My purpose is to be revered as a transformational leader and constantly affect positive change in the lives of as many people as I can reach. I believe that a part of my calling is to encourage and uplift impoverished girls and young women, especially single mothers or those faced with teenage pregnancy. I want to be a shining light that illuminates for them that the hard times they currently face don’t have to remain forever.
I grew up poor and surrounded by examples of what life for me before reaching the age of adulthood would be like -- I’d be a teenage single mother who may or may not finish high school; I’d endure abusive relationships, depend on public assistance, work long hours in the entertainment or food industry, and never have enough money to make ends meet. That actually did turn out to be a part of my story, but surely not the end of it. I want to show others that it doesn’t have to be the end of their stories either; I believe that doing so will pave the way for transformation in their hearts, minds, and lives.
I believe that another part of my calling is to introduce (or reintroduce) systems dynamics and teach systems thinking and strategic foresight practices to individuals and organizations of all types and sizes (including local, state, and federal governments). I am passionate about elucidating harmful systemic structures and contributing positively to their reformation using foresight tools and methodologies.
The above snippet of my story exemplifies symptoms of a plethora of systemic problems that result in divers vicious cycles. My purpose is to contribute to the improvement and literal reforming of people, processes, and structures. My personal values include empathy, reverence, respect, diversity (i.e., age, gender, culture, race, ethnicity, spiritual beliefs, social standpoints, socioeconomic status), integrity, excellence, personal development and growth, servanthood, systems thinking, and foresight. All of these play critical roles in transformational change at both the individual and organizational levels.
To enact my values through full-range leadership development (FRLD) behaviors, I espouse the transformational leadership approach as my baseline framework. This approach encompasses the fundamentals of authentic leadership, servant leadership, and other leadership approaches and contributes to FRLD. Using the transformational leadership approach, leaders attend to followers’ needs and endeavor to help followers reach their fullest potential through engaging and creating connections, which, in turn, increase shared motivation and morale (Northouse, 2016, p. 162).
This approach verily transforms people, in that “it is concerned with emotions, values, ethics, standards, and long-term goals” and includes an evaluation of followers’ motives, fulfillment of their needs, and treating them as full human beings (Northouse, 2016, p. 161). In addition to individualized consideration of followers’ needs, transformational leaders move constituents to achieve more than expected by employing charisma, inspiration, and intellectual stimulation (Northouse, 2016, pp. 161, 167, 169).
