Leadership & College

Whole-person and leadership development is integral to College and Life success.

It is also the foundation of a successful and meaningful life.  We speak from our experience as honor graduates of Ivy League schools, with successful professional careers with top firms like Goldman and McKinsey, and now charting our own way as social entrepreneurs.

#1 World class colleges look for potential leaders

#2 World class colleges look for holistic development and value “multiple intelligences”; there are multiple ways to stand out

#3 World-class colleges value students’ personal qualities, including serving others and the world

#4 Compelling students have a authentic sense of who they are and how they aspire to make a contribution in the world

#5 Admission officers and interviewers look for authenticity and consistency and guard against “faking”, “prepped stories”, and “obligation recommendations”

For more on our beliefs, see our article on Finding Inner Leader for College and Life Success

Qualities and capabilities needed for College and life success are related.

World class colleges look for excellence, curiosity, diverse interests, energy, passion, creativity, service, and authenticity.

Leadership needed for the future*: creativity, integrity, global thinking, influence, and openness

* Source:  The 2010 IBM Global CEO Study

Harvard College Dean of Admission’s Q&A for New York Times:  top colleges’ admission process is complex and nuanced.  Though the process is competitive, each student also have a chance to be appreciated for their unique potential.

 

http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/14/harvarddean-part3/

“Harvard Graduate School of Education Professor Howard Gardner’s ground-breaking theory of Multiple Intelligences argues that there is more than one “intelligence”: that each person has a unique combination of interpersonal, intrapersonal, linguistic, mathematical, musical, artistic, kinesthetic, and naturalist “intelligences”. Extracurricular accomplishments allow students to express their varied “intelligences” or faculties beyond simply their SAT “linguistic” and mathematical achievements. Students who make the most of their potential in a variety of ways are more likely to make significant contributions to a world that values talents of all kinds.

The term “extracurricular activities” covers an enormous amount of ground. We are interested in whatever a student does: in addition to school extracurricular activities and athletics, students can tell us of significant community, employment, or family commitments. There are many who spend a great deal of time helping to run their household, preparing meals and caring for siblings or making money with a part-time job to help the household meet expenses.”

Perspectives on Leadership

A leader is not a “boss” who tells others what to do.  A leader is a person who listens deeply into the present and the future, into the aspirations of others and oneself, and who acts in a timely manner to make dreams come true.  The earlier a person begins to take responsibility for listening to his or her own inner leader and for seeking out live feedback from others about whether one’s strategies, actions, and outcomes are aligned with one’s vision, the more recognizable he or she will be as one of those rare people whose full potential shines through

– William Torbert, Professor Emeritus of Leadership at the Carroll School of Management at Boston College, Notable human development theorist, previously Graduate Dean of the MBA program and Director of the PhD Program in Organizational Transformation at Boston College, BA/PhD Yale; Professor, SMU/Harvard/Boston College; author of Managing the Corporate Drean and Action Inquiry: The Secret of Timely and Transforming Leadership

One of my core beliefs is that a leader’s individual journey towards wholeness is critical to addressing today’s global challenges. What I mean by “wholeness” is to consciously attend to 3 levels of personal development: a) inner and outer confidence built on a foundation self-awareness and heart-centered practices, b) intellectual breadth built on an understanding the cycles of history and the larger context/s of one’s life and one’s work,  and c) progressive action orientation built on the ability to work and value across differences and to bring about changes/improvement even in the face of constraints/challenges.

– Dorian Baroni, previously senior executive with BP and Wall Street investment banks, now Executive Coach and Organizational Development consultant

Sadly enough, research shows (at least in the US) that many young women are not inspired to be leaders because they don’t want to be associated with the lack of integrity and character they have witnessed in those  who hold prominent positions.  Conversely,  their own stature, potential, and vision of leadership are awakened if they are lucky enough to  have role models who inspire them.  Any program that acquaints young women with adults that they would like to be like, opens the doors for leadership development in dynamic ways. Choices young people make when they are young either open or close these doors, mostly without awareness of the paths they have turned away from or taken.  Leadership development such as this helps young people shape their future in a positive way, and thus effect the future of the world.

– Barbara Cecil, Organizational Consultant and Executive Coach.  Barbara was Executive Director of the American-Soviet Film Initiative, established to dissolve stereotypes sustained by top image makers in the media, and Associate Dean of the School of Humanities at California State University, Long Beach. Barbara is also an artist.

The research is very clear that effective leadership is far more a matter of character than a matter of skills.  In addition, there is a strong correlation between the leadership exhibited by teenagers and leadership qualities in adults.  Character is not static, it develops through an ongoing process of learning, engagement, and deepening self-understanding.   Leadership requires an understanding of the greater goals or purpose, as well as trust and example setting. As children, then natural leaders will be those who assume initiative when ever the opportunity arises.  Natural born leaders know how to make the best of what is around them, recognising the skills of their peers and applying them in an effective and productive way. Such leaders will not necessarily have the best skill set of those around them, but will enable others to realise their potential and contribute more meaningfully to the whole.

– James Krantz, Organizational Consultant and Executive Coach to CEOs and leaders of non-profit organizations, He has held faculty appointments at Wharton and Yale

AIS  Personal Leadership Day

Enneagram Test (answer the 36 questions which is the short version of the test):
http://www.enneagraminstitute.com/dis_sample_36.asp

Multiple Intelligence Test   http://www.bgfl.org/bgfl/custom/resources_ftp/client_ftp/ks3/ict/multiple_int/questions/choose_lang.cfm