LEADING ON THE

PATHWAYS OF
DESTINY AND
LEGACY

(A 12-Week, post-
OGL 360 Plan)

Shaunice Aikoo
Summer (2022)
OGL 360 (Assessment of Leadership
Effectiveness),
Arizona State University
Table of Contents Slides IT’S



Week 1 – Find Your Purpose
Week 2 - Learning Is Doing
5 -- 8
9 -- 11
TIME
 Week 3 – Model the Way 14 -- 16 TO
Week 4 – Be the First to Trust (But Verify…) 18 -- 20
BLAST


 Week 5 - Inspire and Create Vision # -- #




Week 6 – Look to Help Others
Week 7 – Challenge the Process / Pivot!
# -- #
##-- ##
OFF!
 Week 8 – Enable Others to Act 87 -- 91
 Week 9 – Demonstrate Ubuntu # -- # NO
time
 Week 10 – Welcome Possibilities/Opportunities # -- #
 Week 11 – Encourage Initiative (Don’t Fear…) # -- #



Week 12 – Personalize Recognition
Addendum
## -- ##
110
to
 References / Works Cited Slide 111 float
This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC
Authors of Quotes Slide(s)
Gennep, Arnold van ………………… #, #, #
Horwitz, Tony (re. Capt. Cook)……… #, #, #
Homer (The Odyssey) ………………….#, #, #
Kouzes and Posner (6th ed.)…………. #, #, #, #, #,#, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #,
#, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #, #
Malala Yousafzi ………………………… #, #
Mauss, Marcell ………………………… #, #
{Other Amazing Author TBD}………… #, #
Varty, Boyd ……………………………... #, #
Woolf, Virginia ………………………… #, #
{Remember to add other favorite authors to your presentation} …………… #, #

{AUTHORS’ NAMES ARE LISTED HERE, but FULL BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION needs to be added to the
“Works Cited” slide at the END of the Ppt. Add to that as you go forward.}
Week 1 (part 1 of Module 1): Find Your Purpose

“All of us are born leaders. We all have

leadership qualities ingrained. All that we
need is polishing them up and bringing
them to the forefront.” (Kouzes and Posner
2017, p. 12)

If they were giving out leadership skills in elementary school, I

would have raised my hand. But I was under the impression
that I needed to have a certain personality or look a certain
way to be a leader.
This quote contradicts what I grew up learning. One is not a
leader because they are chosen based on personality and
outward appearance. Leadership qualities are in everyone,
and anyone can develop these leadership skills. No one needs
to be asked to be a leader, it is already there.
Week 1: Find Your Purpose A “TO-DO” item here:
Be more diligent to
work hard, smarter,
and with
Kouzes and Posner quote 2: intentionality!
(no complaints
“When you understand who you are and what your allowed)
values are, then you can give voice to those core
values…and feel comfortable sharing them with others.”
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 14)

I am passionate about being authentic in any

relationships I have. The authenticity starts with my
values and being fully transparent about who I am and
what I expect from myself, without wavering. This
journey of discovering this had not always been as plain,
but now that I have accepted who I am, I unashamedly
express it.
 Week 1: Find Your Purpose (cont’d)
Kouzes and Posner quote 3 (from this module’s assigned readings):

“Deeds are far more important than words

when constituents want to determine how INSERT AN IMAGE HERE (e.g., a
serious leaders really are about what they meme of your own choice, or a
say. Words and deeds must be consistent.”
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, p. 14) personal photo)

A leader will quickly lose the trust of followers if they consistently

say and don’t do. I have had my call to this on many occasions and I
know that this will not work unless it goes hand in hand – do what I
say I will do and be committed no matter how hard it appears.
When I was in my early 20’s, I had a roommate quote a bible verse
every time I went back on my words, “Let your yes be yes and your This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
no no. For whatever is more from than these is from the evil one.”
(Mat. 5:37). Needless to say, I lost her trust over and over. I TO DO today:
recognized later on in life, that I replied too quickly, and too often to 1. Recognize Gabrielle
yes, before thinking about what was really being asked of me. I lost
a lot of trusts from people along the way because of this. 2. Write a Thank-You note to Gus.
_________________________
Week 1: Find Your
Purpose (cont’d)

