Mattie Smyth

PART I: Mastery of the Program Based Knowledge

 

 

Section I

 

Before coming to Creighton I had no idea what the Jesuit Values were, let alone what a Jesuit even is. To me a catholic is a catholic, right? Wrong. The Jesuits are special. Welcome Week slapped me in the face with the Jesuit Values and since then I haven’t turned back! Now I can not only rattle them off to you in less than 15 seconds, I know how to apply them to my life and different leadership styles.

 

My favorite value is Magis, or in english terms “more.” Literally this is the challenge to strive for excellence, something that I strive to do in all that I do. To me, there is always something to improve upon. You should always strive to be the best you can be and more. This value translates into the planning aspect of leadership. Lucas Novotny and Scott Maas’ presentation on program planning was extremely helpful and largely the reason I have been successful in my position on CSU Program Board this semester. They gave us tips and tricks to handle stress and plan successful events. A helpful way to avoid feeling stressed is to delegate out a timeline. He also talked about being a duck and keeping your composure on the surface. It can be a lot to handle when you’re always striving for more, but having knowledge about stress, Creighton’s resources, and the ABCs of event planning, I feel empowered and ready to own any program thrown at me.

#magis

 

Another one of my favorite value is A.M.D.G, or “For the Greater Glory of God.”To me this puts everything into perspective. Everything we do here at Creighton is For the Greater and if you apply this to leadership it makes perfect sense. One of the skills I have improved upon this year is professionalism. Through the FLP dress code and the workshop given by the Career Center on how to compose a resume, I learned the importance of presenting yourself in a professional manor. When you act professionally opportunities will present themselves to you and something Greater will come out of them.

#forthegreater

 

Another skill that I have made leaps and bounds in is working with others. Whether that be in the COM152 group speech, the committees for the Thanksgiving Dinner, playing Harry Potter Mafia on a Sunday night, or working with Program Board, being able to work with others is an important skill. When applied to a Jesuit Value, Men and Women For and With Others is the most relevant. I understand this value as sharing gifts, pursuing justice, and having concern for the poor and marginalized. When a group can do all of these things, they are unstoppable.

#forandwithothers

 

Another of the values is Unity of Mind an Heart. My understanding of that is developing the whole person and integrating all aspects of our lives. This really plays into self-awareness, something that I have grown in. I have learned so much about myself this year by being away from all of the influences surrounding me my entire life at home. I have discovered and further developed my own individual values and beliefs that I hold central in my life.

#unity

 

The last of the Jesuit Values that I think have played a central role in my growth this year is Cura Personalis which is“Care for the individual person.” To me this means respecting each person as a child of God and all of God’s creations. Living with a diverse array of individuals this year has taught me the value of treating everyone with dignity, respect, and high regard. My personal skills have grown as well. Because of FLP, I feel that I have an entirely different outlook when it comes to tangible leadership skills and I am able to apply them to the values Creighton holds dear.

#curapersonalis

 

Section II

 

One of the most meaningful memories I have of my FLP experience is the Ropes Course. It was such a fun and interactive way to learn so much about myself, what I’m capable of, what my friends fear the most, and the value of teamwork. During the high part of the course, we were in teams of six, six people I had not made very tight bonds with yet. We had to help each other overcome our fears and make it across the element as a team. Without everyone’s total trust in one another, we would not have made it. Our leader kept saying, “Rely on each other, not on your tether.”This can be applied to life and leadership in many ways.

 

The bonds I created with my team are tight, rooted in total reliance. I was terrified at the time, but looking back it was so much fun! After making it across we got to zip-line down which was exhilarating in itself. During the low ropes part of the day, we still had to overcome challenges as a group and rely on one another. One person would not be capable of doing everything by themselves. This is something I’ve learned throughout the year as I’ve gotten involved with an abundance of things. I am not capable of doing everything by myself, but I have always found relief in falling back on my fellow FLPers throughout the year. I trust them, just as I trusted them with my life during the trust fall activity at the Ropes Course. While I was skeptical at the time, they caught me, proving that they can hold a lot of weight if they work together. I am continually amazed by the things we can accomplish as a group.

 

The individual high ropes section was the part which scared me the most. There was no one there to catch me if I fell or lend me a helping hand if I was struggling. Everything was entirely on me, and honestly I didn’t think I could do it. But I did and I learned a lot about what I’m capable of which is so much more than I sometimes give myself credit. The Ropes Course and FLP in general have planted a seed of self confidence in me that have allowed me to step outside of my comfort zone and put myself out there.

 

The Fall Retreat is another memory of the year that I hold very dearly to my heart. I left feeling SO uplifted by my FLP family and really at peace with everything. There is something about being in the middle of no where with 59 of your best friends that is so special. Activities like come to the middle, shoulder tap, and love note writing began to break down the barriers and allowed our floor to share in emotional, meaningful, and eye opening experiences together. The candle pass, which took 6 1/2 hours to complete, was incredible. It was so cool to see all walls broken down and to be able to stare into each person with dignity for who they truly are. I feel so privileged to be a part of such an awesome community.

