Part I of A Leader's Legacy, "Significance"

     As I went through reading this portion of the how-to-leader guide by Kouzes and Posner, I tried to jot down all of the points that really stood out to me. Of course, one of the main points would be (as beautifully expressed in the title) "legacy".

     While being a leader on campus or within my community, I had never consciously considered legacy before. It's not as if I didn't aim towards making a difference in whatever way that I could, but I had never had a name for what I was doing. I've taken various leadership courses in the past and of course they mention that leading is a sacrifice, and that (to condense some of the points of this section) a leader is only as good at the team they are leading, however, thinking that a leader should consider their legacy is novel to me. 

     I have been a member of, and then leader for, the Boy Scouts of America (the co-ed portion called Venture Crew in particular) for a number of years now, and two summers ago I was lucky enough to be on the staff for the National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT) course. The idea that the best leader is one who teaches played a major role in the course. There were particular exercises where the presenter of a particular session would take the teams (or patrols) outside and use the Explain, Demonstrate, Guide and Enable (EDGE) method of teaching to introduce new skills to a scout. These exercises allowed me to realize that such concepts as expressed in A Leader's Legacy: "The purpose of leaders is to mobilize others to serve a purpose" (Kouzes & Posner 17), were really crucial to being a good leader. Not only did I get more enthusiastic scouts when I was enthusiastic about the material I was teaching, but being able to explain a new task to them, show it, and then enable them to perform on their own made it infinitely easier for them to remember the skill later. 

But I digress.

     Until the thought of legacy was brought up in this book, I had not consciously thought of what my legacy will be when I leave BSU or when I move on from being a collegiate member of my Greek organization. What will I be leaving behind? How will others think of me when I'm gone? What can I do now that could improve my organization or my "legacy" on campus as my time here comes to a close? All of these thoughts have been swarming around in my mind since reading Part I: Significance. And hopefully I will find an answer (or at least where to start looking for one) to at least one of these questions by the time GLAD is done. 

• BIG thought of the section: I want to do something that "matters"

• Favorite Quote: "[It's not] how big a campfire you built but how well you kept others warm, how well you illuminated the night to make them feel safe, and how beautiful you left the campsite for those who would come after you to build the next fire" (Kouzes & Posner 19).