Yesterday, I had the opportunity to participate in USG’s Leadership Training and Simulation, an engaging six hour session (lunch and plenty of coffee provided!) presented by the Center for Academic Success (CAS) and the Committee for Interprofessional & Interdisciplinary Education Strategies (CIPES). One of my favorite things about this training was getting to meet so many passionate and well-spoken students from various disciplines, who are just as enthusiastic about improving their leadership skills as I am.

Here are some highlights from the training course:

• We learned what it means to be an “authentic leader”, which is basically someone who serves a higher purpose while being true to him/herself. We then completed a self assessment to see where we fall within each of the four authentic leadership components: self-awareness, internalized moral perspective, balanced processing, and relational transparency. Somehow, I had the exact same score for all four of these components. I have a lot of work to do, but at least I’m consistent across the board!

• We completed an activity in which the course facilitator read aloud several statements (e.g., “I avoid conflict”, “I make decisions in which I can be sure of the outcome”) to which we responded by physically moving around the room to locations labeled 1 (always) through 5 (never). It was interesting to see how the distribution of people around the room changed with each statement and hear those at the extremes explain their position.

• In small groups, we participated in a leadership simulation. After deciding which organization my group belonged to and selecting each group member’s role within that organization, we were tasked with solving a series of problems. Having a group of people with different expertise made it easier to identify key issues that we wouldn’t have thought of individually. At the same time, it was tough trying to come up with an action plan and goals that satisfied every leader in the group.

And there was so much more. I walked away from this training feeling more empowered and equipped with the mindset and tools to lead. There are quite a few events I’m involved with organizing this semester, and the skills I learned yesterday will definitely be put to good use!

Leadership Simulation participants with Rachel Carstens (coordinator and moderator)