I think this quote is very profound and best describes the way I view my leadership. I am extremely ambitious; I feel like I want to take on the world, to seek out every injustice and correct it. However, I know that I must do small things that will eventually add up to a greater action. Small everyday actions, such as saying hi to people I met through various clubs, holding the door for someone a few steps behind me, supporting friends in their various cultural clubs, and standing up for someone being bullied all are small but important actions I take be a leader on campus or the community in general.
Social justice is a term used so regularly by religious groups and politicians that it sometimes looses its meaning. It may get stretched and skewed so as to spread their beliefs and further their agendas. Meanwhile nameless humanitarians live out the term through their actions. I was taught the meaning of social justice since the beginning of middle school through my various religion classes. Social justice to me means the equal treatment of ALL people in society. It means solidarity with others and fighting for basic human rights within a society. My class last semester, Service and Social Justice, showed how service is pertinent to taking action towards social justice. Even if it is focusing on an immediate need, it leads people to question why the need is there and what can be done to combat that in the community. Here is a clip of one musician that comes to mind when I think of social justice.
I really liked the servant leadership workshop put on by Dr. Green of the Center for Experiential Learning. I thought the exercises he had us do were enlightening; it showed us that a leader has developed qualities and does not have to be a famous figure. The activity where we had to answer questions about ourselves really surprised me. I had seven out of ten characteristics of a servant leader! When we turned the page and read the description by Robert Greenleaf, the person who first coined the term servant leader, the first two sentences resonated with me. "Servant-leadership begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. The conscience choice brings one to aspire to lead." This is how I feel on a daily basis, and how many others would describe my personality, putting others before myself.
I believe I have traits of a servant leader. I have good listening skills; I always make sure I listen and take into account everyone's opinions. I believe I strive to help people when they need it and make sure they are alright. For example, just the other night I saw a friend doing homework in the laundry room and she was crying. I stopped in; even though she said she didn't want to talk I sat there with her and eventually she told me what was wrong. I believe this also showed empathy in a way because I told her of a similar circumstance that happened to me. I believe I have awareness; I can tell when people are feeling judging on their actions. Even though I feel I have many important traits of a servant leader, there are many that I still wish to develop.
A few traits I would like to develop are conceptualization, persuasion, and foresight. I would like to be able to find a balance of being a dreamer and being realistic about goals; I feel like I either shoot too high or low. I would also like to develop an ability to persuade people rather than using authority to make them do something. A third trait I would like to develop is my foresight of major events and the possible consequences. By knowing the consequences, both negative and positive, I could then make a decision if the positive would be worth the risk of the negative consequences.
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