Krystal Adams

HTM491
Mark Testa
April 30, 2019
Word Count: 1,064
Krystal’s Leadership Journey

Leadership is a very vague term. It is defined differently depending on the context, and
depending on the person in question. Throughout my college journey I have discussed
leadership, experienced leadership, and now defined leadership in my own words. Whether it
be relative to the Hospitality Industry, San Diego State’s Hospitality program, or through my
extracurriculars, my vision of leadership has expanded greatly. Some ​envision the ideal leader
in Hospitality and Tourism to be someone who is competent in self, people, and business
savvy areas. A leader is someone that has strengths in all three areas, but who is also
aware of his/her flaws and chooses to develop themselves to make them stronger. The
ideal leader in HTM motivates the people around them, and chooses to be optimistic in
situations of stress or struggle rather than demonstrating anger or negativity. They also find
the balance of keeping a business alive and keeping their employees and clients happy. I
envision to be the type of leader who does all the things just mentioned, but who also can
set a standard of accountability and responsibility to the point in which it is not asked but a
common practice. To successfully make that happen, setting long term and short term
goals, and executing a plan of action are extremely important.

At the start of my college career I set one long term goal and several short term
goals. In the long run it would be my dream career to become the CEO and founder of an
Event Production Company. A company that becomes the main outsourced planner for
corporations and professional associations like: Pepsi or the National Basketball
Association. Large clients with a power packed team is what I envision my company to be. I
value genuine close relationships, and being able to make a living that supports you but
gives you work that makes you happy to wake up each morning. Think the Olivia Pope of
Events, just without the scandal. As a sophomore in college I created 3 goals to accomplish
within my college career. They include: 1)​ Graduating with at least two job offers in
corporate events, 2) To utilize my study abroad experience and network to diversify the
work that I do, and 3) To take advantage of student opportunities available on campus and
serve as the President or Vice President of the Afrikan Student Union while encouraging
other black students to look at the Hospitality and Tourism Industry as a career path. Being
able to accomplish all of these goals in such a short amount of time is what makes me more
than confident in achieving the goals I have set forth for the future. ​In five years it would be
ideal for me to be the Director of Events at a well-known, and respected corporation whose
clientele is very diverse. Hopefully I will be successfully building my brand and vision for the
company I want to develop on the side. This is my most recent short-term goal. I am
choosing to focus on networking in all of my endeavors because the way I represent myself
prior to starting my own company, and the relationships I build in advance are what will set
the tone for my success. These short term goals all lead up to the end goal. The dream I
have considered since I realized how amazing I feel when I get the opportunity to deliver an
experience for someone.

Throughout this semester I learned many new things and also was reassured about
some of the opinions I had about my work ethic and values. The Hospitality and Tourism
Program here at San Diego State University is very big on the Kaleidoscope Model and The
PRINT assessment; two pieces of content that do just that. The Kaleidoscope model
outlines the importance and differences between being self savvy, people savvy, or
business savvy. We focus on these so that we can understand how to become well rounded
leaders in the workforce. The PRINT test is important because it allows us to see how we
react in situations, how we tackle responsibilities, and how we work in a team setting. The
assessment is taken when we are sophomores and juniors, and it especially reassured the
personality I see myself as, by opening my eyes to some things I did not realize. For
example, I always knew that I can come off judging and I can utilize this information to be
careful when offering opinions that differ from others. Because of these pieces of content I
made it a goal to adjust my behavior in all my future group settings. I believe I did a great
job of assessing that in the many group projects and team presentations I participated in.
Especially as a senior, where all of our capstone classes include a major presentation or
project with others. From my leadership behavior I have realized that I am competent when
it comes to Professionalism, Self development, and Spirit of Optimism. However, my
Coaching and Training, Technical Service, and Time Management could use some work. It
is my goal to teach new hires and colleagues effectively, continue to challenge myself, and
prioritize - not procrastinate. My procrastination this semester was somewhat out of control,
and though I made it work in the end, it put a greater deal of stress on me than it should
have. What disappointed me was my lack of prioritization to school towards the middle of
the semester. Working in my career field prior to graduation made it somewhat difficult to
put my all in anything. I plan to switch back to my more effective methods when I get the
chance to put my all into my career.

A lot of the reasoning behind what I value and what decisions I make is greatly
influenced by my satisfaction level (just as it is from a logical aspect). I love to do things if
they make sense and make me happy. If one is lacking from the other, I begin to question
my decisions and second guess my values. That would probably be the biggest realization
I made. Overtime I have become a much more open minded and compromising leader and I
have demonstrated that greatly in the workplace. The Kaleidoscope model and PRINT
assessment play a huge role in the leaders we become by the time graduation rolls around.