Not to bring up my sorority...again. But it has truly been a defining factor in my college years. When I first became President, the only reputation I had was the one of being a good member. People knew that I was organized and had the potential to be a great leader, but they knew nothing about my ability to be the face of the organization.
It was my job to set-up my reputation right from the start. I began by setting expectations for the chapter that I would not falter on. Those include things such as: coming to chapter, being composed at events, paying their dues, treating the executive board with respect, etc.
I knew that from the start I had to stick by my expectations as well as present a united front with my executive board. If I faltered, I would have lost all of the respect I had built up and would have to start all over again so that members would learn that they can't walk all over me.
To keep my reputation intact I make sure that I stick by what I say. If the executive board creates a new rule, we will all stand by the rule even if it is not popular because we know it is best for the house. I also want to enhance my reputation by acknowledging when I am wrong. If I make a mistake, I will own up to it because I want the house to see me as a trustworthy person who is confident enough to admit my own mistakes.
It was extremely difficult at first, especially because I was only a sophomore, not to give into the demands of the seniors. They were older than me and thought they could take advantage of my position; however, I always stuck to my beliefs and eventually they realized I would not falter. Building that relationship with them was important to building their trust in me as a leader.
I liked your first sentence (although there was no verb). A little self-mocking in the writing is a good way to open up and get the reader on your side. Some of your previous posts and comments have been very matter of fact and didn't show much if any of the human side.
ReplyDeleteIt would be good for you to expand on what you said in your first paragraph about what people (I assume these are sorority members) knew about you before you became president. How did they know these things? What did you do to create that impression?
There were a couple of things you said that I didn't get. Part of this might be not fully distinguishing between your personal reputation versus the reputation of the sorority leadership as a whole. I don't know what "coming to chapter" means and in the context where you used the expression I don't know if that is an act by you, an act by board members, or an act by all members of the sorority. Likewise, with paying their dues, this seems like an act of all members. You may have done some things on your own to encourage others to come to chapter and pay their does. It is those acts of encouragement (which I'm guessing at there, I don't know that you did it by reading this piece) where your reputation is built.
You also should try to reconcile, if you can, the desire of you and your board to put on a united front, the desire to admit mistakes, and something I spoke about in class called "no surprises," where bad news is gotten out early, so it doesn't appear like a cover up after the fact. This is not easy to do and it may be that you can only achieve two out of three of those, at best. But it is worth considering at some length.
Finally you might also consider whether, when you were a freshman, the then president behaved similarly or not and if you've discussed this with her since. Are you maintaining a tradition of leadership that pre-dated you? Or are you establishing a new regime? It would help knowing that in understanding the reputation you have created.
Thank you for your comment.
ReplyDeleteIn response to your first questions, the sorority members made an impression about me based on the activities I attend and my participation. I was quite shy at first, which probably didn't give them the best impression of me as a future president.
To clarify, chapter is an activity the whole house must participate in. It is a weekly meeting where we discuss the upcoming weeks events. We have had trouble with attendance and I had to promote the importance and get people to come.
I also think each President has their own reputation and their own way of running things. The executive board before me was a little more relaxed than we set out to be. I wanted to maintain order and promote attendance at all events by holding people accountable for their actions and for attending mandatory event.s