Running Head: LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY

Leadership Philosophy
Kira Glynn
Seattle University
EDAD 570
Professor Jake Diaz
June 4, 2014

LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY
What Leadership is
Purpose of Leadership

John Maxwell (2005) once said, Leadership is influence- nothing more, nothing
less. While this statement resonated with me throughout my adolescence and early
adulthood, my understanding of what leadership is has expanded over time. Currently, I
view leadership as the process, which informs, guides, and makes social and societal
changes. This is done through uniting others toward a shared vision and empowering
others to find their passion.
Uniting people. Leadership is designed to unite people towards a shared vision
and goal (Schuh, 2002). In reflecting upon my previous experiences and memorable
leaders, I recognize memorable leaders have always helped unite groups of people. One
such example of this was during my time with Relay For Life. As a freshman that was
reconciling with being personally affected by cancer, I was at a point in my life where I
was in an identity crisis and felt alone in my struggles. I spoke to the Relay For Life chair
at the time, who insisted I come and participate in the event. At the time, I didnt realize
how formative and life changing this moment would be. At the event, people from all
around campus came together, and like me were passionate about finding a cure for
cancer. In reflecting on that first Relay event, it is evident the crucial role leaders play in
uniting groups of people.
Empowering people. In addition to uniting people towards a shared vision,
leadership is designed to empower others and help them find their passion and strengths.
As someone with several strengths in relationship building, I find empowering others is a
vital component of leadership. Building upon Yossos (2006) cultural community wealth

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model, everyone brings assets and capital to an institution or organization. Empowering

leaders are able to acknowledge others capital and assets that they bring with them. This
not only allows constituents to feel valued, but it also empowers constituents to feel like
they can make a change because of their assets and capital.
Leadership also empowers leaders through helping other find their higher
purpose. As Heifetz, Grashow, and Linsky (2009) mention, adaptive leadership signifies
the importance of giving meaning to your life through finding your higher purpose.
Finding a higher purpose not only increases a persons happiness but it also helps people
feel connected to something larger than themselves (Seligman, Steen, Park, & Peterson,
2005).
A previous mentor of mine, someone I would identify as a leader, showed me just
how impactful helping someone identify their higher purpose is. When I was beginning
my work as a health educator, I felt very lost with what I wanted to do upon graduating.
My mentor asked me important questions, such as where I found meaning in this world,
what moved my soul, and other thought provoking questions. While these questions may
seem trivial, they allowed me to reflect on what was important in my life, and led me to
see the importance of finding personal meaning versus just simply finding a job.
Empowering others to find meaning, and acknowledging their capital is an important
aspect of leadership.
Leadership in Action
What leadership looks like. Leadership in action is based on relationship
building so it is productive and collaborative in nature. As someone whose top four
strengths are all based in relationship building, I find immense meaning in relationships.

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As Boatwright and Egidio (2003) found in their research on aspiring women, women
develop identities within connecting to others, which ultimately can lead them to hold
leadership positions. Making these connections to constituents is an important practice
leaders engage in because it helps aspiring leaders feel connected.
In addition to helping simply forming these connections, leaders build systems of
relationships where all can benefit (Wheatley, 2000). Wheatley (2000) commented on
how this can be done only when leaders understand their constituents intrinsic
motivation. In understanding intrinsic motivation, leaders are able to help their
constituents feel connected to their work, which increases productivity within an
organization.
Finally, leadership is collaborative in nature. As Schuh (2002) discussed, leaders
must be able to work effectively with others, collaborate, and listen. Thinking back to my
time as an orientation leader, the times I identified as strong leadership were when other
offices joined us for collaborative work. This not only brought more people together to
come to a unified vision, but it also created a space where everyone was genuinely
invested and passionate about the work. This led us to be more productive and have a
more positive experience. Collaboration can therefore not only just lead to uniting people,
but it can also increase productivity and help constituents find meaning.
Given my previous experiences, leadership in action is based on building
relationships. This not only helps people become invested in the work, but it also creates
more collaboration and productivity among constituents.
What effective leaders do. Effective leaders engage in several behaviors. Firstly,
they listen to their constituents (Kouzes & Posner, 2007). This ensures that an

