Rachel Gerton

2/14/18
Leadership Reflection Assignment:

Leadership has been manifested in my life in various and intricate ways – through family,

teachers and educators, friends and mentors, and coworkers. One of of the most important things

to consider when reflecting on leadership is the “Essential Personal Resources” outlined in The

Successful Internship. By considering the life experiences, knowledge, hopes, and expectations

of the leaders around you, it is easier to understand their personal leadership style. I think this is

also applicable and beneficial for leaders to understand and connect with constituents. In order to

Enable Others to Act, and benefit the community, it is important to understand the personal

resources that all constituents bring together. Being able to identify with people’s hopes,

expectations, and knowledge will facilitate the building of meaningful relationships and effective

leadership. As a constituent, I also respond better and follow leaders who incorporate support

and love into their leadership. The Successful Internship defined many ways of providing

support, including nontraditional ideas of support like “challenge” and “diversion”. In this way, I

think that by diversifying our ideas of support and leadership, we are better able to collaborate

and learn.

Many of the values and styles of leadership discussed in the readings and The Successful

Internship are characteristics that I try to embody. Most importantly, in my opinion, is love.

Before coming to Loyola, I do not think I would have listed this as an important quality in a

leader. Instead, I think that I was focused on resource and capabilities – ability to speak in front

of a group, communicate effectively, be confident – which are all important, but do not involve

those being led. My discussions, relationships, and experiences in the last four years at Loyola

have demonstrated that leadership should be focused on the relationships with constituents and
those being led. Although Caldwell and Dixon reveal that some people may be uncomfortable

with leading through “love”, I appreciate how they provide alternatives like “care” and

“concern”. The idea of providing support, attentiveness and encouragement is foreign to our

culture of profit and coldness but it seems so logical to create a healthy, productive society and

be a good leader. I think this ideal of love is also reinforced in the Encourage the Heart section

of the Five Practices of Leadership, which emphasizes authenticity and intentional

compassionate acts among leaders in order to support and engage constituents.

Although I think it is most challenging for me personally, I also think the idea of

Enabling Others to Act is one of the most important values in leadership. Leadership is not

limited to only one person or group, and communities benefit from the collaboration of ideas,

skills, and experiences of all those involved. In order to utilize the knowledge and skills of all

constituents, a leader must encourage the proactive participation of all those in the community or

group. I think this is challenging for me in leadership positions because there is a sense of

responsibility and individuality I identify with in leadership, and therefore it is harder to delegate

and facilitate the incorporation of other’s ideas and knowledge. Being able to empower others

requires a leader to “not hoard the power they have but to give it away” (pg 18). This

empowerment also requires that the relationship between leaders and constituents is based on

trust and mutual understanding. This is not only significant in empowering individuals, but

creating and developing spaces for new leaders to emerge and benefit others.

At Misericordia, I’ve seen many different leadership styles exhibited because of the

variety of positions and people there. In the Fitness & Aquatics center, I have seen many

challenges in terms of leadership because of people being hired and fired, and disparities in

expectations between parties. However, I have also seen incredible demonstrations of many of
the leadership ideals outlined in the readings. This is reflected in my Leadership Profile

Interview of MaryAnn, who expressed (and continuously came back to) the trust she places in

the staff in order to both encourage them to hone their own leadership skills and empower others

but also take responsibility for their own actions.

I think that the staff in Fitness & Aquatics, especially MaryAnn, utilizes open

communication as the foundation of their leadership and relationships with others. There is a

sense of trust among one another because of the honesty and camaraderie, and I think that

MaryAnn’s invitation for openness makes the rest of the employees more comfortable expressing

their concerns, asking questions, and working towards self-improvement. People welcome this

style and respond accordingly – although there are conflicts, the openness and trust promotes

collaboration but also accountability, and enhances the workplace.

The Five Practices of Leadership are often manifested at Misericordia as well,

specifically the idea of Model the Way. This is important in a setting like Misericordia because

there is a sharp divide between hands-on work and menial tasks (though both are important!). By

engaging in both the significant and the trivial, MaryAnn demonstrates that it is not above

anyone to clean or do paperwork in order to ensure the more meaningful things, like providing

space for creating healthier lifestyles through exercise, are ensured and maintained. This also

encourages the constituents (other employees) at Misericordia to be proactive about their work,

whether it be cleaning or engaging with a resident. They respond with initiative and innovation,

which I think is representative of the leadership styles in the department.

Another important aspect of leadership I’ve noticed is that all of the staff seem capable,

responsible, and empowered when interaction with volunteers, interns, and residents. Although

there are clear distinctions in amount of power, the staff consistently cares for, teaches, and
nurtures those that engage in their space. As an intern, I have been both led with love and

evaluated honestly about my role in the program and organization. Although it is sometimes a

challenging position because of the seemingly insignificant role of the intern, I appreciate their

inclusion of my thoughts, ideas, opinions, and honestly in their relationships and leadership.