Leadership Role Model (wk4)

Showing posthumous respect, the person whose leadership skills I respect would be Steve Jobs.  I know it's a little cliche, especially since I am typing this post on a Mac, but he deserves respect for driving Apple Inc. into the 21st century.  I'm not entirely sure how much of the current Apple lineup was born from his brain, but he had to wrangle the teams responsible for it's production.  Most of what I like about Jobs has come from watching him speak at conferences.  No, I have never been lucky enough (or wired in enough) to see him speak live, and I never will, but the sentiment comes across effectively in the videos.  To the right is Jobs presenting the first generation iPad.  It was this revolutionary product that blew people away, and his presentation of it was on point.  This company makes beautiful products, but most of them are things that people could easily do without.  Yet Jobs made people want and need and crave Apple products.  He got us addicted, and all Apple has to do now is keep their supply up.

Jobs was this dynamic speaker because he was excited about and invested in his product.  I think about this tactic for public speaking when I step foot in my classroom every day.  If I am not excited about what I am doing or teaching, the students should not be asked to be either.  So, I choose lessons that I will be excited about.  I never have to fake it, and my genuine enthusiasm, like Jobs', comes across.  

As I leave this program, and quite possibly branch out with my career, I think about how I will become an even more effective leader.  Here are some facts about me:  I love being in the classroom.  I love teaching at-risk youth.  I think I teach boys more effectively than I teach girls (not being sexist here, I just think I deal with boys' behavioral issues more effectively).  I would not ever want to become an administrator.  I don't deal well with know-it-alls or tattle tales.  I want to be a stronger teacher.  I am not sure how I am going to use this fancy new degree of mine, and it scares me when I think about how much money I now owe for it. 

These facts are meant to hide the fact that I do not know how I am going to apply my capstone and new leadership skills to what I am currently doing.  I do know that I have a huge tool box that makes my current job easier and more fun and exciting.  I guess that fact alone makes the whole year worth it.