Finding Inspiration
If you’ve lost your mojo, spending time with 150 idealistic young people who are determined to continue changing the world will certainly help you get it back. The Coca Cola Scholars Foundation has been refreshing the world with new generations of leader for now 30 years. This past week I had the opportunity to engage with the newest class of Coca Cola Scholars as a leadership development facilitator. As much as the experience was designed for me to serve as a guide on their journey of self discovery, I learned as well. This was a classic case of life interrupted. As adults we often get caught up in our busy lives and forget the youthful idealism that led us down our paths. Here are a few reflections that I have after our whirlwind of time together:
It’s easy to lose your way. I sat in roomful of motivated and idealistic young people who were worried about what’s next. While they looked to me as the adult for comfort that things get easier, they were shocked to learn that finding clarity is an ongoing struggle. This weekend was about equipping them with the tools to pursue purpose and passion. We helped them create personal visions, identify values, and consider how their emotional intelligence factors into their leadership. But each of these things require ongoing reflection and habit forming practice to really last.
The labels we give our kids matter. I was fortunate enough to receive the label of leadership at a young age. I was a 2001 Coca Cola Scholar. I engaged in leadership development workshops in high school. I started organizations, fought for social causes that I believed mattered, and generally fit the archetype of a charismatic young leader. Because adults around me saw me as a leader, they invested in me as such, and thus I was afforded numerous opportunities to build self awareness. Just the simple act of being labeled a leader put me on a certain trajectory. How many kids are we leaving behind because we haven’t recognized their brilliance, and properly identified them as leaders in their own right?
Building self awareness needs to be a universal educational practice. Let’s face it, our approach to education is deeply flawed. Many kids leave school with a degree that barely matters, having learned content that’s increasingly irrelevant in today’s information economy, in a learning format that’s outdated (i.e. our industrial style education system). Our guest speaker for the opening banquet said it best: in school we’re often taught what to think, not how to think. That’s problematic, particularly in a world that’s constantly changing. Fortunately for our 150 scholars, we helped move them further along a path of self awareness that will not only make them better people, but stronger leaders. Every student in America needs and deserves this.
This brings me to my last reflection, which is the art of failing cheerfully. This was one of our guiding norms throughout the weekend. We asked 17 and 18 year olds to take productive risks in sharing and exploring their identity and for many, it was difficult, and ultimately freeing. Remember, these are 150 of the most accomplished students across the country. Giving them permission to fail, and fail cheerfully at that, was likely akin to giving them air. But it worked, and it reminded me of my own need to fail cheerfully, both personally and professionally.
I was re-inspired (as I always am spending time with Coke scholars) to revisit my own vision for impacting the world of education. Imagine a world where all students have the opportunity to discover and pursue their purpose and passions, and their educational experience is designed to support them in that process. We’re not there yet, but I’m looking forward to failing cheerfully as we work to get there together.
SDW3
