Running head: LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY 1

Personal Leadership Philosophy

Heather E. Mueller Titus

Seattle University
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Personal Leadership Philosophy

For decades, researchers have been attempting to define leadership (Heifetz, 1994).

According to the scholar attributed with founding contemporary leadership studies, James

MacGregor Burns (1978): Leadership is one of the most observed and least understood

phenomena on Earth that cannot be summarized in an all-encompassing definition (; Hackman

& Johnson, 2009). While there is not a single trait or perspective can be used to effectively

describe leadership in education, I believe that at its core, true leadership comes from being

authentic and focusing on empowering others to create change in their communities through a

personal narrative (Bolman & Deal, 2008; Heifetz, 1994).

Part One: Definition

Leadership is a special form of human communication that is unique to who you are, how

you act, what you do, and how you work with others (Hackman & Johnson, 2009). I have a

Bachelors of Science in Communication Management and Design, and worked for four years as

a communication consultant, so to me the foundation of leadership hinders on how well a person

can communicate the needs and shared goals of a group, and how well that person can modify

the attitudes and behaviors of others to meet those shared goals and needs (Hackman, 2009).

Through this definition, the purpose of leadership is to create positive and meaningful change

with your followers even in the face of opposition, with the end goal of developing followers

into leaders (Allison, 2012; Bass, 1999). Therefore, as a leader in education who is pursuing a

Master of Education in Student Development Administration, I must use my story to empower

future leaders who can continue to push for change, and create new cultures in social and

education systems simply by telling their own stories (Allison, 2012; Bass, 1999; George, Sims,

McLean, & Mayer, 2007).

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At first, many outstanding leaders did not see themselves as leaders. Instead, they simply

strived to make a difference and inspire others to join with them in pursuing common goals,

which George (2007) describes as authentic leadership (George et al., 2007, p. 8). My

leadership style stems from this definition because at first I did not think of myself as leader, but

I knew I wanted things to be better for myself and others. As a young queer person in a sexually

abusive relationship that lasted over three years, I faced a lot of hardship growing up. I struggled

with my personal identity, relationships, and confidence. Myself, like many leaders are

influenced by difficult experiences, such as feeling of being excluded, discriminated against, or

rejected by peers (George et al., 2007). Over time, I have been able to understand my

experiences and reframe my story to use it as a processing tool and source of power to help

others overcome their own struggles as well (Bolman & Deal, 2008).

The journey to effective and authentic leadership begins with understanding yourself,

coupled with a transformational and adaptive approach, and the ability to self-reflect on ones

multicultural competency (Bass, 1999; Heifetz, 1994; Pope, Reynolds & Mueller, 2004). Once a

leader can find passion through the uniqueness of their life story, they can use that narrative to

uplift the morale, motivations, and morals of others with similar stories to create a more socially

just and equitable world (Heifetz, 1994; Fullan, 2003). Effective transformational leaders have

charismatic personalities, traits, and abilities to make a change by leading through example, clear

articulation of an energizing vision and challenging goals, and encompass a sense of belonging

(Bass, 1999). Additionally, effective leaders use adaptive work to challenge injustices in their

communities and have the ability to anticipate and mitigate distress and anticipation (Heifetz,

1994). This requires having the multicultural knowledge, skills, and abilities to analyze social

injustice with a strengths-based lens that views cultural experiences and skills possessed by
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socially marginalized groups as advantages, as highlighted in Yossos theory of community

cultural wealth (Bass, 1994; Pope, et al, 2004; Yosso, 2005).

I did not know I was called to lead until I experienced the crucible moment of my

undergraduate education at Ithaca College. As a woman who has experienced sexual violence

and as a member of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, *etc.

(LGBTQIA*) community, I did not see myself as a leader under traditional authoritative male-

centered frameworks. I was told my identity did not matter and that I did not have a voice, until

someone recognized my perceived weaknesses as strengths and believed in me. The LGBTQIA*

director at Ithaca College, L. Maurer, told me that if I did not feel comfortable on campus I

should work to change it (personal communication, January 21, 2008). As my mentor, he helped

me realize that change does not happen when it is convenient, it happens when you are

uncomfortable and work tirelessly to change what is not working. Now I understand that I can

lead simply by being my authentic self, and focusing on the individual and community needs of

marginalized populations who continuously face marginalization and oppression within higher

education systems, and society at-large (George et al., 2007).

I believe I identify with transformational leadership most as a leadership frame because

of the results of my StrengthsFinder and Meyers-Briggs assessments. I am extraverted, intuitive,

feeling, judging, and turbulent (ENFJ-T), which means I take am passionate about inspiring and

guiding others to work together to improve themselves and their community (16 Personalities,

2016). Similarly, my StrengthsFinder assessment highlighted my leadership strengths in

relationship building and executing since my themes were achiever, empathy, connectedness,

learner, and input. This means that I have exceptional emotional intelligence, constantly absorb
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and analyze new information to improve team decisions, and use relational trust to build

connections and relationships to effectively implement solutions (Rath, 2007).

Since transformational leadership involves individualized mentorship and consideration,

articulating a vision that is inspiring, and changing values, beliefs, and behaviors, I feel as if my

leadership strengths help me use my own experience to discover a group need, and push me to

achieve any goal that helps both myself and the larger community. However, it comes with

challenges because mainstream society may not always share my values and goals, or perceive

me with authority or influence since social reality is a product of social arrangements (Heifetz,

1994). This can make it difficult to create social change, but the constant struggle of proving my

self-worth and defending my personal and shared values is what has helped me become a

resilient leader of sustainable change (Allison, 2012). If enough people believe in a common

vision of equity and opportunity in all aspects in life, and each person uses their stories as a

means of leadership, then the minority can become the majority, and change can become a

reality.