“Achieving greatness requires a team effort. It

requires solid trust and enduring relationships. It
requires group collaboration and individual
accountability, which begins…by empowering
those around you.”(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 17)

To all those who said they made it alone, never

considered everyone that played a role in that success. It
is easy for me to say, I am earning my degree alone
because I’m up late every night doing the work. But
have I considered others who make sacrifices as well. If
it had not been for my husband working at Uber, I would
not have had the chance to finish my degree for free! My TO DO today:
spouse also have picked up some of the household tasks 1. Brainstorm - who is my team.
without me asking him, only because he sees that I am 2. Tell Crystal I appreciate her.
up working on assignments. My friends, offering 3. Try to be more grateful for my
encouragements, reminding me that I can finish, or I’m friends and family that has journeyed
proud of you. with me.
Week 2 (part 2 of Module 1): Understanding Expectations Is
Doing TO-DO LIST (for a FUTURE
day):
“Great leadership potential is discovered, and ---Share experiences
unlocked, when you seek to understand the and ideas with Shernell.
desires and expectations of your constituents... ---Talk about “famous
What leaders say they do is one thing; what failures” and successes
constituents say they want and how well leaders with
Gabby.
meet these expectations is another.”
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 28)

Communication is key for expressing expectations. A leader can think they are performing up to the standards of
their constituents, and vice verse, so it’s best to have converse what are those expectations since we all have our
blindsides. It’s best to be open and accountable to others who can help reveal it.
When I was leading a youth group for girls, one of my volunteers did something that was not aligned with what
we all expected. When I called her out about it, she said I only did it because I was told to do so, and I was being
a chameleon. She wasn’t wrong, it did not bother me until someone said something. However, what she pointed
out was that I had not shared what was expected of her and what was not. We were able to have a great
conversation about the expectations of interactions between herself and youth.
 Week 2: Learning Is Doing (cont’d)

Kouzes and Posner quote 6:

“If you follow someone who’s universally

viewed as having impeccable character and
strong integrity, then you’re likely to be viewed
the same.”
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 33)

It is important to me that I lead with integrity. But it is

just as important to me that I partner or follow someone
that has some integrity as well. Not only are those who
decide to follow me will be watching me, but they are
also watching those who I follow. Every decision they
make will affect me, which ultimately affects the entire
team.
Week 2: Learning Is Doing

“Leaders are pioneers willing to step
out into the unknown.” “Life is the leader’s laboratory, and
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 16) exemplary leaders use it to conduct as
many experiments as possible. (Kouzes
I remember when we decided to leave and Posner 2017, pg. 17)
family, friends, and everything in America
to move to another country. Some thought
we were crazy and stupid, some applauded
and were happy. But all we did was
become leaders blazing a trail, through
many countries. I’ve learned more about
myself during this time than I did in most of
my life. Never forget!

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

Week 1 and Week 2 “Wrap-Up”:
Hey Shaunice, this book is great – yes, The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner. There are so many themes that
you can apply to your leadership style and even your life. Some you already have been doing, even though you never
believed you had it in you. But now you can achieve your personal best leadership story. The main themes I want you to
ingrain in this head are leadership is behavioral, it can be learned, refined, and applied. The Leadership Challenges
provide the concepts. There are 4 major things everyone wants in a leader: Honesty, competence, inspiration, and
forward-thinking, but get to know the others too, not everyone who chooses to follow you is alike. Here are some quotes
that you underlined in the book, that I know impacted you and reinforced what OGL PM classes have been instilling in
you throughout this time. Now listen,

“Leadership is not about personality. It’s about behavior. The Five Practices are available to anyone who
accepts the leadership challenge – the challenge of taking people and organizations to places they have never been
before. It is the challenge of moving beyond the ordinary to the extraordinary.”

