Leadership Through Story & Communities
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This foundational class considers personal leadership development through the two lenses of story and community. When the technology of communication is accessible through any cell phone, leadership and story go hand in hand to to create strong community engagement to foster a more equitable and just world.
Consideration of someone's personal history and cultural context informs how they communicate meaningfully with others. By learning about the background and upbringing of several guest speakers, we understood how they got to where they were. The commonalities include a refusal to give up, even when they were at their worst and a support system, or person. Dive into the seven tenets of this class to learn more about my journey to Comm Lead and the many ways communication can be shaped to achieve a goal. Below, I have provided my assignments according to the seven tenets of this class. To read the full essays, just open the file on the right. |
Interviewing Amy Lillard at the Seattle Film Summit.
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Storytelling
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The definition of precipice is a “hazardous situation.” It’s funny that “precipice” is the first and strongest word that comes to mind when I think about where I am in my personal and professional journey...
The struggle for attention is pandemic across work and play. In the office, those who need attention suck up time and energy. It’s another reason I guard my time so fiercely. As Bill Gates said in his Netflix biography recently, time is the only thing that’s finite. You can’t make more time... |
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TechnologyThis unique assignment was required as an audio file. Click on the mp4 to hear my 3-minute audio postcard.
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Values
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Connecting with people is an art form. That’s the importance of emotional intelligence and situation awareness. I learned to observe others and gauge their general mood before entering into a conversation as a means of self-defense. I grew up with a close family member who has Borderline Personality Disorder. I never knew if she was happy, sad, angry or something else. I was always walking on eggshells. I didn’t know that influencing without authority would be a core value throughout my life.
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ResponsibilityWith a strong dedication to making Communication Leadership students aware of our social position and privilege, there is no better way to exemplify inclusion than to make the program more welcome to blind and deaf students in Cohort 20.
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Community
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The community map is a visual indication of my personal, professional and educational networks are. I have also included personal projects and hobbies, both of which I have given me energizing connections and a strong network of friends and mentors.
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Advocacy
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To my business colleagues at https://news.microsoft.com/life,
Since 2005, I have been a fulltime employee (FTE) or member of the contingent staff (CS) workforce at Microsoft. Having worked in both capacities, I can attest that FTE’s and CS view their roles at Microsoft according to the color of their badge. By excluding the vendor story on the news.microsoft site, over half of the people who make the Microsoft brand what it is, are not represented in the #MicrosoftLife conversation. |
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Leadership
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As the applause faded, Amy Lillard clicked her microphone off and smiled broadly at the audience. With fellow panelists, Chris Swenson and Kate Becker, she gathered for a photo to commemorate the kick-off of the 2019 Seattle Film Summit. The crowd buzzed lightly; Saturday morning coffee slowly making its way.
Directly in front of Amy, a peculiar line of people formed. A polished reporter and her crew, a high school film producer, a voice actor with scruffy hair and worn jeans, and multiple screenwriters; all creatives relating somehow to the up and coming Seattle film scene. Amy took care to speak briefly with everyone. Her parting words were always, “let me introduce you to”… or “let me take your information so we can follow up.” As Amy spoke with everyone, the line grew longer, but she never rushed and gave each person her undivided attention. |
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