October 18th Meeting Reflection

I apologize for my constant lateness... I'm working on it!

1. Name of Cohort Meeting: Personal Identity

2. What are 3 things you learned at the meeting?
-The first thing I learned is where my strengths lie based on the StrengthsFinder standard. And when I read the descriptions, it was uncanny how well they seemed to fit me.
-I learned that although we all seem to have lots of leadership talents and qualities in common, there was very little overlap in our strengths. This just goes to show that we may seem to be similar in many respects, but it's our differences that make us stronger as a group.
-Unfortunately, I learned a few days ago that my mentor had to step down from his position. However, I met my new mentor and she is absolutely wonderful. She's an RA on the floor right above me in Founders Hall, and I can't wait to hang out with her more!

3. Think about the strengths you identified in StrengthsQuest. Do you think they fit you well? Did any of the strengths surprise you? Why is it important to know what you are good at and not so good at as a leader?
-My 5 strengths were positivity, developer, empathy, woo, and input. As I read these, I thought these were spot on for how I view myself. I pride myself on my positive attitude, and connecting with others. For me, there's more fun in the PROCESS than in the final product. I love being able to lead by bringing people together. None of them really surprised me, except for a couple of them saying I always have the right words, which is definitely not true. I have a terrible time trying to say what I'm thinking. But knowing your strengths helps you focus on what you're the best at and in what areas you may be the best leader. The same goes for knowing where you lack a certain strength, and learning to let go and allow someone else to take the reigns if you know that you aren't the best fit person for the job.

4. Talk about a time when you felt your personal differences and diversity weren't respected by a leader in a situation. How did that make you feel?
-I loved being a part of Student Council all through high school. It was a terrific organization, but also came with its fair share of faults. Unfortunately, voting in chairs and representatives just turned into a popularity contest, so there were a number of times where the person in charge was not the person best fit for the job. My junior year, the president of our class was... a bit manipulative (Hannah, I'm sorry, but it's true). She always worked her side until she got her way, and that often meant putting others' opinions as afterthoughts. Sometimes my opinion was one that she would just step over. Sometimes she tried to take me along for the ride, and put others on the back back-burner, which definitely was not okay with me. Our main responsibility was planning Prom that year, and it ended up turning out absolutely fantastic, but I think she still feels like it was all thanks to her. It was really thanks to everyone in the group doing what they could towards different aspects of the planning. She had a really hard time trying to loosen her iron grip for us.

5.

The RA posters are up! I wanna be an RA SO FREAKING BAD.

I believe that my 5 strengths would help me tremendously in being the best RA I can be! :)

Watch Your Toes!

I found this for Alyssa. I know it's technically for wheelchair basketball but still. :)

Retreat Reflection

Camp Palmer! It was such a blast. Even if we did eat human steak.

1. What are 3 things you learned at the meeting?
-Well if I could sum up everything from the campfire confessionals, that would be one. I learned so much personal stuff about everybody, and it gave me some insight into how everyone is who they are, and it was really really cool. That was one of my favorite parts.
-Another thing I learned is that we work really well together, and trust is already running through our little group. I was in student council for all 4 years of high school, and even at the end of senior year we didn't trust each other as much as us in FLI do.
-Finally, I learned that heights are scary, but taking your time and getting encouragement from others makes a world of difference. Leaving your comfort zone is hard, but it's a lot easier with the help of friends.

2. What was your favorite part about the retreat? Did you learn anything that surprised you? Did you learn anything about yourself of others in the group that will help you for the rest of the semester?
-I learned a lot of things, both about myself and the others in the group. Because of this, my favorite part was probably the campfire confessionals. I thought a lot about myself and learned some new, personal stuff about everyone that was very defining of characters. But also loved watching everyone find their strengths and their own niches with different activities. I think this will help us a lot in the future, knowing that everyone will have their own important part in everything we do.