“When you understand who you are and what your values are, then you can give voice to those values.”

“You can’t command commitment; you have to inspire it.”

You need to search for opportunities by seizing the initiative and by looking outward for innovative ways to improve.
Leaders don’t sit idly by waiting for fate to smile upon them; they venture out.”

Remember when you first realized that you inspired people and they wanted to follow you, you were afraid
because you did not believe you could handle the responsibility. Now, look at you! What you didn’t know, but
now you understand is that leadership is a relationship. And you were born to build and mend relationships, and
you are committed to the relationships in your life. But that’s not all. You can achieve your personal best
leadership story, it has already started, and continue to build on it. You can do it!
 INSERT AN IMAGE HERE
(e.g., a meme of your own
choice, or a personal
photo)

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY

What are some ways a leader can build
team member’s confidence?
This is all about using the natural strengths I have:
 An encouraging nature
 A helpful nature
 An empowering nature
 An exhorting nature
because
Building up the teams’ confidence in their ability to
lead, inadvertently builds mine. Moreover,
exercising my natural leadership strengths will also
build others’ natural leadership strengths.
Leadership is circular – if I lead well, so will those
who follow.
 Week 3:
Model the Way
 Kouzes and Posner quote 9:
“When you fail to express your
leadership philosophy in word and
deed, you weaken your own and your
team’s engagement and
effectiveness.” (Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg.
50)

Here is the cornerstone that requires attention. It is the Add’l Quote 1 (from the Odyssey synopsis):
rock on which I’ll build my entire personal best
leadership story. So, let me be careful in how I build my “Yet Odysseus is too proud. His hubris is his
leadership philosophy because it will matter. The downfall. Having escaped the Cyclops, he turns
opposite could also have a disastrous effect and instead about and taunts the monster by calling out his
of being led by humility, I’ll lead with pride, a negative name, hoping Polyphemus will tell others who
strength, indeed. had blinded him.”(Odyssey 2018, pg. 6).

 How easy it will be to not have a leadership philosophy and

become as hubris as Odysseus after he outsmarted
Polyphemus.
 Week 3: Model the Way (cont’d)

 Kouzes and Posner quote 10:

Values are your personal bottom line.

They influence every aspect of your
life...” (Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 54)
I grew up without a sense of values. Not that I
was some degenerate, but they were not Add’l Quote 2 (from the Odyssey synopsis):
spoken or stressed, no common theme I could
look back on and say, yes, this is it. However,
when I became a Christian, I was given a clean The inhabitants offer them Lotus, which causes
slate for God’s values to be built into the very the men to lose all thought of home and long for
fiber of who I am. It is from this point, now 24 nothing more. (The “eating” of lotus meant,
years since, that I can say, yes, these are the apparently, the taking of opium, a powerfully
values I have. lethargic drug.) Seeing that his men only want to
 Here is a truth that is admirable about sit and eat more lotuses, Odysseus is displeased.
Odysseus, he did not give in to
temptation. He rounds up his crew and forces them onto the
ships again. He locks them in so they cannot
 In fact, because he was strong, he was
able to rescue his men who were not. return to their “medicinal” ways.” (Odyssey 2018,
pg. 4).
 Week 3: Model the Way (cont’d)
 Kouzes and Posner quote 11:

“You have to learn to express

yourself in ways that are
uniquely your own.” (Kouzes and
Posner 2017, pg. 56)
How unique is a professing Thug, teaching
I was a timid girl. I was too afraid to YouTubers about the Odyssey? I appreciate
speak what I knew to be true in the the fact that he expresses his unique self in
face of wrong and too afraid to stand his unique voice!
up for myself when it mattered Add’l Quote 3 (from THUG NOTES): “You
know
because I was often misunderstood. If
what it is, b*tches — Thug Notes! And this
I could go back to that young girl, I
would tell her that it is OK to be bold we keepin it epic with Homer’s Odyssey.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf3XrZW2o4I)
and to not be what you think others counter number .08).
think you are. BE YOU –
unapologetically YOU!
Triumvirate (Co-Mentoring Team)
Quotes & Reflections:
A transparent leader is the same as an honest leader.

