creating solutions to troubling problems.

I view communication to be vital in every aspect of my life. We all communicate every day of our lives and getting the correct point across is vital. I hate texting, I have no way of letting the other person in on how I’m feeling. This can create unnecessary conflict and prolong a conversation that could’ve been made shorter with a simple voice call. Communication will benefit me in getting things done faster in my career.

Being a relator can help further connect myself and others to each other. I enjoy meeting and talking to strangers. Creating relationships with the people around me to further better myself and the other people. I always find myself talking to strangers at parties and really getting down to get to know people. I enjoy learning from others. This can greatly benefit me in my career by making connections and having a higher social capital.

Having positivity can greatly benefit the people around me. I love bringing joy to people and lifting them up. Having this strength allows me to make things exciting and lively. I feel this strength can benefit me in my professional life by helping to create a safe space for my coworkers. This also benefits me in my personal life by creating lasting relationships.

Overall, I believe my results still hold true to this day; however, I know if I were to take the Clifton assessment again, I would likely get new results since it’s been three years since I’ve taken it. I enjoy these kinds of assessments, I believe they really help give words to yourself as a leader which is great for jobs.

My name is Lou Groundwater. I’m currently a senior a Virginia Tech. I’m studying agricultural science with a concentration in community leadership development, and two minors, one in horticulture and the other in leadership and social change. I grew up in Northern Virginia where I have a cat named Lucy and a dog named Parker.

Here at Tech, I’m in a few clubs. I’m in the women’s rugby club as a player and videographer, and the wildlife society where I’m learning more about natural resource work. I hope to join more clubs this semester.

After I graduate I plan to work at a girl’s summer camp in Upstate New York as the director for Wilderness Adventure and Discovery. In this role I teach girls about the outdoors, take them on hikes, go camping, and much more. After that, I hope to have a job lined up through the federal or state government.

As I have progressed through my three years at Virginia Tech, my view on what a leader is has completely changed. I used to view being a leader as being more dominant and controlling like you’re the only one who is to be in charge. But as I took many leadership classes ranging from team leadership to dynamics of leadership, I learned that leadership takes on many faces. Leadership to me is knowing when you have the knowledge to solve, when to step down and when to step up. Everyone should have the chance to express their knowledge and opinions without repercussions.

About me video

What?

The truth can be harsh, but at the end of the day, we would rather hear that than a sugar-coated version or a flat-out lie. When it comes to leading, we need to be truthful. As leaders, we need to gain trust in our people. No matter how hard the news, facts, or truth is, it needs to be said. This also applies to facing the truth as leaders, we don’t want to create a false reality for ourselves or the people in our organization or life. Winston Churchill said “Facts are better than dreams”, knowing the full truth will let your goals become more obtainable.

So What?

Why should we care about brutal facts? Brutal facts are the only gateway to finding a solution. If a problem is at hand, we want to understand the problem fully as leaders. If we miss a part of a problem we may run into other issues down the road. Jim Collins elaborates on this by stating “…Leadership is about vision. But leadership is equally about creating a climate where the truth is heard and the brutal facts confronted. There’s a huge difference between the opportunity to “have your say” and the opportunity to be heard.” (Collins, 2001). An aspect of leadership that, to me, is often overlooked is that as a leader you guide the vision. As a leader, you are guiding people to the dream, idea, vision, opportunity, really anything. Leaders have to be able to balance a lot. You must be able to balance a positive environment when things get rough, but also keep balance when things are good. As leaders, we must harness the skill of facing and telling the harsh truth while also flowing comradery and positivity.

Now What?

Truth or facts are impactful. They can truly change your team’s perspective. As I talked about in my blog last week, change is inevitable. 3×5 Leadership states “Leaders defining reality means seeking and surfacing the truth for the team. Improving team performance requires change. To prove the need for change, the team must face their honest reality. This can require addressing brutal facts that have been hidden or ignored. It can be just like any process to recovery – the first step is admitting you have a problem.” (3×5 Leadership, 2020) In change lies the truth, and truth lies in change. To move forward with ourselves or our lives, we need to face the facts. Whether this is as a leader or individual, it’s necessary. For me, I’m finally facing my truth, and I’m doing it head-on. For the first time, I’m finally taking a good look at my past and trying to find the truth in it. I’m trying to figure out the facts and the events in my life that lead me to where I am today but also to who I am today. This will be hard, but I feel I’m ready to face these things, good or bad. The truth will set you free, it carries all the answers you need to know.

