Forms of Civic Engagement chart

When we think of civic engagement – do we think of all of these?

When you think of peacocks, the image that comes to mind is probably the male peacock.  Like the one below –>

If you didn’t know the male peacocks are the really beautiful ones; they have pretty colors on their feathers in hopes of attracting a female to them. The brighter and bigger the feathers the more likely they are to get that attention because it means they’re more fertile – so better chances of the female’s offspring to becoming healthy.

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Mandela: His 8 Lessons of Leadership

(http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1821659,00.html)

This response is a simple one. 8 Lessons to be a good leader.

No. 1
Courage is not the absence of fear — it’s inspiring others to move beyond it

No. 2
Lead from the front — but don’t leave your base behind

No. 3
Lead from the back — and let others believe they are in front

No. 4
Know your enemy — and learn about his favorite sport

No. 5
Keep your friends close — and your rivals even closer

No. 6
Appearances matter — and remember to smile

No. 7
Nothing is black or white

No. 8
Quitting is leading too

I really like points 7 and 8. In point 7 Mandela states life is never either/or. A good leader has to make tough decisions. But these decisions are complex, and there are always competing factors. You have to look at alllllllll factors leading into any decision. Just remember, nothing is ever as straightforward as it appears.

The last point is that leading involves quitting. It is vital to know when to stop. You may never be able to stop going as a leader but you must slow down. Knowing how to abandon a failed idea, task or relationship is often the most difficult kind of decision a leader has to make.

When was there a leadership opportunity that you had to quit or give up? Why?

Now that I got your attention, I wanted to talk about hypocrisy that we all probably went through or even acted upon. The majority or all of us LLC Leadership members are probably one of the most honest and law abiding citizens that aren’t involved in criminal activities due to the fact that we all are sort of leaders. However, we are still human beings and do things against the law sometimes. For example, I am pretty sure that every one of us has once in their life time “movie hopped” (definition). I never thought that it was a crime, but it is. I see myself as a law abiding citizen, but when I think back on the small things I did that didn’t seem serious could actually be labelled as illegal or a crime. I believe that even the best or most perfect leaders make mistakes consciously or unconsciously that would interfere with the law. Here is my question of whether small offenses should reflect on the character of a leader or should leaders be also seen as normal human beings? Some people criticize the President for “wearing jeans” or “drinking beer at a baseball game” or even making laws that go against the constitution (Obamacare). One has to see the human side of a leader, who is just a person like everyone else or do you see it otherwise? Just because I “movie hopped” in the past, did that make me a bad Junior and Senior Class President, where I went above and beyond all the events and community service projects? I am not promoting acts such as “movie hopping”, but wanted to put in perspective of it possibly or not possibly reflecting on my leadership status. Do different levels of crimes reflect more or less on a leader? Think about President Clinton. In my opinion, Clinton was an amazing president, who implemented Medicaid and helped the economy greatly. I didn’t think that his affair made him a bad president or leader. He shouldn’t have lied under oath and perjury is a serious offense, but I didn’t think that he should have left his office. I see both sides of the Clinton incident. How do you guys feel?