Leadership is one of the most impactful skills in a workspace, and leadership is bigger than a title.
On HBCU Campuses around the nation, it is campaign season, and schools are teaching their students how to navigate their leadership goals through on-campus organizations and student government associations, but does this define a leader?
Voting for on-campus leadership can be more profound than just friendships and connections that lead to a role. Leadership itself can take on different faces on campus other than student government.
When talking to Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU) Alum, current Mercer University professor Dr. Kevin B. Williams, Assistant Professor of Healthcare Leadership, Department of Leadership Studies, was asked what made him a strong leader.
He stated, “What makes me a strong leader is my ability to follow. When I was at FAMU, I was a CEO of an entertainment company (Uplift Professional Services and Management) based in Atlanta, GA.
I was the youngest person in the company, and with people I considered to be my big brothers growing up. Following their advice helped the leader inside of me come out to show what we needed for our company at the time.”
Williams juxtaposes the notion that leading means eliminating the ability to follow by saying that the best leadership comes from a person who can be teachable and learn from their environment or the people they lead.
Williams also states, “The best leader, I tell my students, is a servant leader. Someone that celebrates others and propels others to be their best.”
The top leaders on our campus community exude the characteristics and mindset of a leader but don’t intentionally participate in those roles.
Tyler Griffin, a second-year business student at FAMU with his own small business, stated that when looking for a strong leader on campus, “The main thing I look for is originality.”
As a business owner, Tyler always thinks on his feet and develops plans to ensure his business model is successful.
Tyler says from his perspective positions in student government are just different ways of handling business and that a good leader or not, the leader should make sure they aren’t trying to be anyone else while getting the job done.
After speaking with one Student Government Association Sophomore Senator, Lorin May, she indicated that exposure to leadership roles at a young age helped shape her into the leader she is today.
After interviewing and studying leadership further, it is clear that good leaders have positive influences no matter what their title is inside of an organization. We should all strive to be good leaders.
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