References:

Bowen. (2021, June 4). Leaders seek and surface the truth. 3×5 Leadership. Retrieved November 10, 2021, from https://3x5leadership.com/2020/08/16/leaders-seek-and-surface-the-truth/.

Collins, J. (2008). Confront the brutal facts. Jim Collins – Concepts – Confront The Brutal Facts. Retrieved November 10, 2021, from https://www.jimcollins.com/concepts/confront-the-brutal-facts.html.

What?

Change is a key component of life. Change is inevitable. Instead of waiting for change, initiate the change you want. This change can be in your organization, leadership, education, life, and many more. Change is all around us, nothing is constant. As humans we like consistency, but we can’t always rely on that. As leaders, we may feel the urge to prevent change, after all why fix something that isn’t broken right? Karen McCullough, a former retailer and branding expert, states, “Change in an organization leads to many positive aspects – that lead to retaining a competitive edge and also remaining relevant in your business area. Change encourages innovation, develops skills, develops staff and leads to better business opportunities, and improves staff morale.” (McCullough, 2021) Change is good! Change is a breath of fresh air for your organization.

So What?

Apart from bringing a breath of fresh air to your organization, what are some other reasons to bring change to your organization? Situation Management Systems states three more reasons. 1. Promote the development of new skills, 2. Bolster innovation, and 3. Change allows people to rise. (Situation Management Systems, 2019) Similar to what Karen McCullough said but goes into more detail, especially with the number three. Change allows the people in your organization to develop new skills, ideas and makes staying in the organization more desirable. Putting your staff first and allowing change to happen can help your organization immensely. Some change is good, but consistency is good too. Keeping the things that work and removing the things that don’t, can allow your organization to get stronger with each push towards greatness.

Now What?

In my previous blog, I talked about the flywheel. The flywheel is hard to push at first but slowly over time with each push, it gets easier to push. The same logic can be applied to change. Change happens all the time. It can happen in your organization or personal life. No matter where the change is in your life, it can be approached in the same ways. Change is a slow process. It happens with time. For me, I’m going through some major changes in my life. I’m in my senior year of college, I’m looking for jobs, I’m finishing up my education, I’m going through challenges in my personal life too. All of these things are big changes. Change is good but can be very stressful. I’m finding myself under a lot of stress. I’m trying to balance a part-time job, doctors’ appointments, school, family, friends, and personal matters. This is hard. I’m doing my best to balance it all, but I know over time it will get easier. Since many of these things are new in my life right now, I’m still trying to find the perfect balance. Over time it will get easier, just like how over time pushing the flywheel gets easier too. Change is all about timing and balance. You don’t want to change too much at once and risk overwhelming yourself or your organization, but you also don’t want to change too little at once and make them blend into the background. Find your balance in change. But also remember to not change everything, rather also try bettering things. Sometimes things just need a boost, not a do-over.

References:

McCullough, K. (2021). Why change in the workplace is good! A guide for companies. Why Change in the Workplace is Good! A Guide For Companies – Karen McCullough. Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://www.karenmccullough.com/change-in-the-workplace-a-guide-for-companies/.

Why change is good for the Workplace. Situation Management Systems, Inc. (2019, July 22). Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://www.situationmanagementsystems.com/blog/index.php/influence-skills-2/why-change-is-good-for-the-workplace/.

What?

What is “the flywheel”? The flywheel is a metaphor for bringing companies from good to great. It shows that breakthroughs and transformations can’t be done in one push. It takes time, it takes momentum. Jim Collins describes it like so “Picture a huge flywheel… pushing with great effort, you get the flywheel to inch forward, moving almost imperceptibly at first. you keep pushing, and after two or three hours of persistent effort, you get the flywheel to complete one entire turn. You keep pushing, and the flywheel begins to move a bit faster and with continued great effort, you move it around a second rotation… three turns… four… five… the fly will build up speed… seven… eight… it builds momentum… then, at some point—breakthrough!” (Collins, 2001, p.164) That is a very cut-down version of what Collins is speaking on, but the point is still there… you need momentum to move forward.

So What?

Why should we care about momentum? Momentum is what drives innovation and creativity in companies and organizations. To move forward as a company, you need to have continuous flow and movement. If your organization experiences a rift, it can greatly interfere with productivity. Lance Peppler from Medium states that “There can be dozens of Flywheels that have an effect within a company, or group of companies, that not only accelerate themselves but also have a positive effect on other flywheels within the company or group.” (Peppler, 2019). Don’t think of your company as one thing, rather view it as a machine with multiple moving parts that keeps it going along.

Now What?