3. What do you consider to be your biggest strength? What do you consider to be your biggest area of improvement?
-I like to think that my biggest strength is keeping up everyone's spirits. I love to make people happy, so encouraging people and making jokes when tensions may be high or when someone is feeling down are what I feel is my niche. I believe that speaking my opinion is a weakness of mine though, especially if I disagree with something, because I hate feeling like a bother or that I'm holding someone back.

Camp Palmer WHOO!
Sometimes it takes a weekend of separation from the business of daily life to build relationships and find your common goals. Teamwork!

September 27th Cohort Meeting Reflection

I'm about a half a week late on this, sorry guys... College lyfe is pretty cray-cray.

1. Name of Cohort Meeting: Why Does Leadership Matter? Relational and Servant Leadership

2. What are 3 things you learned at the meeting?

-I learned that it's really tough to differentiate the different parts of leadership, because we think of them together as one cohesive unit, but it's really cool to see how all the different elements come together to create something that we are so familiar with.

-I learned that my mentor for this year is going to be Wade Rhoades, and that he's super involved in a wide variety of things, some of which I might look into myself!

-I also learned that processes are everywhere and that they're the most important thing ever in everything. I know that's not really true, but I do know that it is a key element to a lot of things, especially in leadership.

3. Which trait of servant leadership connect most with you? Think of a prominent servant leader in the world or in your community, and discuss which of the traits they exemplify. How do you feel after connecting with your student mentor?

-The trait that I connect to most is empathy. I try really hard to put myself in other's positions, and I try to think of others before myself. I understand that everyone has feelings and problems sometimes, and I make sure to look at those when working together. A prominent servant leader that I know of is Martin Luther King Jr., who immersed himself in the fight for civil rights, rather than just advocating it. Finally, I'm super excited to get to know Wade. He's big into the sports scene, so I might end up getting to see some games I wouldn't go to on my own. Hooray for trying new things!

4. What are you looking forward to most about the retreat? What do you hope to learn?

-What I was most looking forward to was getting to know everybody (cliché, I know), because let's be honest, we were just an awkward group of kids before the retreat. I loved sharing so much about me, and learning so much about everyone else, and I can't wait to come to this next cohort meeting and feeling like we really are friends now.

I thought this was another cool way to look at it.

PROCESSES.

September 13th Meeting Reflection

Here's my reflection for our second FLI meeting. Things are really starting to roll!

1. Name of Cohort Meeting: What is leadership? What is a leader?

2. What are 3 things that you learned at the meeting?
-First off, I learned that the FLI retreat is a LOT closer than I remembered. It's in all of two weeks! I ain't ready for this! A second thing I learned is how different all of our interpretations of leadership are. I know there are many traits and aspects and stuff that we agree on when it comes to leadership, but there are also a number of things that we see in a leader that others don't. But of course that's okay. Everybody has their own opinions and every sees the world differently! A third thing I learned is how much the idea of leadership has evolved over time. All the theories and ideas... And all of them are right in their own ways. It's quite the puzzle.

3. Has your definition of leadership changed after the meeting? Talk about a time when a leader in your life challenged the traditional definition of a leader.
-My definition of leadership has changed a little, mostly because there doesn't seem to be one specific definition. It all depends on the person and the situation. This is what has made me look at leadership differently.
This past year, while I was a senior in high school, I was the Community Service committee chair for our student council. There was a freshman in my committee named Courtney, and she was a very quite girl, but was voted into student council nonetheless. She was not very charismatic, nor did she ever seem to take control of a situation and lead it. However, there is no way my committee could have functioned without her. She came to all our events, and made it to every meeting. She showed up to stuff even when nobody else did. Even though she wasn't "in charge" of the situation, she always stepped up and made a huge difference.

4. What do you think it means for someone to serve and lead at the same time?
-I believe people can lead by example. Even if you don't have a title, or aren't the designated "leader" of a group or activity, doesn't mean you can't give it your all for it. Be the one that people look up to, or the one people can count on to get something done. This is just as great as being the face of the organization.

