lehigh office of student leadership development's student leadership kickoff speech

8/11/2019 Lehigh Office of Student Leadership Development's Student Leadership Kickoff Speech

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In August 2011 I came to Lehigh, leaving behind a high school where I was a

big fish in a small pond. I was involved in a dozen activities and had leadership

positions in probably half of them. I no longer wanted to be this over-involved and

was interested in student government and sorority recruitment, but after that, I had

little idea of what I wanted my college experience to look like.

I thought I was a leader in high school, but my experiences in the past three

years at Lehigh have taught me what it really means to be a leaderthere is a

humbleness, an ability to put your nose to the grind and work long hours, there is

personal conviction and the dire need to be responsive to the group that you are

leading. There is the need for self-reflection and to always remember your personal

values and those of your organization.

And there are mistakes. Lots of mistakes.

Some of the mistakes Ive made were small reminders to change habits, like

planning ahead. Last year, I scrambled to book a venue just a week ahead of time

and miraculously still got a time slotand others had larger repercussions. I wrote

an editorial that printed in the opinion section of The Brown and White that

misstated the number of presidents our university has had (interim presidents dont

count towards the formal number, by the way) and the mistake was tweeted about by

several students and a certain ghost. I was embarrassed that I let a mistake print in

the paper and at what seemed like an alarming lack of basic math skills on my part.

Then there were times where I let my emotions and desire for justice cloud my

judgment, where I had used an elected leadership position in the wrong wayI

reacted howI felt was right, not by how I could teach others in the way they would be

most receptive. The tenet of leadership to put others before yourself now resounds


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even stronger with me, as it is also about reacting to a difficult situation in the way

your organization needs you to, not how you personally want to react.

These mistakes were some of my cruciblesor moments that I can point to

where I was tested and learned something crucial from it. Over the course of this

year, we will all make mistakes as student leaders, but as long as we reflect on them

and realize the lessons they taught us, we will be better people and leaders because of

it.

It also is important to remember that we are not alone when we make

mistakeswe have so many administrators, advisors, professors, classmates, friends,

and fellow exec board members to lean on. Everyone in our network can help us

rebound from our mistakes and challenge us to push through the obstacles we face.

My favorite part of having such a network is how reenergized and inspired I feel after

meeting with someone I count onit is what helps me keep on track and remember

the bigger picture, which is easy to forget when we are bogged down in to-do lists and

daily life.

This is probably why collaborative connections is one of my favorite aspects of

blueprintthere is no way that any of us can lead the organizations that we do alone.

The relationships, mentorships and friendships that we develop during our time at

Lehigh not only affect how successful our organizations are, but how much we

personally develop.

Also, without collaboration, it is impossible for our campus to come together

and continue to improve after the events of last school year. It is a persistent problem

that Lehigh students identify by the organizations they are involved in before they

identify as Lehigh students. By collaborating through formal cross-programming and


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and lead with integrity, we can help engage the first-year class and show them what

the new climate of our campus is, and what it means to be a Lehigh student.

lehigh office of student leadership development's student leadership kickoff speech

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