 

The last defining experience of the year has to be playing Harry Potter Mafia with Chris until all hours of the night and morning on a regular basis. This is such a good bonding experience that forces you to trust people you normally wouldn’t, work together with people you would’t normally talk to, and have fun with your best friends in a healthy way. Chris does such a good job of narrating the game; we all get into it so much that we talk about the games for days afterwards. Sharing in this game with the floor allows us to bond over the cumulative noise complaints and frustrating rounds when the ‘bad guys’ win. This game puts leadership situations into perspective because sometimes we will be forced to make difficult decisions that may not be unpopular but that which will benefit the group as a whole. We must work together and adapt to adversities thrown at us in order to achieve a common goal.

 

As you can see, my FLP journey is comprised of many character defining moments that have made me the person I am today.

 

Section III

 

CU Leadership - Exploring our Values

The first seminar of the year was with Father Lannon. I remember stressing over what to wear; I had never had to dress in business professional attire before. As soon as Father started speaking, my nerves calmed because I realized that he’s just a human like the rest of us. He’s a pretty chill guy. I wanted to give him a high five SO bad. That is actually on my Creighton Bucket List. He spoke about CU Leadership and how to become a leader on campus. The thing that stood out to me most was the fact that he said we have to feel at home first. This was great to hear because we were coming off of the high of Welcome Week, feeling more integrated into the University. After almost 2 semesters under my belt now, I honestly feel so at home. I don’t even want to leave for summer! Can’t I just stay here and live on K9 forever? Being a leader at Creighton requires you to process through tough decisions and handle stress. The thing that Father Lannon said that meant the most to me was to “Never get overwhelmed.. or even use that word.”Even at your worst times, a leader has to be able to handle pressure and not fold. This is something I think I have particularly developed well over the course of the year.

 

Heroic Leadership

Dr. Dornsife’s seminar regarding finding your passions and embodying Heroic leadership was my favorite one of all. A Heroic leader is self-aware. Self Awareness is all about discovering who you really are. Dr. Dornsife hit the head on the nail with this one. A great deal of finding yourself is finding your passion. He used a wonderful quote from a Jesuit, “What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the mornings, what you will do with your evenings, how you will spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything.”This quote is something that resonates very deeply in my heart. A lot of times it is hard to be the only Graphic Design major at a school full of health-science pre-med students. I get a lot of scrutiny for it sometimes when I complain about a class being difficult. But in reality, this is what I love. I wouldn’t want to study anything else. A lot of people are just in their major or profession for the money, or because their parents wanted them to. I feel very fortunate to have found my passion so early on. Dr. Dornsife told us, “Hardwork doesn’t garuntee anything, but without it you don’t have a chance. That’s the same with following your passion.”I couldn’t agree more.

 

Followership

Being a good follower is just as important as being a good leader. Every leader needs good followers however. Respecting the person in charge is essential to any leader/follower relationship. During this seminar, Dr. Wayne Young talked to us about being “strong, smart, and caring.” He told us that we need to be “accountable to your highest sense of self.” I am glad we learned about followership because I had never really thought about it in the context of leadership before. I’m not always going to be the leader of a group, so I will be sure to hold myself accountable to all of the traits of a good follower.

 

Servant Leadership

Servant leadership is the style I most commonly used in high school. I feel like I possess most of the qualities outlined in the manual that servant leaders characterize. The first one is listening. I like to think of myself as a good listener. I love hearing people’s stories and I like to help them in any way I can by listening and understanding their situation. I am also able to empathize with others. The most successful servant leaders are the ones that become skilled empathetic listeners. Other qualities include awareness, stewardship, and community building to name a few. I think I am strong in these areas as well. I get these traits from my mother. She is the best servant leader I know and I think she is largely the reason I grew up learning to be a leader for others and not just for myself.

 

Ethical Leadership

Colleen Batcheler from Conagra talked to us about Ethical Leadership. I think the most important thing I took away from this seminar is that you have to lead with a purpose and that the most investible resource you have it time. Invest it in the the things or people that give back most. She talked a lot about finding your own ingredients for success and learning from your mistakes. I think Colleen is a perfect example of an ethical leader because she knows her core values and she has the courage to live them out in all parts of her life. She considers those around her and the effects her decisions might have on other people. I think this is the most interesting leadership style and I hope to further develop it in the future.

 

Integrity Leadership

Leading with Integrity means seeking what’s best for others. I also think that it has to do with doing the right thing when no one is watching. Integrity is one of those values I hod near and dear to my heart. Leading with integrity means striving to be the beset leader you can be. All of that being said, I think this describes me perfectly. I feel like I have a lot of integrity and I know that I always strive for more in my life. Integrity is related to the process of knowing yourself, and since I feel like I have a pretty good sense of that after the year, I know I can apply this leadership theory in my daily practices.

 

Visionary and Transformational Leadership

I was pretty bummed when I realized that the one seminar I missed Gary Kuhlman came. I feel like I could have benefitted a lot from his talk because a lot of times I get caught up in everything I’m doing and try to do everything by myself. He is famous for saying, “He can’t do everything and neither can my wife, but together we can do anything.” I think this has so much truth in it. While I may not be blind or in a wheelchair, I still can’t do everything and sometimes I need to take a step back iso ask for help. I think visionary leaders have a clear vision of what is possible and then execute their plans effectively by guiding and transmitting energy to others. Visionary leaders promote a partnership approach and create a shared sense of vision and meaning with others.