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organization and leaders of organizations take into consideration the needs, desires, and
views of their constituents. In addition to simply listening to their constituents, leaders
encourage the heart (Kouzes & Posner, 2007). This allows others to feel emotionally
connected to a cause, which increases their investment and helps make meaning out of a
cause.
Effective leaders also understand and effectively communicate the values of their
organizations (Deal & Peterson, 2000; Schuh, 2002; Wheatley, 2000). This not only
ensures a leader understands their organizational culture, but it also helps create a shared
vision for the organization. This will then increase transparency within an organization,
and will allow others to get behind the mission and vision.
Finally, effective leaders acknowledge others assets. As seen through Yossos
(2009) cultural community wealth, everyone brings capital to organizations. Effective
leaders must acknowledge that they alone do not have all the assets to create successful
change. In order to make this change, they need to recognize and utilize the many forms
of capital their constituents bring. In addition to utilizing others capital, effective leaders
acknowledge the many identities that their constituents bring. In doing this, constituents
can feel valued and that their identities are not only appreciated, but needed for the
success of the organization.
What makes leaders effective. The first thing that makes a leader effective is in
acknowledging they do not have all of the answers. In my experience, the most
formidable leaders have been the first to acknowledge they do not have all of the answers
and they cannot do this work alone. This shows humility in leaders, which makes them
more human and can lead them to do their work more effectively.

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Secondly, effective leaders are adaptive and able to change. This adaptability is
effective because it gives room for changes to be made; either after being influenced by a
leaders constituents or other environmental changes.
Identifying as a Leader
As I was considering this question, I had an old colleague endorse my skills as a
leader on LinkedIn. Until that moment, I would have said that I only sometimes identify
as a leader. However, after this, I would now consider myself a leader in the right context.
While this may sound un-confident, to me it symbolizes the many things I still have to
learn as a leader. My path in leadership and as a leader is only just beginning.
What Informs my Leadership
Identity Within Leadership
Identifying as a woman has a significant impact on my leadership. While this
identity provides a unique lens into student development, it has been highly influenced by
my professional contexts. Throughout my professional career, I have been surrounded by
men in the workplace, and have often worked with students who identify as female. This
gender difference between staff and our students has allowed me to thrive as a female
leader. Not only am I able to connect with my students in a unique way, but I am also
perceived as approachable because of my gender and gender expression. One of the
challenges I see in this salient identity is the gender expectations of women in the
workplace. Moving forward in further unpacking this identity, I need to explore the many
ways this identity influences my leadership style.
In addition to my identity as a woman, another salient identity that informs my
leadership is my research focus. Although this is not traditionally thought of as a salient

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identity, it truly informs how I work with students and has become even more salient
being in a new institutional type. Coming from a large research university, I learned to
value and appreciate research. This translates into the work I do today, because it informs
how I pose questions with my students and informs the critical lens I bring to my
leadership style.
A final identity that is becoming evident in my leadership is my White identity.
Given the privilege I have been granted because of my race, this is an identity that I am
just starting to unpack in depth, and am able to see how pervasive it is in my leadership
style. One of the ways this is evident is in how I bring myself with committees and with
constituents. At a meeting or presentation, my voice is always heard and brought to the
table. Ultimately this leads to others being excluded and their voices not being heard.
Given I am in a space where my voice is heard, I am intentional about inviting others to
the table and creating space for their ideas and voices to be heard.
Milestones in Leadership Journey
There are several milestones and impactful moments that have shaped my
leadership style and experiences. One of these moments is the first time I joined a student
organization during my undergraduate time. This moment was a lollipop moment for me,
and one that ultimately shaped my desire to enter this profession. In joining that first
organization, I realized that following others is a unique and important form of
leadership. This was my first exposure to leadership styles that were not based on
positional power, and my first understanding of the importance of all styles.
While I had a unique understanding in the importance of several leadership styles,
I was also able to see the impact of formal leadership. It was evident to me that

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institutional and organizational changes were made mainly by folks in positional power
roles. This ultimately lead me to apply to be a peer health educator on campus; a highly
sought after opportunity. I was able to recognize that I needed a position like this in order
to help make lasting and impactful change. This moment was also the first time I
acknowledged the importance of inspiring others and creating a shared vision (Kouzes &
Posner, 2007). I was able to see how change is made when people are emotionally
connected to a cause, even if it is by leadership through outrage (Bolman & Gallos,
2011). This experience was also the firs time I identified as a leader.
Resources in Leadership
As a leader, it is crucial to utilize resources for the benefit of the greater good. The
two resources I engage in most are research to inform practice, and utilizing the
collective knowledge within a team. Research and theory are resources that I utilize most
frequently. Building upon my salient identity as research focused, I see immense value in
basing practice off theory and research. This not only helps create a solid framework, but
it also ensures intentionality behind my practice.
In addition to using theory and research as a framework, I utilize the collective
knowledge of the team. Building upon Yossos (2001) cultural community wealth model,
everyone brings assets with them. This not recognizes the many assets that everyone has,
but utilizing and building upon these assets enhance a team and team dynamics.
Ultimately, I utilize the team as the most important resource, to create a more successful
environment.
While I utilize theory and collective team assets, there are several resources that I
under utilize. The biggest resource I under utilize is my colleagues. In order to better tap