How can I take the flywheel and apply it to my life? As with most leadership concepts, many of them can be applied to your life. The flywheel can be applied in your life easier due to the nature of the concept. The flywheel takes time to move. There may be setbacks on goals, or some days it is just harder to move. Dana Drosdick from Peaceful Dumpling states “Throughout this whole process, it’s important to note that no single action can be seen as the cause for success, but rather the unwavering, unrelenting struggle toward continual progress.” (Drosdick, 2021) For me, I feel as though I’m in the perfect position to start my flywheel. Many things have been and will continue to change in my life as I go through my senior year and move on from education. I have many lessons to learn and many hurdles to jump over. I can take the flywheel effect and use it to keep myself encouraged through these momentous times in my life. Moving the flywheel right now is hard, I’m dealing with change. But over time the flywheel will get easier to turn, and that is what will keep me encouraged to keep moving forward. Reminding myself that setbacks shouldn’t discourage me from standing up again and continuing to push forward through my life that will have many ups and downs. The flywheel is hard to push at first so you can be strong for the momentum ahead.

References:

Collins, J. (2001). Good to great: Why some companies make the leap … and others don’t (1st ed.). New York, NY: HarperBusiness. 

Drosdick, D. (2021, March 22). The flywheel effect: What it is & how it can give you purpose. Peaceful Dumpling. Retrieved October 19, 2021, from https://www.peacefuldumpling.com/flywheel-effect.

Peppler, L. (2019, May 23). The amazing flywheel effect. Medium. Retrieved October 19, 2021, from https://medium.com/swlh/the-amazing-flywheel-effect-80a0a21a5ea7.

What?

Communities can be viewed as a strive for human connection. A connection that spans through interests, goals, views, values, and much more. Communities are made up of many different elements. Preserve Articles states a few… “Locality, community sentiment, likeness, permanency, neutrality, size, common interest, tradition, customs, and morals.” (Sunil, 2011) Every community is different. Each has its own set of elements that makes it operate or act differently from others.

So What?

Why does leadership matter in communities? Within communities, you’re likely going to have some form of leadership within it. Within communities, there may be multiple levels of leadership or there may only be one leader. But typically, as said by Dr. Eaton, “Community leadership means that one person does not do it all…Community leadership is about building relationships and working together. Being patient with one another and supporting one another process builds capacity and relationships.” (Eaton, 2018) By this, Dr. Eaton means that a community is founded on the similarity of values and principles within people. It’s also based on collaboration, learning together, and building stronger relationships over time. Leadership is what drives communities to continue forward. Moving forward involves collaboration in thinking and planning, this is what helps make new ideas. Mari Martiskainen states “Research findings show that community leadership can aid the development of grassroots innovations, which operate in niches and require nurturing. Community leadership benefits from being embedded into social networks, shared vision and decision making, but pre-existing skills and tacit knowledge also play a role.” (Martiskainen, 2016) While Martiskainen is talking about grassroot innovations, I believe this idea applies to all parts of community and leadership. To me, community is what brings people together. Communities act like teams in that not everyone thinks the same but share common goals and can easily work and collaborate.

Now What?

I’m going to take my knowledge of communities and put them forth in my adult life. One major community that sticks out to me is a homeowner’s association (HOA). HOAs are usually made up of volunteers of people within the community that they serve. I’m sure many of us have heard horror stories about different HOAs around the country. Some are great and keep the neighborhoods looking nice where others are tyrannical and make the neighborhoods unbearable to live in. As someone who grew up in a tolerable HOA, I still debate whether or not I would want to live in an area with one. The HOA I grew up on made quite petty citations on the homes in our neighborhood. One for example being the bricks on the back of our home that no one could see was blue whereas the siding was white. Once I graduate and move out of my parent’s home in a few years, my goal is to live in a rural area. I know it may take a few years to save up and buy my dream home, so I worry I may have to live in an area with an HOA. I see the benefits of living in a neighborhood with one; however, if I did live in a neighborhood with one, I would be sure to extensively research it and ensure the leadership is good.

References:

Eaton, S. (2018, January 8). 10 characteristics of community leaders. Learning, Teaching and Leadership. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://drsaraheaton.wordpress.com/2012/08/21/10-characteristics-of-community-leaders/.

Martiskainen, M. (2016, May 26). The role of Community Leadership in the development of grassroots innovations. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2210422416300417.

Sunil. (2011, April 30). What are the essential elements of community? PreserveArticles.com: Preserving Your Articles for Eternity. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.preservearticles.com/sociology/what-are-the-essential-elements-of-community/4558.