High heels or flats when it comes to footwear? It seems like a simple question at first, but what would your argument be for either option? Furthermore, how would you present this perspective to an audience and successfully convince your listeners that they should agree with you? Those questions were some of the thoughts that crossed my mind last Tuesday during an event with the Athletic Director’s Leadership Institute (ADLI).
The event was organized for the sophomore class of the ADLI with the intention of putting the members in uncomfortable positions that many leaders come across. Now, most leaders may not ever have to discuss their footwear preferences with a crowd of people, but they may be called upon to confidently answer a question posed to them out of the blue. Furthermore, this question may be one that they have not considered before or developed a concrete opinion on. However, in order to maintain an image of confidence a leader needs to possess the skills necessary to discuss such a question with composure and decisiveness. The purpose of the ADLI event, therefore, was not to determine our perspective on shoe options, but to introduce us to uncomfortable situations in which we must react with composure.
The event began last Tuesday night at 7:00, which of course cut into the President’s course for the Epsilon PLA class. As a result, Christian (who is also a member of ADLI) and I arrived a half hour late without a clue as to what we were about to participate in. Before we even knew what was happening, we had been put in front of a room of our peers and asked to convince our audience whether heels or flats were more important. I obviously had the upper hand, because I have had experience wearing not only flats but heels as well, while Christian was not as familiar with high heeled shoes (or at least I hope that’s the case). I therefore assumed that the task set before me wouldn’t be that difficult because I have never had great difficulty speaking in front off my peers. I was surprised then, when I opened my mouth to speak and realized I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to say. I had to create the context for my presentation, develop my opinion, organize how I presented it, and express it eloquently without missing a beat.
While I managed to develop a solid argument, I realized afterward that the organization of my discussion was lacking. For instance, I presented my opinion that flats are better solely (excuse the pun) for the consideration of comfort, before I even mentioned the context in which I defined my opinion. This context, which consisted of which type of shoe I believed would be important in a setting involving presenting to others, was critical to my opinion of why comfort mattered, yet I failed to mention it until I had already stated my opinion. Therefore, the experience taught me that I need to focus on organizing my thoughts before I open my mouth to speak before an audience. Furthermore, I gained an appreciation for practicing such leadership skills as addressing unforeseen questions and quickly developing an opinion. I hope that we find a way to include such leadership activities in future PLA classes because I feel that I gained much from being put outside of my comfort zone by the ADLI last Tuesday.

Leadership is a valuable skill, but knowing when not to lead is a critical skill as well.  For example, the St. Lawrence String Quartet performed for the Athletic Director’s Leadership Institute and the Students Engaging Students organizations this fall and shared some insights on leaderless teams.  This was a very interesting experience for me because it brought to light the intricacies of working within a group that contains multiple leaders/no leaders.  As I learned, the string quartet is the perfect example of a leaderless team because it requires each performer to be tuned in to his peers, to know when to take the spotlight, and to be aware of when to take the backseat.  When I think of a team, I usually assume that a leader is required to provide a semblance of order.  For instance, sports teams have captains and corporations have CEOs.  However, the St. Lawrence String Quartet proved that a group of four very successful and very talented artists could work together as one without requiring an individual to act as the leader.

I have performed in musical groups before, so I am aware of the skill it requires to be able to coordinate with other musicians.  However, a conductor always led me so seeing the string quartet perform gave me a new outlook on being able to reach success without an overall leader making the decisions.  I think the concept of leaderless teams is very applicable to situations that involve multiple leaders coming together to evaluate situations and make critical decisions.  One example that comes to mind consists of the meetings between political leaders of countries.  These leaders are all powerful and competent, yet they need each other in order to reach a compromise that benefits all of their constituents.  Therefore, they must find a way to create policy without stepping on each other’s toes or creating a power struggle.  In this way, the concept of leaderless teams seems to go beyond simple teamwork and define a different area of cooperation among multiple talented individuals.

While the concept of leaderless teams was the priority of the night, the quartet members also took the time to discuss other concepts that are crucial to success.  For instance, the group discussed the importance of engaging in activities you are passionate about.  One of the members stated that he performed for the young musician he once was; he played for the little boy who picked up an instrument and fell in love with playing it.  The other members went on to emphasize this sentiment and express the opinion that in order to be successful you must be willing to dedicate yourself, which in turn requires passion.  Overall, my experience with the St. Lawrence String Quartet gave me a great new perspective of being successful by pursuing my passions and learning to lead within leaderless groups!

I think it is fair to assume that most of us in the PLA have never been in a situation where leadership can mean the difference between life and death.  Personally, I can’t even imagine being in such a situation.  However, I recently attended an event that put such leadership scenarios into perspective for me.  The SHC Distinguished Faculty Program event “Beautiful Souls’ and Ethical Leadership” consisted of a presentation given by Eyal Press, the author of “Beautiful Souls,” and a discussion afterward with Professor Jonathan Marks, an associate professor of Bioethics, Humanities, and Law here at Penn State.  Both aspects of the evening provided fascinating insights into areas of leadership I had never considered before.

I felt slightly out of place at Press’ talk, considering I was a sophomore who had not read his book and I was surrounded by freshman who had been required to read it, but I managed to still benefit from Press’ many words of wisdom.  Press began his presentation with a photo of a Nazi gathering in which one man refused to salute, and went on to describe who the man was.  The man (supposedly) was a member of the Nazi party, but was critical of its growing influence because he loved a Jewish woman.  When I looked at the picture, the man’s act of defiance seemed slightly foolish and dangerous, yet extraordinary.  It inspired me that this man was willing to risk his safety in such an insolent way for someone he loved.  Back then, the act might not have seemed like an effective or courageous method of sending a message, but looking back at it today, we recognize it for the leadership and boldness required it took to stand in such a large crowd and boycott such a powerful force.  This example really impacted me because it exemplified how such seemingly small actions can have much larger implications and set a standard for others to follow in trying times.

