Shortly after beginning my career in higher-ed I stumbled upon Simon Sinek’s “How Great Leaders Inspire Action” Ted talk. I was intrigued. The concept clicked with me. I immediately saw the practical application in business. However, at the time, I made the mistake of thinking “I’m not a business leader, heck I’m not any kind of leader. I guess I can’t really use this”. I was wrong, but I wouldn’t realize it until years later. 

My official leadership experience in the workplace started as many other first time leaders’ do: I was good at my job so I was asked to lead others doing a similar job. Our team was going to offer a new service at the University. To launch the service a group of student technicians would be hired and I was asked to lead the team. I had been a leader before: I was a section leader in marching band in High School and College; I lead various group projects in school. But this was different. The service was new, the team was new. There was no established “way of being” that I could fall in line with and follow. I was on my own. 

That thought was the first mistake (of many) I made as a leader in my new role. I wasn’t alone. I had a team who was going to rely on my guidance. They helped me as much, if not more than I may have helped them in the beginning. 

The team grew, took on more responsibility, and we needed to develop leaders from within. Being responsible for developing leaders would be the change that set the course for my leadership journey. This was how I found my “why”. 

“To help young leaders grow so they can help improve the world. “

In my struggle to find ways to teach leadership I rediscovered Simon’s work. True to his own why, I was inspired. I began devouring talk after talk, quickly jumping to others who he would speak with or about regarding leadership. Rabbit hole after rabbit hole I tried to fulfill my insatiable desire for knowledge. It seemed as if I had discovered this hidden culture; an untapped network of leaders who had answers that the world desperately needed. I wanted to help connect these ideas with the people who could do something about it. I began crafting workshops to teach some of the lessons I had learned. I covered topics such as coaching, feedback, and the anthropology of leadership.  I was sharing my newfound knowledge with anyone who was interested in listening. 

Now I’m here to take the next step; to share what I’ve learned with more young leaders with the hopes that they can learn from my mistakes and my experiences and ultimately grow into leaders who will improve the world.