Part Two: Reflection

My time in college helped me to realize I needed a safe space to develop as a person and

to understand someone like me could be a leader, only then could I invest in my own strengths

and develop my leadership skills (Conchie & Rath, 2009). This is the same kind of environment

I want to create as a leader in education, and I want this space to help students find their own

voice and discover their leadership skills. My journey has not been linear, but my resiliency and

willingness to create change and better the lives of others is what continues to motivate me

(Allison, 2012; George et al., 2007). Without the space and support to discover my own abilities

through student interest groups, I would not be the leader I am today.

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As a sophomore in 2008 at Ithaca College with little authoritative power on campus, I

created a student interest group which presented the idea that sexuality and gender were not a

dichotomy, but were on a spectrum (Heifetz, 1994). I did not become a leader of this group for

the power or recognition, I did it because I could not find the kind of support or safe-space

environment where I could be myself, and I wanted to create a community of shared values. I

held a trial meeting, and to my surprise over 50 people showed up. This is how I realized that I

found an unaddressed community need, which helped me better understand and guide the group

towards a common goal of acceptance of all sexual and gender identities (Conchie & Rath,

2009).

After five successful meetings with over 50 people in attendance at each, I took initiative

and enrolled Spectrum as a student interest group for the 2009-2010 school year. For the

remainder of my two years at Ithaca, I held bi-weekly meetings, planned social events, mitigated

personal conflicts, hosted a variety of LGBTQIA* speakers on campus, and created a marketing

plan to help dispel myths and stereotypes about bisexuality and other marginalized identities.

Spectrum was hugely successful, and I was thrilled to know I had helped create a safe-space on

campus for members of the LGBTQIA* community. By creating this group, I realized that I

wanted to leave a leadership legacy of genuine kindness, selfless hard work, and creating safe-

spaces for all students to develop personally so they could succeed academically.

As I reflect as an emerging student affairs professional and leader in education, I can

analyze my crucible leadership moment and realize that I am a good leader because I helped

other students understand their leadership potential, by leading by example (Bass, 1999). Three

years after graduation, I returned to Ithaca College to speak at the Rainbow Graduation

Ceremony, offering inspiring words to the graduating class. It was at this time the original
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leadership board of Spectrum approached me and told me how I did, and still continue to inspire

them to create change on issues that are important to them. One of my peers specified I have a

unique gift of empathizing with others in order to identify a shared need, helping to ensure

everyone is happy, and seeing me lead-by-example has continued to inspire her to do the same in

her hometown (D. Anderson, personal communications, April, 25, 2014). This is the only thing I

need to hear to know I am a good leader. Maya Angelo once said: I have learned that people

will forget what you said, forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them

feel (Kelly, 2003). I know my leadership continues in each person I have inspired, and my hope

is that this cycle will continue to create a better world (Conchie & Rath, 2009).

Implications

My type of leadership style presents certain challenges that can impact my ability to

influence change. I can be overly idealistic and caught off guard when people fight against or

defy principles that guide me and my leadership style (16 Personalities, 2012). Creating a queer

student group at a liberal arts school as a white cisgender woman, I had a lot of privileges and

was surrounded by a fairly accepting community, so I did not face a lot of opposition. As I

continue in my role as an emerging student affairs professional, I know this will not always be

the case, and I must continue to learn and improve as I mobilize adaptive techniques to slowly

change attitudes, beliefs, and values in others around me (Heifetz, 1994). Additionally, I can be

too selfless and often struggle to make tough decisions without input from others (16

Personalities, 2012). To maintain a healthy attitude as a resilient leader in education, I must

maintain a work/life balance that allows me to recharge myself so I can continue working with

and inspiring others (Allison, 2012).

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As I engage in my leadership practice, I can continue to improve upon my weaknesses

and focus on my strengths by better utilizing resources around me. To me, my most valuable

resources are others around me; my mentors, coworkers, peers and students. I am aware of my

limitations and single story, and since I consider myself a life-long learner, I rely on learning

new stories of strength and courage of those around me to continuously adapt my values and

goals to the needs of my shared LGBTQIA* community in the context of higher education

(George et al., 2007). By looking to others as a resource, I know that my reasons for leading are

not centered on only my needs, by on the needs of women, my people, and my community.
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References

16 Personalities. (2012). Meyers-Briggs Personality Test. https://www.16personalities.com/enfj-

personality.

Allison, E. (2012). The Resilient Leader. Educational Leadership, 69(4), 79-82.

Bass, B. M. (1999). Two decades of research and development in transformational leadership.

European Journal of Work and Organization Psychology, 8(1), 9-32.

Bolman, L., & Deal, T. (2008). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice and leadership.

San Francisco, California: Jossey-Bass.

Conchie, B., & Rath, T. (2009). Strengths based leadership: Great leaders, teams, and why

people follow. New York, New York: Gallup Press

Fullan, M. (2003). The moral imperative of school leadership. California: Corwin Press.

George, B., Sims, P., McLean, A. N., & Mayer, D. (2007). Discovering your authentic

leadership. Harvard Business Review, 85(2), 129-138.

Hackman, M. Z., & Johnson, C. E. (2009). Leadership: A Communication Perspective (5th

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Heifetz, R. (1994). Leadership without easy answers. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.

Kelly, B. (2003). Worth repeating: More than 5,000 class and contemporary quotes. Grand

Rapids, Michigan: Kregel Publications.

Pope, R. L., Reynolds, A. L., & Mueller, J. A. (2004). Multicultural competence in student

affairs. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Rath, T. (2007). Strengths finder 2.0. New York: Gallup Press.

Yosso, T.J. (2005). Whose culture has capital? A critical race discussion of community cultural

wealth. Race Ethnicity and Education, 8(1), 69-82.