Another example Press discussed consisted of a Swiss police officer named Paul Gruninger who let Jewish people into Switzerland in 1938 despite orders to refuse them entrance.  Those shunned Jewish refugees might have died if not for the help of a stranger.  It is easy for us to say we would do the same thing in Gruninger’s place, yet can we know that for sure?  Gruninger risked himself and his family for people whom he owed nothing, and faced alienation for his crimes.  Press admitted himself that he did not know if he would be able to make the same dangerous decision as Gruninger, and I think that was a wise assessment.  How can we possibly know how we would act in times of extreme social pressure and ethical dilemma?  That question is why I think it is so critical to be involved in programs such as the PLA.  While I think it’s safe to say all of us in the PLA are good human beings with good intentions, even the best of us can sometimes fall prey to social pressures.  Taking a course such as the PLA helps us focus and hone our leadership abilities so that we can recognize when we are feeling unethical or immoral social pressures and how we can counteract them.

While the presentation by Eyal Press forced me to ask myself how I would react as a leader in extraordinary times, the discussion afterward with Professor Marks forced me to ask myself how I would currently react to less extreme situations that still have important implications for the future.  For instance, we discussed how we approach small tasks such as shopping from a leadership and ethical standpoint.  Professor Marks asked if we made sure to buy only goods that are produced using safe and ethical labor conditions.  To be honest, I couldn’t say that I made a conscious effort to do so, and I was disappointed by my answer.  While I may only be one of many, I can still act as that man in the Nazi crowd did and choose to boycott unethical actions (although this type of boycott would obviously be much less perilous).  Among many other topics we discussed, this element of the talk stayed with me because it once again reminded me of the small leadership actions I could take to fight for ethical treatment of others.  Overall, the experience left me with an overwhelming sense of awe at the ability of human beings to act as courageous leaders in times when the risks are so big and a sense of responsibility to do my little part in making sure I stand for ethics and morality.

This past summer, I wanted to do something different; I wanted to try something new.  Therefore, I decided to play with a soccer team based out of Manhattan.  As a small-town girl (my public high school graduated classes of 100 students yearly), I have always perceived New York City as an overwhelming and intimidating center of urban insanity.  Even though I grew up only 90 minutes north of the Big Apple, I rarely ventured there more than once a year.  Each of these ventures was accompanied by a sense of estrangement; I felt like an outsider in NYC and was fully aware that I had left my comfort zone behind.  However, I believe that I overcame that sense of estrangement this summer and finally became a qualified “New Yorker.”

I think that my summer adventures in NYC are relevant to the goals of the PLA because a leader is commonly in a situation where he or she must adjust to and overcome uncomfortable situations and environments.  For example, our government diplomats must be able to adjust to living in foreign countries.  While that is obviously on quite a different scale from my experience of adjusting to the uncomfortable environment of NYC this summer, I still believe that my travels to the city were extremely beneficial to me.  I was forced to rely solely on myself, improve my navigational skills (which are absolutely horrendous), become familiar with the mass transit system, and learn to function in an environment that I found hectic and aggressive.  In light of the skills I acquired from this experience, I think that I gained an education in “real life” from the series of events that made up my NYC travels.

One of the most memorable trips I took to the city this summer consisted of staying a night at my teammates’ apartment and then exploring with them the next day.  The three teammates I stayed with were all from Japan (one of them, who we called Sugar, barely spoke any English), and I found my visit with them to be very insightful.  For dinner, they made me a delicious Japanese pancake that consisted of a simple dough, cabbage, and bacon served with a special Japanese sauce.  The next day, we made our way to Grand Central Station for a bite to eat and then wandered over to the New York Public Library.  Simply walking around with three girls who came from a totally different background made the day in NYC extremely interesting.  I had the opportunity to examine our American culture from the eyes of people who grew up in a completely different environment, and gained the chance to compare our lifestyle to the lifestyle of the Japanese.  I also came to realize how beneficial it is to throw yourself into a utterly new and different place because I saw how mature, self-assured, and self-reliant my teammates were after adjusting to living in a new country.

Not only did I greatly enjoy the company of my teammates, but I also really enjoyed visiting the New York Public library.  I had sat on the stone steps of the library before, but never entered the great stone building.  The library blew me away; there were books written about book reviews of other books.  For instance, one entire wall (and this was a big wall) was taken up by books dedicated solely to interpreting the bible.  Libraries always impress me with the amount of knowledge they carry, but the New York library was a whole other story (punny?).  I could have sat there for hours simply looking at the titles of different books.  Unfortunately, we had to get to practice though so my literary exploration was cut short.

http://observer.com/2011/12/the-future-of-the-new-york-public-library-will-it-be-improved-or-gutted/new-york-public-library-new-york-city-ny034/

While my travels in New York City this summer led to some not so good experiences (such as getting lost and having panic attacks as I tried to conquer the monster that is NYC traffic), they also gave me a new perspective and a new set of skills.  I plan on dedicating my future summers to similar pursuits that thrust me into new environments and situations.  Hopefully I gain as much from these experiences as I did from exploring New York City, and I’m sure they will each prove to increase my leadership capabilities.  I’m looking forward to the PLA events that push me out of my comfort zone this year and using my new skills to adjust to them.