“Leadership is practiced not so much in words but as in attitude and in actions.”
– Harold S. Geneen
Over the entire semester of learning about Leaders/Leadership in Atlanta, what have these concepts taught me as far as being a leader? In retrospection to the beginning of the school year, Agnes Scott College helped us students establish a deeper understanding of a true leader and its traits/role. Using the StrengthFinders, I can recall my top five characteristic traits that I carry: Achiever, Learner, Input, Restorative, and Responsibility. From the beginning, I had already grasp an understanding about my specific traits because it defines me so well. With that being said, how are my leadership characteristics demonstrated in the leaders and leadership roles we have discussed throughout this semester?
Early in the semester, we, as a class, read and analyzed William Cronon’s essay, “Only Connect”: The Goals of a Liberal Education. Cronon explains ten concepts that possibly could help someone grasp a clearer understanding of leadership and what it takes to become a leader.
Reflecting on my Cronon writing assignment I wrote for this LDR seminar, I mentioned that the characteristic, “Achiever”, was not specified in the essay, but attached to his ideas in some ways. The achievement was demonstrated in his essay because Cronon acknowledged the fact that liberally educated people achieve difficult tasks that are given. Reading and analyzing Cronon’s essay taught me to understand that others may view the role of a leader differently than I do.
L. Doctorow’s novel, The March, and John Lewis’s graphic memoir, March Book One, taught me to understand that with leadership comes pressure and agony. Both books illustrate main characters that struggled, but yet portrayed leadership traits, such as achieving, learning, inputting, restoring, and being responsible, that led them to victory. I also learned that taking a stand to do the right thing will only lead to success which will build up someone to become a leader every time.
Lastly we, as a class, further learned about the Confederacy and how it may relate to the Georgia flag and the Decatur obelisk. I was in Team 3 and we chose to further analyze the Georgia state flag and its history. I was able to design a brand new flag that would not look anything like the Confederate flag nor its colors– the typical red, white, and blue with the stars. Have you ever look at the Georgia flag and the Confederate flag side by side? See a resemblance? The crazy thing is that I was born and raised here in Georgia and I did not know anything about my own state and its history. One thing I did learn while reading Karen Cox’s book, Dixie’s Daughters: The United Daughters of the Confederacy and the Preservation of Confederate Culture, was that it is very important for someone like me who lives in the South, yet knows nothing about it, to know its history. After reading the first chapter and writing a short summary/analysis, I understand that a leader promotes the “Learner and Restorative” characteristic because they make it a point to know and keep lots of information and do further research if they are not sure about their ideas.
Now that I have a clear understanding of what leadership is all about, I can apply it to future everyday activities and circumstances that go on in the world. I have my LDR-101 professor to thank, for furthering my education about leaders in Atlanta and I hope to become one in the future.
