Someone once told me that a good leader isn’t afraid to let others take control. I cannot for the life of me remember who it was that said that, but I have a feeling it was a teacher when I was in grade school because I was often getting “spoken” to for trying to control too much.

I’ve never seen myself as someone who leads, I always saw myself as someone who lifts up and challenges others. When I work with people that seem to have hit a proverbial ceiling and seem to be stuck, I like to challenge their thinking with new perspectives and moving that ceiling aside so they can strive for more. This has come in many different forms, from allowing others to take the lead in certain situations to designing special programming for our center.

The people I work with should be able to rely on me to challenge their view of things with an alternative way of thinking to keep their lenses broad and adaptable. I approach leadership with an honest and authentic sense of who I am and what my intentions are. I have always given others the chance to and encouraged them to succeed and surpass me if that’s what they wish, because while I think I’m good at what I do, not everyone has that confidence.

I am a firm believer that a good leader can motivate people to do their best, but a great leader inspires people to challenge themselves.