I enjoyed speaking with my triumvirate member, Katrina. We were similar with a few perspectives in the
Odyssey, but we also had the same leadership philosophy, which was integrity and honesty. However, her
definition of honesty was different than my definition. She saw honesty as being TRANSPARENT (1.02.33). I
immediately thought that it was a great interpretation of honesty. Honesty can get disoriented because we
tend to see it from one perspective at times, but transparency is the unobstructed roadmap leading to
honesty. Let me illustrate this point.
I remember one time I was leaving work from downtown Washington DC, and I got on the wrong bus. When
I noticed this bus traveling for a while on the beltway (beltway goes in two opposite directions VA and MD, I
preferred MD) I became afraid and scared. I thought I was going 25 minutes in the wrong direction towards
VA. As soon as I could, I immediately got off the bus in a worried panic about how I was going to get
home. I was about to cry. When I finally stopped panicking and looked around, I realized I was no more
than a 20-minute walk from home. What was once seemed unfamiliar, became very familiar. I was where
I needed to be, I just needed to see it from a different perspective.

This is what transparency does for the leader willing to be transparent. It invites others to see an
unobstructed view of how honest one really is and gives them a roadmap to where they need to be.
 Week 4: Be the First to Trust (But Verify…)
 Kouzes and Posner quote 12:

“Highly successful leaders have an

inner voice that they pay attention to.”
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 59)
I can’t believe that I willingly choose to ignore that inner
voice! Time and time again, I lived to regret it and always  Kouzes and Posner quote 13:
make those “should’ve” or “wish I would’ve” statements.
I knew I should’ve waited…. “How you spend your time is the
I knew I should’ve done this sooner…
single clearest indicator of what’s
I knew I shouldn’t of …..
important to you.”
I wish I would’ve listened…. (Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 75)
All the while, my inner voice, had I listened to it, was giving
me the direction, insight, intelligence, and wise counsel, I This statement is true. Once I realized that time is
needed. I am no longer going to ignore my inner voice. At more valuable than treasures and talents, I began to
least now I can see that if I choose to be hardheaded, I use it wisely. (It is a prayer of mine to use my time
won’t reach my leadership goals and instead carry regret. wisely.) Likewise, if I want to be a successful leader, I
must invest time in learning and doing those things
that build up my leadership skills.
 Week 4: Be the First to Trust
(But Verify…) (cont’d)
 Kouzes and Posner quote 14:

“The language and words leaders use affect Words really

their self-image and people’s responses to Do Hurt…
what’s going on around them. They help
build the frame around people’s views of the
world, so it’s essential to be mindful of your
choice of words.”
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 80)
I have had so many words spoken to me unmindfully, and I have done
the same to others. I think the cause is just rashness. I must
remember that as a leader, I need to think before I TO DO today:
speak, because words do have power, and in it is 1. Recognize Managers & Co-workers
life or death. I do not want to be a bad steward of 2. Write Thank-You note to a professor(s).
that power.
Week 4: Be the First to Trust (But Verify…) (cont’d)

Add’l Quote 4 (from THUG NOTES or another Odyssey video):

“Penelope Odysseus his wife tests him to make sure that it's
him then she truly believes him”
(The Odyssey animation, counter number 4:02
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PglAFdKSJ_M_)

