{"id":37825,"date":"2019-03-12T16:54:41","date_gmt":"2019-03-12T20:54:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/?p=37825"},"modified":"2019-03-12T16:54:41","modified_gmt":"2019-03-12T20:54:41","slug":"leadership-skills-i-use-everyday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/2019\/03\/12\/leadership-skills-i-use-everyday\/","title":{"rendered":"Leadership Skills I Use Everyday"},"content":{"rendered":"I am by no means a formal leader. I don\u2019t have any formal positions, and I\u2019ve never been elected for or run for any positions either. But since I started writing for Life @ U of T, I\u2019ve quickly learned that leadership is not restricted to fancy titles or a specific persona, or even just one skill. I\u2019m learning that it\u2019s actually more like a behaviour<\/a>, that I can practice everyday, even in the most mundane situations. And who knows, maybe one day I will apply for a formal leadership position. In that case, this reflection may come in handy for future reference.\r\n

Here are 5 leadership skills that I can practice everyday:<\/h4>\r\nEmpathy<\/strong>\r\nI know that empathy is about putting myself into others' shoes, but sometimes I\u2019m quick to judge and I forget that it\u2019s not about what I would do in those shoes. It\u2019s about listening to the other person share their experience, and trying to understand it from their point of view. Practicing empathy shows me other perspectives and helps me to be more critical of my own judgement.\r\n\r\nConflict Resolution<\/strong>\r\nThe only time I enjoy running, is when it\u2019s from confrontation. But I\u2019ve quickly realized that it\u2019s not a very effective solution. It takes a lot of work to collaborate with others during a conflict, and it\u2019s often uncomfortable. But learning how to confront the discomfort, and transform it into space for listening and understanding. Recognizing how I usually handle conflict was the first step. Now, I don\u2019t enjoy running as much.\r\n\r\nCommunication<\/strong>\r\nI usually listen a lot more than I speak, mostly because I get nervous by the latter. And I often prefer writing. But I\u2019m learning that good communication is not just about being attentive, but it\u2019s also about finding different ways to effectively share information and ideas. It takes constant practice that sometimes comes with stumbling over words and re-framing phrases, awkward silences and abrupt interruptions. So I just keep trying.\r\n\r\nPrioritization<\/strong>\r\nWhat will I give my attention to right now?<\/em> is what I ask myself when I have a lot of things on my to-do list, or when I\u2019m feeling overwhelmed. For example, maybe in one moment it\u2019s more important to take a break and play with my dog; but in another moment, I need to continue working on an essay. Focusing on what\u2019s important in each moment and addressing one thing at a time always helps me to calm down, and sometimes, I also end up being more productive.\r\n\r\nSelf-Awareness<\/strong>\r\nFrom time to time, I take these self check-ins to reflect on my interests, values, skills, strengths, or how I\u2019d like to grow to get to know myself a little better. I\u2019ve found that this helps me to be more intentional because I\u2019m more aware and mindful of my thoughts and actions. It has also helped me to feel more confident because I know what I bring with me wherever I go, what I can share with others. Who am I?<\/em> can seem like a loaded question, but perhaps it\u2019s the simplest question of all.\r\n\r\nWhat are some leadership skills you practice everyday?<\/em>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\n
\nLeadership is not restricted to fancy titles or a specific persona, or even just one skill. I\u2019m learning that it\u2019s actually more like a behaviour, that I can practice everyday, even in the most mundane situations.\n<\/div>
Continue reading “Leadership Skills I Use Everyday”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>
Continue reading “Leadership Skills I Use Everyday”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"author":350,"featured_media":37826,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[394,15243,23826,6303,9681,16217,12768,635],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37825"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/350"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37825"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37825\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37881,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37825\/revisions\/37881"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37826"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37825"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}