End of CSR 309

Today was the final day of CSR 309! As sad as I am to be done I am very grateful for the lessons I have learned. I have walked out of this class with a greater knowledge of how to succeed not only in college but throughout my lifetime. I understand what it means to be a successful leader. I also know how easy it is to be a poor leader.
At the beginning of the class I was super frusterated and had no appreciation for class. I thought Dr. Feinberg was a terrible professor and had no point to his lecture. Now that is the last day of class I am so thankful for the lessons I learned. The three actions I will take every day from now on are .....

Laugh
Love
Inspire

If I can make a small effect on those above me, equal with me, and those i am leading I will feel accomplished. I will do this through making those above me look the best they can. I will work hard and be a team player to those equal with me. Lastly, I will reward those bellow me and establishe clear and reasonable expectations.

Like Dr. Feinberg, I may not be the smartest, but I am confident that I can communicate and establish relationships better than may of my peers competiting for the same jobs and positions.

Thank you Dr. Feinberg! CSR 309 was the most valuable class I believe I will ever take at Purdue University!

Pain Lecture

Class Monday was one of the most influential lecture I think I will ever attend at Purdue. The topic of pain was shared through our anonomous statements. The most common pain statements were:

1. pain from having divorced parents
2. being abused
3. being overweight
4. addiction to drugs/ alcohol
5. feeling unworthy and useless

The most important lesson gained from these statements was the importance and influence parents have on their children. It was obvious that parents created the majority of the pain discussed. Even at the ages of 20 + we look so carefully at our relationship with our parents. As a parent it seems you must do 100 good things to counter act 1 bad thing. The effort and attention I will give to my children will be with love and lessons. I will protect them from abuse, broken relationships, and pain suppressors.
During lecture I was sitting next to a fellow classmate who's pain statement was discussed. It was specifically in reference to being abused as a child. Just discussing her pain statement created great emotion and pain once again. Uncontrolably she began to cry. Post lecture she asked if we could sometime discuss class. I said absolutely. During this talk i will sit and listen. I will not provide advice I will do my best just to be a support system I believe she has been lacking for many years.
Dr. Feinberg, is talking about our pain a coping mechanism or does it create more damage?
Overall, what was the point to the lecture? If I had to guess it would be to understand we all have pain and it is more intense than we portray in addition to how to be an excellent parent or oppositely, what not to do as a parent.

Easter Church Service - Religion and Leadership

As an out of state student I went home with a friends family and observed a church service for Easter weekend. I have never sat through a church service and specifically paid attention to the leader. The leader at the front of today's service was a priest. He stood in white gowns with two assistants that sat behind him. He was the only individual facing the church at all times. All the parishoners were facing the front. I found myself asking myself is this effective leadership.
He commanded great attention and was very powerful. I was attentive and listened. It is an interesting concept church. Is the priest the leader in the minds of parishoners or is god? Who are they really their to listen to? Is church spiritually driven (within oneself) or speech driven (by the priest).
It is interesting that I write this blog. Although I am religious and I am spirtually driven, I do not publicise or discuss my thoughts outloud. However I think it is something that should be addressed within an organization and leadership because it does have an effect on many peoples daily decisions.

Conducting an efficient meeting

Last class Dr. Feinberg shared how to conduct an effective meeting. As President of my sorority we have an executive committee meeting each week. I have always been go about starting promptly on time with an agenda. However, I kept this agenda to myself. From now on I will send this agenda out to the group prior to the meeting and I will state what issues I plan to talk about. This will give them women time to prepare and come with thoughts and questions.
The last thing I will implement is dismissing the group early if possible. We often tend to linger and create new issues. These do not have an agenda and pull us off track.

What have I learned in 309?

It is nearing the end of 309 with Dr. Feinberg and it seems impossible that I will know everything I need to know about leadership for the rest of my life. Now if Dr. Feinberg read this comment he might say .. duh! ... but at the beginning of the semester I thought there was no way a leadership class could be more than three weeks total.
A leadership journey is never ending. It is something we each embark on as a small child. How we treat our selves and others can measure part of our success. The way we grow and adapt to change indicates ones ability to learn.
Thus far I have collected a variety of resources through lecture and through observation and reading to create a leadership folder. I plan to continue adding to this folder after class. I will attempt to use this in my professional career. When I enter the work world I will be at the bottom and I will use the resources primarily to excel individually. I will challenge myself to achieve the task at had above what is expected. As I grow as a professional I will utilize the leadership lesson for my team or group I am managing.
The most valuable lesson i have learned thus far is being an excellent leader makes all the difference. Pick your team wisely, share expectations, be the best boss and your team will not fail you. Trying to conquer a task meant for many alone will result in nothing more than basic achievement.

Class without Feinberg

I liked class today without Dr. Feinberg. No because I don't like lecture because I do, but because we made a step in the right direction. Our group had great discussion with our leader, Sarah Pasini. We have a sound foundation for what she expects and I believe she has a better ideas of what us followers expect.
Sarah broke us into three sub groups with three sub leaders. As appointed a sub leader I have been working to keep in close contact and hold my subgroup accountable for our responsibilities.
This should have been done at the very beginning as opposed to near the end.
When is the class President going to spend time and organize the class? We really do not know him or his expectations.

Personal Leadership Expirience at Conference

This past weekend I attended a leadership conference titled Something of Value held by the dean of students and Panhellenic. Part of the conference included breaking everyone in into small discussion groups by position held within your sorority.
As President, I attended a conversation with the other fourteen presidents of large chapter sororities here on campus. What I experienced was motivating and eye opening. The level of conversation and opportunity was extremely high. I felt empowered by the group around me. We had tough discussions that were honest. During these discussions we made accomplishments and brainstormed new ideas otherwise ignored when brought up amongst other groups.
The lesson I learned this weekend is when the best and most motivated are together change can occur successfully. When Feinberg mentions leaders picked the wrong team I now understand what he means. If the best students had been selected to create one group they could blow away everyone else. Unfortunately each group is stuck with week links.
Is the saying true, 'you are only as strong as your weakest link'