Where there is not community, trust, respect, ethical behavior are difficult for the young to learn and for the old to maintain.-Robert Greenleaf, Servant As Leader
Here are excerpts from my reflection on my life and leadership context:
In terms of my life context, many factors from academics to friends have played and continue to play a role in who I am. I would consider the things that make me happy and less stressed as assets, while liabilities are things that add stress and consume time.
I have a support network of friends and family that cares for me and challenges me to take advantage of this internship.
I sometimes take on too much outside of the classroom. I get spread too thin, not committing my full attention to my activities. I need to find a balance between my professional, social and academic lives.
At Catholic Charities' Tuesday Night Supper, I see a variety of leadership styles working symbiotically to achieve a common goal or a common vision—to feed the hungry. In the dining room, the more outgoing extroverts interact with clients to make them feel welcome. In the kitchen, the leader delegates tasks to various people.
Since I have been there for over a semester, I have noticed myself stepping in and guiding others. Overall, all the volunteers and supervisors exhibit servant leadership. It is about asking, “What can I do for the clients?”
I have learned from my supervisor's example. Lisa’s leadership style of servant leadership enables others to act. This is the type of leadership I hope to display in my career.
Read the whole reflection below.
Hide not your talents, they for use were made.
What’s a sundial in the shade?-Benjamin Franklin
Above is a word cloud that utilizes the attached Reflection B. The larger the word, the more times it was used in my reflection. You can notice that Catholic Charities, community development, and volunteer department are large, but if you look closer, you'll notice words like assets, commitment, collaboration, analysis. I think the smaller words feed into the larger ones, so to say that the smaller words like change, leadership and talents make up Catholic Charities and community development.
In addition, this reflection introduced me to the practice of Asset-Based Community Development, which aims to cultivate individual talents in order to benefit a community. I researched the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago and mapped the social services that provide resources to those experiencing homelessness. Attached is the map that I made, plus a powerpoint presentation that points out a few of the services available. The attachment called Action Plan explains how Uptown can utilize its assets for community development.
Give, but give until it hurts.-Mother Teresa
Three ways to be civically engaged:
1. Research--Know why you make the decisions you do and be able to back them up.
2. Take political action--This includes anything from voting to petitioning to contacting a representative.
3. Share the passion--Talk to others about your work and inspire them to join you because an association is always stronger than one person.
Civic engagement is not a private matter. The internalized passion is meant to be externalized in action. Civic engagement requires more than just simply volunteering. Civic engagement requires passion, intellect and action in order to make a progressive change in the community.
Read more about how my internship has taught me to be civically engaged and socially responsible in the attached reflection.
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