Just like Penelope, people who choose to follow me will constantly be testing
me, to make sure I am who I say I am and to see if I am worthy enough to
continue to follow. So, it is important that I remember that I am being watched
and tested, ensuring that what I do and say, is in alignment with what they are
expecting.
Being a parent is the greatest test of all because children are always testing you
to see if you are going to do what you say. It was no different in the Aikoo
household. Sometimes I failed (and apologized) other times I did not (victory)!
Week 3 and Week 4 “Wrap-Up”:
Well, look at you Shaunice! I have made it to this point of the presentation. The book is still giving me things to ponder
and change, as well as strengthen. It can be hard when realizing I have some ways to go. Still, I am going to move
toward my destiny and solidify my legacy. So, think about these main themes and topics as I reflect on how they will show
up in my personal best leadership journey.
 Theme 1: Values (Create that Leadership Philosophy based on these)
 Theme 2: Speech (It is not only what is done, but it matters what is said)
 Theme 3: Be true to You (Don’t try to mimic another leader, be the leader I am)
 Theme 4: Use time wisely (I can not get time back, so use it wisely, use it build up others)

Think about these things, and live accordingly…

“Highly successful leaders have an inner voice that they pay attention to.”
“Values are your personal bottom line. They influence every aspect of your life...”
“How you spend your time is the single clearest indicator of what’s important to you.”
“You have to learn to express yourself in ways that are uniquely your own.”

I am glad that I grew up the way I did because I firmly believe it brought me to where I am today. I did not have the best
upbringing and so values, life-giving speech, value of time, and expressing myself were not at the forefront of things my
parents choose to instill in me, so I struggle(d) with them all. I learned these things later in life.
Nevertheless, I was taught them the best and right way – God’s way. So, I can’t live regretting what I did not get, because I got
it…100X better.
 I have become discouraged because it is hard
to live daily and lose sight of the future. I often
think of what can make me happy and what
can bring contentment from a career. Instead
of investigating, I fall back into comfortable
ways. I have to put fuel under this rocket that
has set idle in my heart far too long. Take off,
and with confidence move forward

In what ways can I become more forward-

thinking in for my career?
 Week 5: Inspire and Create Vision
 Kouzes and Posner quote 15:

“Exemplary leaders are forward-

looking…They envision the future,
and gaze across the horizon seeing Add’l Quote 5, on Capt. Cook:
greater opportunities to come.” “Cook fought hard to change sailors’ habits…The
(Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. 97)
Endeavor was not only on a voyage of scientific
It is important to be able to envision the future. I discovery; it was also a laboratory for testing the
am fully locked on my future graduation day latest theories and technology…Cook and his
(hopefully with honors). But this vision also helps
me with day-to-day class assignments. It is what I men become guinea pigs in the Navy’s long fight
need to help strengthen me through times when I against…scurvy. Cook succeeded in quelling
want to quit and give up because it appears scurvy…Cook’s equally dedicated pursuit of fresh
tough. Forward-looking is necessary.
Captain Cook understood that. He had to see food…protected his men.”
many of his men become sick and die from scurvy, (Horwitz 2003, pg 33-34)
but he didn’t turn back, he created a solution and
saved many of the lives of his men because of the
changes he saw needing to happen.
 Week 5: Inspire and Create Vision (cont’d)
Kouzes and Posner quote 16:
“Leaders want to do something Add’l Quote 6, on Capt. Cook:
significant, accomplish something that “Cook had accepted yet
no one else has yet achieved. What another mission impossible. His
that something is – your sense of destination this time would be
meaning and purpose – has to come
from within.” (Kouzes and Posner 2017, pg. the top of the world…in quest
105) of a channel instead of a
This is something I have been thinking about a lot, now continent…the Northwest
as I recently celebrated another birthday. I had a better Passage, the much dreamed of
vision for my life a decade ago, in my 30’s, – to be a
missionary, living abroad in foreign lands and sharing the shortcut between the Atlantic
good news of Jesus Christ. I was able to, for a short time. and Pacific…”(Horwitz 2003, pg
Currently, I am not sure what I should be doing besides 325).
what I am doing now. This is my desire to attempt the
unachievable, like Cook - like a leader.
Week 5: Inspire and Create Vision (cont’d)
Add’l Quote 7, on Capt. Cook:
“Cooks humility and plainness were admirable qualities…He was working all his life. He died at his
work…And he was too humble to name places after his own. Cook wasn’t a vain man.”
(Horwitz 2003, pg. 302)

