Dreyfus Maheu

UNIV 392
Dr. Tampke
11 June 2015
Mountains to Climb
There are three specific areas related to leadership which I aim to improve over the
course of this class. I want to better know where to strike the balance between being a leader and
a follower. I hope to come with terms with the complex dichotomy of leadership. Finally, I will
improve the way I work in groups.
I have the goal of learning when it is better to lead and when it is better to follow. Every
team needs leadership to craft its overall goal, but it also needs a sizeable amount of followers to
accomplish the on-the-ground work. Too much dominance by either side greatly cuts into work
towards a desired goal. Trying to develop my competency in both roles has been a driving
motivation since my first, unsuccessful foray into the Summer Scholars program a year ago. In
the group interview, I thought I was showing my leadership skills off to their best extent by
directing people and setting goals, but I was not accepted as a candidate for leadership in the
program because I was too controlling. This is a prime example of the negative consequences
of tipping the balance between leaders and followers.
My second goal is to figure out why leadership is such a compelling and challenging
scenario for me. Leadership is fascinating because it offers a chance to have others put trust and
respect in you. However, it also carries the risk of you being perceived as incompetent,
ineffective, domineering, or a host of other negative descriptors. In the instances throughout my
life where I have been in a position of leadership, I have always enjoyed the sense of respect I

am able to gain from being at the head of some endeavor. I do not know if it is correct to take
pleasure from this experienceshould a leader be selfless? Furthermore, despite the enjoyment
that comes from being in a position of leadership, I am often afraid of potential failure that could
come from a misguided word or action. Yet I continue to return to challenging leadership
experiences, and desire to find out why.
The final goal I would like to accomplish over the course of this summer is to become
more effective as a group member. As a fairly introverted and reasonably self-motivated person, I
am often apprehensive towards working in a group, especially among company I am unfamiliar
with. Sometimes I simply wait for a task to be given so I can do something outside of the group
itself, an event that occurred in this very class when groups were first assignedI followed
direct orders on how to make a poster rather than attempt to collaborate. I feel like this goal is
intrinsically tied to my other goal of leadership and followership. From a positive standpoint, I
believe this is the goal I have the biggest chance of making tangible progress towards. I will
interact with employees and students from a wide variety of backgrounds, and often be forced to
get out of my comfort zone to achieve a goal greater than myself.
In setting these goals, I have taken the first step to becoming a more aware and effective
leader. While I may not be able to reach the fullest of these lofty peaks, I know I will have a
profound learning experience.