Dumbledore's Army? Seems like a pretty good community that is involving, empowering, ethical and inclusive. I mean, what better purpose to a group than to work together to take down the bad guy and work against evil, right? Plus I was totally thinking about it after class on Monday.

I'm a big potter nerd. Although I'm not exactly in the wizarding world of Harry Potter, I am a buckeye at The Ohio State university. Totally different, I know. But I am apart of a few different communities that fit the bill for the first prompt.

As a freshman, I had the opportunity to get involved in a group called First Year Leadership Initiative (FYLI) on campus.  As a member of the group, I feel included and apart of something bigger than myself. Not only do the student leaders work to get us members involved in the group, but they really help to involve us on campus as a whole. I've had the opportunity to work with greek life for "Very Sharey Halloween", OUAB to help put on the Beat Michigan pep rally, and other various people on campus. Part of  the point of our group is to provide service, which is pretty ethical as it all supports good causes. We don't align ourselves with things that go against good morals. FYLI is also a pretty empowering group to me, because it has been the gateway for me getting involved in other activities and possibilities to look forward to as a buckeye. I've learned a lot on how to be a well rounded student and am learning really good leadership skills that I know will be helpful beyond my freshman year. 

In our book, authentic leaders are described as"persons who have achieved high levels of authenticity in that they know who they are, what they believe and value, and they act upon those values and beliefs while transparently interacting with others." I believe authentic leaders want not only to succeed but to see those around them succeed too. They want to help develop and nurture those who work with them. I found a quote by David Foster that says ‘You can’t buy performance, but you can inspire it.’. I really think it works well when talking about authentic leaders because inspiring others really is a core value. 

In order to be a good leader, I have to find my own way of strengthening others. I really want to be able to do that well someday. Right now, I feel like I play the role of listener and helper to my friends and those who know me. A lot of people come to me for help and I really enjoying sitting down and giving advice. In order to be a good leader, I have to get them to see the solution to the problem at hand. While it might be helpful in the short run to give a person all the answers, if you get them to work through it themselves and just help them along the path when they need it, they become able to do it themselves and believe in themselves. I can influence others in partaking in community council in my dorm, and help others through my job at the front desk. It's what I enjoy doing, and why I decided I have an interest in higher education. I really like college students and want to assist them to become better versions of themselves. 

 "Be an enthusiast in life. He taught me that if you are interested in something, no matter what it is, go at it full speed ahead. Embrace it with both arms, hug it, love it and above all become passionate about it. Lukewarm is no good. Hot is no good, either. White hot and passionate is the only thing to be."
My Uncle Oswald by Roald Dahl

I think one of the biggest challenges of leadership is getting people to believe in themselves or the ideas of the community. People who are passionate in what they do not only enjoy their time but are more apt to try in excel in what they are doing. If a leader can make the participants of the organization feel passionate about the goals of the group, then he or she has succeeded in getting a good followership. No one is going to put good time into something they don't believe in or care for.