Humility! I would do well to learn this lesson from Jesus. But to see a man as Cook, who traveled the world, accomplished
much, and yet not let it cause hubris within him is indeed admirable. It is important for a leader to not care about the
credit. I remember when I did the exact opposite and it backfired in my face. In one meeting, we were all thinking of ideas
for the kids we were serving. I suddenly thought of this great idea, and I shared it, expecting a huge pat on the back or at
least a “nice idea, Shaunice.” No matter the many times I repeated it, it fell on deaf ears. Until someone made the same
suggestion, and it seems that they all heard him. I didn’t stop there – I informed them I made the same suggestion,
and they looked at me with a “so what” face. Needless to say, I got a good bite of humble pie.

TO DO today
1.Think about your future and
set goals for it today.
2. Read a book on your list.
Have a slice of pie, it is flavored
with humility. I made it myself. This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under
CC BY-NC-ND
Triumvirate (Co-Mentoring Team) Quotes &
Reflections:
“This degree for me is just personal satisfaction, personal
accomplishment. To prove to my kids, hey you can do it, you can get it
done.” (Christopher Medina)

I went back to school because I was worried that after I finished being a
stay-at-home, homeschooling parent, I would not be able to find a job
that I can earn something over minimum wage. Plus, I wanted to
complete what I had started 20 years prior. However, when Chris said
that he was finishing his degree for these two reasons, money and career
seemed to not matter to me as much. This journey should come from a
place of personal accomplishment and as an example to those who are
around – you can do it too, and get it done. This was an act of
selflessness for him. His quote coincides with Kouzner quote #16. It will be
a reminder to me that school is a personal achievement thriving from
within.
Week 6: Look to Help Others
Add’l Quote 8 (

“Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of

others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out for your own
interests, but take an interest in others too.” (Philippians 2:3-4)
(New Living Translation)

This course of action will allow me to think about others and in return be able to
help them. If I think of others more than myself, I won’t be self-absorbed but I
will have the proper attitude to be more empathetic towards others.

The Bible: Not just for reading but for doing!

 Week 5: Inspire and Create Vision(cont’d)

Add’l Quote on Capt. Cook (Horwitz’s Blue

Latitudes):
“[Captain] Cook also took counsel from a
midshipman…” (Horwitz 2003, pg 168)

I think it is always important to listen to others, regardless if your

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under
CC BY
position or status is greater than the person giving advice. I have
learned this lesson from my daughter on more than one occasion,
where she has shared some things that were worth acting upon.
Week 6: Look to Help Others (cont’d)
Kouzes and Posner quote 17
Add’l Quote 9 (from another source, e.g.,
“Exemplary leaders don’t from a video, a song, a different course’s
textbook, or your mom):
impose their visions of the future
on people; they liberate the “If your actions inspire others to
vision that’s already stirring in dream more, learn more, do more
their constituents.” (Kouzes and and become more, you are a
Posner 2017, pg. 120)
leader.” — author unknown
I have not worked in a place that considered what
These are the actions I desire to have in my home, in
vision I had for the work I was doing. So, I cannot
my work, in my activity, in my rest and leisure. I hope
speak from personal experience. However, when I
to inspire others by my actions and all these
my homeschooled daughter started high school, I
sentiments from this quote. When I worked with
gave her autonomy to choose how she wanted to
youth and women, I intentionally spoke and did
learn and what she wanted to learn. I wanted her to
things that inspired them.
get a vision for her own educational journey.
Week 6: Look to Help Others (cont’d)
Kouzes and Posner quote 18