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into this resource, I need to build upon my relational strengths and create meaningful
relationships with my colleagues. This will allow me to lean on them for support as well
as help me acknowledge that I need help and need their expertise.
Another resource that I under-utilize is the expertise of other institutions. Similar
to my colleagues who have lots of expertise in their areas, I need to intentionally reach
out to peer and aspirational institutions more. By networking and making personal
connections with professionals at other institutions, I will be able to use my network to
further my own professional development as well as to expand and build upon my own
department and institution.
Leadership Frame
As we have read through several leadership frames, servant leadership really
stands out and speaks to me. As Sergiovanni (2000) articulates, all members of a group
share the burden of servant leadership. The most important aspect of this servant
leadership frame is the notion of serving values and ideas that help shape an institution
(Sergiovanni, 2000). This stands out to me as being the pillar of my leadership style. I
strongly believe that my values are crucial to my work and holistic wellness.
While this is a valuable leadership frame, servant leadership has several positive
aspects, and several challenging aspects. Some of the positive aspects of this leadership
frame is the connection to Jesuit-Catholic values of service, cura personalis, and
community. I was also very drawn to the notion of power to in comparison to power over
(Sergiovanni, 2000). Not only does power to use power as a source of energy for
achieving shared goals, but it also helps connect groups of people which is one of my

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leadership strengths. Additionally, this leadership frame helps me articulate my need for a
higher purpose in my work and life.
Despite the several positive aspects of this leadership frame, there are many
challenges that are associated with this leadership style. Most notably, this frame plays
into and adds to the gender norms and expectations in society. This style is often
associated as being feminine, which adds to the gender expectation of women in our
society. Additionally, this style may lead others to perceive me as being weak or not as
strong of a leader. Given the care and relational focus of this frame, some perceive this
style as lesser than. While this may not have an effect on my professional aspirations, I
still have to be cognizant of this moving forward. Finally, since servant leadership is
based on alignment of values, it may be harder for individuals with this style to see
institutional flaws. As someone who is deeply connected to the values of an institution or
organization, it can be more challenging to take on a broader perspective and critique
institutional structures or systems.
How I do Leadership
Leadership Program
As I reflect upon my leadership style, I am reminded of a time when my preferred
leadership style was especially salient; SexLife. This past quarter, the student team I
advise developed a sexual health program, which discussed the importance of consent,
STD prevention, and sexual health resources both on Seattle University campus and
within the greater Seattle community. Given Seattle Universitys Jesuit-Catholic context
and values, this event was especially controversial and left my students in an ambiguous
space.

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11

Leadership Frame
During this program planning, I mainly utilized a servant leadership frame. I was
intentional in using this frame because of the power to versus power over concept. This
power to concept allowed me to empower my student team to put on the event despite
their ambiguity. Additionally, focusing on the values of an organization allowed me to see
the meaning of the event, especially because it connects to my offices value on positive
healthy relationships (including positive sexual relationships).
Reflections on Leadership Approach
In reflecting upon this event and my servant leadership approach, I recognize that
my approach was both successful and unsuccessful. Using the servant leadership frame
was successful because it allowed my students to feel empowered to put on the event.
Had I used another frame, my students may have shied away from doing the event, but
instead they felt empowered which led to a successful event.
However, my approach was not as successful when thinking about larger
systematic expectations and goals. During this program planning, my focus was narrow
and limited on my offices values. Due to this, I was unable to see the broader
institutional values, which may not always be in perfect alignment with my offices. Some
of the values that I was not able to see in the moment were the value on religious text and
what it says regarding sexual health and relationships and the value of holistic care,
which I couldnt see because I was so narrow focused. With another leadership frame, I
may have been able to better balance these separate organizational values. Achieving
more of a balance in values may have led to a more successful event that positively
affected more members of the community.

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Lessons Learned

During planning SexLife and empowering my students I learned several important

lessons. The first lesson I learned was the importance of utilizing multiple leadership
frames to inform the way I advise students. If I had felt confident using multiple
leadership frames, the event could have been more successful and would have created
more institutional buy in from Student Development and the institution at large.
Another lesson I learned during this experience was to be authentic. Prior to this
experience, I felt there was only a few ways to be an influential leader such as holding
positional power and using power over; both of which did not speak to me on a personal
level. After this experience, I became confident in my skills as a leader, and the
importance of honoring how I show up as a leader and how I advise my students.
Finally, I learned the concept of power to is vital in student development. Power
to allowed my students to feel empowered to put on this program despite having never
done it before on campus. I noticed that for the first time, my students were innovative in
program planning and believed they could successfully do sexual health programing on a
Jesuit-Catholic campus.
Conclusion
While I am just beginning my leadership journey, I am able to understand the
work of a leader is always growing and ever changing. I have learned the importance of
being authentic and approaching leadership from an assets-based model, which builds
upon an individuals strengths. Although servant leadership speaks to me now, I eagerly
look forward to exploring my leadership style moving forward.

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