At the end of last semester (A.K.A May… where has the time gone?), I had the honor of being named one of the two Campus Correspondents/Club Presidents of our Her Campus chapter for the now-current academic year. I had no idea what I’d encounter along the way, but it was a journey I couldn’t have been more excited about.
Truth be told, I’d never had a leadership position before. There were many times when I needed to act like a leader—such as taking charge in high school group projects and sometimes doing all the work or organizing small-group practice sessions during color guard season—but I wasn’t selected to ever be an official leader of any kind.
Needless to say, former CC’s Emily Sheptoski and Kasey Lanenberg took a chance on me and they sure left big shoes behind for me to fill!
With this semester inching closer and closer to the finish line, check out my reflection below about my experience of having a leadership position for the first time and five incredible lessons I’ve learned thus far.
I’d be lying if I said the excitement I had for this position wasn’t entirely because I’d have a leadership title to add to my resume.
Now that I’ve made it through this first semester, though, I’ve realized that the meaning of being a leader extends far beyond the actual name of it.
I’m not just a Club President—when running meetings and scheduling articles, I’m an organizer and a planner; when designing posters to promote the club around campus, I’m an artist and a marketer; when encouraging members who have either questions or doubts about their ideas, I’m a cheerleader; when publishing our chapter’s articles every Sunday morning, I’m not only a publicist, but also one heck of a proud mom.
“Club President” doesn’t even begin to cover half the roles I also took on.
2. Time management is KEY
Alongside Her Campus, I’m also a campus tour guide and a writer for the university Admissions and Campus Life Blog, as well as an active member in both W.I.S.E. (Women in Science and Engineering) and Circle K International. And on top of all that, I’m a full-time college student.
Needless to say, managing my time is an absolute priority for me 24/7 because I know that even though everything I’m involved in is extracurricular, and my ultimate priority is to do well in school, I have different duties and obligations for each club that I have a personal responsibility to balance alongside my academic schedule and homework load.
At the beginning of the semester, I hadn’t found my rhythm yet with this balance and I often procrastinated. I’m by no means saying I’ve figured it all out now, but I’m definitely getting a better handle on my jobs and, at this point, I’ve gotten used to busy days and late nights.
3. I gained a new definition of “loyalty”
If you were ever the head when playing “follow the leader” when you were younger, you probably did a bunch of silly movements knowing fully well everyone behind you would soon be doing the exact same thing. In the adult world, though, “follow the leader” more or less takes the form of “you do your part and I’ll do mine”—a train that’ll only work if all its parts are working together.
Knowing I have a team who relies on me to not only do my job, but also to do my job well has consistently put a great deal of positive stress on myself that ends up pushing me to achieve my absolute best. Better yet, knowing I have to do my job in Her Campus well, along with my other commitments, has completely revamped my definition of “loyalty” because if I’m not loyal to the club, I’ve let down an entire group of people—and myself.
4. There are endless learning opportunities
As imperfect human beings, we tend to think we know everything once we’ve achieved a certain position, whether it be the “big dog” senior in high school or the single manager of a “big dog” company. I was no exception to this notion when I was sworn in as CC, but little did I know that there were so many things I’d end up learning.
It’s a constant refilling of new information in my reservoir of knowledge whenever I step into our weekly meeting room on campus: from themed article weeks and team bonding ideas to management structure, there are ample of things that come to mind for me to bring to the table and improve for next semester.
It just goes to show that no matter what job you have in life, there’s always room to learn more.
5. Half work and half play makes Jane a very happy girl
The fact that I love to write, especially with the beautiful team I’m honored to be affiliated with, makes my job as Club President truly a blast.
Adults have told us since the day we were born that if we find something we love to stick with it and we shall never work a single day… I’m lucky, and proud, enough to say that I’ve accomplished this dream at just 20 years old.
Although I’m frequently in charge of taking care of multiple tasks, I absolutely love what I do and the club for which I do those things. When you love what you do, it really does feel like play rather than work!