This is the program from our Hall Council Officer Training! We're learning how to make a difference, even if we're not some fancy title like President or Treasurer!

Campus Fest Reflection

My first Campus Fest was terrific! There are so many cool groups out there! Unfortunately, there aren't enough hours in the day to do everything I would like to, but hopefully I have a great time in the stuff I am involved in.

1. What are 3 things you learned at Campus Fest?
-First off, I learned that there seriously is something for everyone. If you say differently, then you didn't look hard enough. Another thing I learned was that the leaders of these groups really do want you to join. I know that sounds weird, but what I mean is, the groups aren't just a small group of friends that made the club to get funds for their interests or to have something that looks good on a resume. They made it because it interests them and want other people with the same interests to come and join them. A third thing I learned is... there are a lot of groups that seem the same to me. I'm sorry, but if I don't want to join the first Freedom Fighters group, I don't want to join the next four... They probably have some differences. It probably makes them rival groups.

2. How long were you able to be at Campus Fest? Did you enjoy it? What was the most interesting/surprising organization that you saw there? Did you see any there that you may want to join?
-I was at Campus Fest for about an hour after one of my morning classes. I started off over by Eppler and weaved my way through so I ended up by Founders. It was a lot of fun seeing everything that campus has to offer outside of classes. And the LARPers are always fun to watch. The most interesting organization I saw was probably the WBGU TV station. I thought looked super cool, and it looked like everyone that was there had a great time doing it! So that was one group that I considered maybe becoming a part of. Another one that looked good to me was the Chemistry Club (because chemistry is my minor), and I definitely want to be a part of Spanish Club (since it's my major).

This was Campus Fest when I left for my first class at 9:02 am.

This was in between my first and second class at 10:54 am. It technically hadn't even started yet!

It was really packed right up until the end! This was 2:56 pm.

First Post! August 30th Meeting Reflection

Aw jeez, isn't it my luck that I'm already late with my first assignment in the Falcon Leadership Institute? Well either way, I'm really excited to part of this group, and I hope to get to know everyone here really fast!

1. Name of Cohort Meeting:
Introduction, Team Building, and Schedule

2. What are 3 things you learned at the meeting? Briefly reflect on each.
One thing I learned is that there really aren't that many of us in the group! But I don't think that's a bad thing. It's more intimate this way, and we can get to know each other better than if there were dozens of us.
Another I learned is that we have a retreat later this fall! It's overnight and everything! This is some serious business!
And one last thing I learned was that Alyssa's birthday is this week! Happy Birthday Alyssa! :)

3. Please introduce yourself.
My name is Nick, and I'm pretty pumped for this year! I'm a Spanish education major with a minor in chemistry (yes, I know it's a weird combo), and I live in Founder's Hall as part of the Honors Program and Honors Living Community. Besides FLI I'm involved in University Band and Hall Council. Once Campusfest rolls around, I'll probably end up jumping into some other things as well, such as Spanish Club, one of the education organizations, and maybe even try out for the Quidditch team! I'm super upbeat, and really easy to talk to, and I'm always excited to make new friends, so that's what I'm looking forward to the most. What I'm most afraid of, though, is joining too many things and spreading myself too thin, and letting myself down and letting down those that have expectations of me. So being able to juggle my extra curriculars along with my classes and still retain as high a GPA as possible is my goal for first semester!

4. What is your definition of leadership?
I believe leadership is the ability to make a change or a difference, whether it's something simple like making someone's day better, or something big, like being in charge of a group to lead a campus-wide event. There are many levels of leadership, and not all of them have titles!

5. Include a picture related the cohort meeting.

Some of my roommates and I are running in the hall council election at Founder's. I'm only shooting to be a Resident Representative (or Senator. I've heard it called both.), but still looking forward to getting involved! We want to fix the patio and add more bike racks!