Lilith 400 Young Leaders Program: Connectivity and Capacity Building August 13, 2015, 7:30 pm Jo-Anne Kingstone

Leadership Challenges Human engagement lives at the core of leadership. Change Management Motivation Clarity of Purpose Shared Values Communication Decision Making Strategic Implementation Culture Maximizing Potential Strength and Permanence Performance Assessment Financial Sustainability

Two Key Functions of Leadership: Connectivity and Capacity Building Connectivity: Practicing authenticity, integrity and personal authority when building relationships and understanding Practicing authenticity, integrity and personal authority when building relationships and understanding Practicing presence with and for others Practicing presence with and for others

Where we begin with connectivity, we work towards capacity building. Capacity Building Recognizing demonstrated growth Recognizing demonstrated growth Identifying potential Identifying potential Engaging possibilities Engaging possibilities Fostering conditions for exploration and risk taking Fostering conditions for exploration and risk taking Creating stretch opportunities Creating stretch opportunities Encouraging reflection Encouraging reflection Establishing goals and developing strategies Establishing goals and developing strategies

The Concept of Practice Intentional Undertaken with a purpose in mind Undertaken with a purpose in mind Deliberate and planful Deliberate and planful How we do something How we do something Mindful Undertaken with awareness Thoughtful and attentive How we think about something

“A practice” is the intentional and mindful application of intellectual, emotional and physical energy to the exploration of a specific task or set of tasks or to an ideal. THINK YOGA!

Why Yoga? The practice is infinite in possibilities—perfection is not the goal, growth is. Leadership is the same—perfection is not the goal, growth is.

Connectivity What do these poses tell us about the power and purpose of intentional and mindful connectivity? Mountain Pose Chair Pose Dancer’s Pose

Explore these possibilities… 1.Being present in an authentic way. 2.Engaging with integrity. 3.Expressing your personal authority (confidence). 4.Seeking to understand by listening and reflecting. 5.Seeing others’ perspectives without judgment. 6.Inviting others on a journey.

Capacity Building What do these poses teach us about building our own capacity and that of others? Goddess Pose Chair Pose (revisited in another form!) Warrior Two

Explore these possibilities: 1.Recognizing and celebrating 2.Testing limits, taking risks, exploring possibilities 3.Having a goal and setting a strategy 4.Being comfortable with discomfort 5.Discovering the voice of change and challenge 6.Having the courage to focus

The pose we all need to embrace, celebrate and practice: What do we learn from The Humble Warrior (for ourselves and others) ?

Case Studies: Explorations for Connectivity and Capacity Building 1. You are in grade 12 in a leadership role at your school. One of your jobs is to develop and implement spirit events. You and your team have planned three events already. Two have been great and one, the most recent, has flopped. You are aware of some growing criticism of the team's ability to listen to members of the community. A couple of fellow grade 12s come to you and suggest that a survey of the student body might help clarify interest. You do not know these students well. What are the issues? What is your strategy? Think about habits of connectivity and capacity building.

Try another one… 2. Your school has a new Principal/Head. She has made some significant changes to the student leadership selection process. She worked with a small group of faculty to design this new model. She has changed the system from the appointment (made by the Principal/Head) of a small group of grade 12 leaders to a more democratic approach where leadership is widely distributed across all grades (9- 12) and determined by vote—all students and all faculty. Faculty votes count for two. You and your peers are in grade 11, slated to be next year’s leaders. What are the issues? What is your strategy? Think about connectivity and capacity building.

One more… 3. Your school is undertaking a review of the daily academic schedule. You have been asked to be part of a student committee that will be involved in this project. What are the issues that might come up in this kind of change? What is your strategy for engaging the community of students in the dialogue so that your voice can be heard?

4 Essential Questions 1.Is it true? 2.How do you know it’s true? 3.How do you show up when you believe it to be true? 4.Who would you be if it were not true? And the one we all love: Bonus Question! 5.Can you flip it?

Human engagement lives at the core of leadership.