“When people are proud to work for their

organization and serve its purpose, and when Add’l Quote 10 (from another source, e.g.,
they feel that what they are doing is from a video, a song, a different course’s
meaningful, they become enthusiastic textbook, or your mom):
ambassadors to the outside world.” (Kouzes
and Posner 2017, pg. 124) “If you are working on something exciting that
you really care about, you don’t have to be
pushed. The vision pulls you.” — Steve Jobs
I want to be able to have this type of pride that wakes
in the morning excited about what I am privileged to If I stop settling for “work” and instead look for
do and who I am doing it for. There was only one the vision the position is sharing with me,
time I felt like this, and it was not in a job. It was perhaps I can find my cornucopia and be
when I was living abroad training to become a pulled into something exciting and larger than
missionary and taking weekends and 10-day trips to me that I can give my all to!
other countries to work.
Week 5 and Week 6 “Wrap-Up”:
Hello you, even though you didn’t have a thorough vision for what you wanted to do after
graduation and were a little discouraged about finding that position that brought
contentment, challenge, and passion, remember that leaders are forward-looking (not
dwelling in the past), accomplishing major achievements (hey, you graduated with honors,
didn’t you!) and share a vision along with liberating the vision in others. Continue to live
inspirationally because people are observing you. But most of all, let what you do come
from a place from within, guided by Him who strengthens you.
Remember to remain humble. Even if you have accomplished some major achievements.
Let humility always remain in your heart.

“Captain Cook took counsel from a midshipman”

Help can come from any person, don’t be so proud and look pass the “midshipmen/women on your boat.

Remember that time in the youth ministry meeting where you sought
attention for a good idea and it backfired, someone else receiving the
praise you sought. Remember how it reminded you that it was not
about you but about those we worked for in the ministry. Pride comes
before a fall but if you humble yourself God will lift you up in due time.
 To what extent have I been pushe
beyond my comfo
zone?

“Sometimes leaders shake things up. Other times, they just harness the uncertainty that surrounds them. Regardless, leaders make things
happen. They active rely on outsight to seek innovative ideas from beyond the boundaries of familiar experience.” (Kouzes and Posner
2017, pg. 147)

This week, I received my 90-day evaluation. Usually, I am not confrontational and, if not too harmful, I let things roll off my back, as long as
the outcome is favorable. This judgment was not on a large scale. The ratings are from 1- can not perform, 2-needs improvement, and 3-
meets standards. I received all 3’s except in productivity. When I received my review, I saw the 2 “need improvement on productivity.” My
mind went in two directions – accept the 2, don’t say anything and move on (my comfort), or let them know you don’t agree and fight (not
my comfort). Tapping into the Woolf, and moving totally out of my comfort zone, I let my team leader and program manager know that I
did not agree with the 2 at all and rattled off everything I had accomplished in the time I was there – including 5 projects and regular
strenuous duties. My team leader reassured me that she did not agree with it, my program manager gave me some advice, and I tapped
into “innovative ideas beyond the boundaries of familiarity” to make sure everything I do from that point on will be communicated and
verified. I did not get the 2 changed to a 3 but what I did get was a voice that let my program manager, team leader, and myself know
that I will advocate for me (which ultimately is shocking to me because this is something that I don’t do).
CHALLENGE!
Week 7: Challenge the Process
Add’l Quote 11, from Virginia Woolf:
“Why did men drink wine and women water? Why
was one sex so prosperous and the other so poor?
What effect has poverty on fiction? What
conditions are necessary for the
creation of works of art?” (Woolf 2007, pg. 15)

Why was discrimination so blatant and allowed, what did

one sex have over the other that warranted such behavior?
How does knowing that you are only receiving a fraction of
what men receives affect personal pursuits of women? I
TO DO (in a future…) today:
have to grapple with these feelings of inferiority often, so I
1. Challenge the Process by
wonder if I would even drink the wine if it was offered?
reading the entire Virginia Woolf’s
A Room of Their Own.
2. Challenge the Process by
viewing an inspirational story and
sharing what I viewed with a
stranger
This Photo by Unknown Author is _________________________
licensed under CC BY-SA