Student Leadership Theme For January: Lead Yourself First

One of the first questions I ask students interested in student leadership is:

Do you want to be a student worker or a student leader?

They often don't know the difference. I tell them there's a pretty big difference. One way gets things done. The other way gets people involved in getting things done. One has to do with focusing on tasks. The other way focuses on people. (For more on this - download my ebook: Student Worker or Student Leader)

I ask them which one they're interested in. It's not that one is better or more important than the other. Both are necessary. So I try to pinpoint where they're at. They say things like they're interested in making a difference, in being influential with others to change some things. They want to be the one to communicate a compelling idea that others will want to join in on.

I respond, "That sounds a lot like student leadership!"

They nod. They always nod. But I don't stop there. Now that we got the "what" question out of the way, it's time to focus on the "who" question.

Who? Who...what?

I ask them who they are going to lead? I ask them who will your followers be?

I often get a quizzical, head-scratching look back (they stop nodding). They know they want to lead, they're just not sure who they should start leading. Should they run out and ask their friends to start following them? Should they put on a nametag that says, "leader" and people will start lining up behind them?

The answer to both is No. I mean you can try that. A lot of students think that is all that student leadership is. But it's more than that. And there's another place that one should start. There's a better way to launch one's leadership.

If you want to be a student leader the first person you need to start leading is yourself.

You are the guinea pig in this whole thing. You need to learn about self-leadership. It's not a pride thing or a me-first thing. In fact, it's the exact opposite of that. The student leader who learns to lead herself first is often the most selfless person in the room.

This month is dedicated to providing you with tools, ideas, and practical advice to help you lead yourself first. There are all sorts of things to consider here. Important qualities like: character, integrity, honesty, loyalty, attitude, and confidence. Key skills like personal management, organization, and balance.

One of the greatest basketball coaches of all time is John Wooden (click on his name...it's a cool site). He is at the top of most any list that talks about great leadership. Foundational to the teaching and training that Coach Wooden gave his players was this idea of leading yourself first. Here is a sampling of some of his most poignant words in this area:

"Success is peace of mind which is direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best of which you are capable.”

“Before you can lead others, you must be able to lead yourself.”

“Discipline yourself and others won’t need to”

“Self-Control in little things leads to control of bigger things.'’

“The choices you make in your personal life affect your professional life.”

“Ability may get you to the top, but character will keep you there.”

“Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.”

“The true test of a man’s character is what he does when no one is watching.”

“Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is what others think you are.”

I hope you will join me this month as we work together to improve in the area of leading yourself first. By clicking on the links at the top of the sidebar, you can subscribe to the RSS feed or it may be easier to get these articles delivered directly to your email inbox. You can contact me directly by sending an email to studentlinc (at) gmail.com.

Let's keep the conversation going. Respond to the following question in the comments below:

What does the idea of leading yourself first mean to you?