LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY
My leadership philosophy is I believe constant change promotes a progressive path. To me, leadership means being capable enough to lead a group without bias or malicious intent. I motivate others by setting goals and overcoming challenges that arise. I like to provide guidance and inspire in order to improve the team’s performance consistently. I always lead a team with passion and drive. By me being a passionate and driven leader, my team then becomes passionate and driven just as if someone is optimistic the entire team will have a similar thought process. I like to think I am a transformational leader and I am passionate about servant leadership. Transformational leadership essentially centers around the constant evolvement and establishment of new benchmarks and goals. From what I have learned, this leader establishes new goals and pathways that lead to the team's success through new practices. Servant leadership centers around the idea of serving your community and the people in it. I currently serve as the president and founder of First Generation Medicine. This organization's purpose is to provide first-generation students with the tools necessary to become impactful leaders within the field of medicine (e.g., physician, dentist, nurse, PT, PA). We empower members through mentorship, volunteering, experiential learning, and more. Ultimately, we aim to foster a diverse community that leads to personal and professional growth.
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I also am a part of International Medical Outreach serving as the marketing director. This organization dedicates its efforts to providing means for its members to expand their cultural awareness regarding medicinal practices and living standards all over the globe. The mission surrounds the importance of international medical altruism, sustainability, cross-cultural integration, preventative healthcare in underserved communities. Through this, we hope to leave our helpful footprint on the impoverished and underserved areas of the world where medical care is scarce or nonexistent. The organization over the years has been to Peru, Haiti, New Orleans, Colombia, etc. Currently, I am an accepted applicant to the Peru trip over Spring Break where, as a team, we will shadow in hospitals and distribute donations. These organizations show I have based my leadership impact on servant leadership. Through being a part of these organizations, I am able to exercise transformational leadership by constantly evolving with my team and establishing new goals each week. For example, in First Generation Medicine I am able to delegate tasks to my executive board and as a marketing director, I discuss new ideas with my team on how to improve our marketing strategies.
Throughout my time in LEAD, I have been able to formulate and solidify my values. I have learned that I value consciousness of self, advocacy, and service. These are the values I base my leadership style on. Through understanding my values, I have found a myriad of others with a similar thought process. Since finding my values, I have become a more intentional person in my everyday life. I believe my mission in life is to serve others. This shows through my major and extracurricular activities. My career goal is to graduate and attend medical school in hopes of becoming a pediatric neurosurgical anesthesiologist. Dedicating my life to patient care and medicine aligns with my values and leadership style which helped me form my philosophy.
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Last week, we spoke about leadership storytelling. It was interesting, especially for me, to hear leadership is similar to a story. You could be a great leader on the inside; however, if the leader is unable to communicate or get their story across no one will listen. This is interesting to me because throughout LEAD I think this is the first time I have heard this perspective. I did not believe I was a storyteller prior to learning about this. Now, I can work on my communication and leadership philosophy in order to form an articulated story. I believe this is what my goal is this semester.