1. Communication and setting up meetings takes a lot of time. This was a great lesson to learn. I underestimated how much time it would take to set up Zoom links and find times that would work for me and the people I interviewed.
2. There are many ways to show data or info, but some ways are more effective. Some ways will draw in the listener better than others. For example, when giving a story it is a lot more effective to speak then to write.
3. Students have an advantage. Many people are willing to give up their time to help a student. I emailed many random people I have never met to interview. They all said yes. I will use this advantage for as long as I am a student. This idea came up in my MDL class, but I had never really thought about it. In my project I actually used what we called the Student Visa and saw the advantges students have.

This past weekend I finished with my 12th interview. I interviewed Mr. Due from William and Mary. He is in charge with their military transition program. This interview had a very interesting side, because he had an extensive military past serving for 20 years, so he had developed very regimented leadership. Looking to the final project i’ve started to think that im going to write an essay. It seems like combining my thoughts to these questions will be an easier route writing an essay. If I were to make a presentation it would be hard to have a flow, and convey my point well. Overall I feel like my ideas are starting to come together. MY answers to these questions are authentic. I’m still exploring the idea if leaderships is natural, or traits people have make them leaders.

I interviewed a Duke doctor last week (Dr. Kim). One thing he said really caught my attention. He said that leaders are naturual people shouldnt try to be leaders. The best leaders are ones that naturally lead and arent trying to. I can tootally see this idea fitting into my final presentation. Before I began my IS this idea was interesting to me because I thought their was some truth to it. This idea totally embodies authentic. The answer to why some people are natural leaders Im still working, but I think my interview question, “What are some elements of your most authentic self (Qualties you have)? ” Is helping me figure this out, because Im seeing similarity in some answers between different leaders.

Again the theme of passion is coming up in interviews. Almost everyone I’ve interviewed has said the quality you need to be a good leader in what your doing is passion. In one interview someone brought up the point that if you really want to be a leader in something you may be asking too many questions, and thinking of every possible angle on something. This can sometimes slow down a group, but it shows the people around you that you care about what your doing. This will help motivate others around you to care as well. This idea connects to being authentic because if you are authentic you will fall into leadership positions for things you really do care about.

This past week I interviewed DA’s sustainability chair Connor Ennis. This interview was very interesting because he mentioned some key points from my book. The most unique connection he made with himself and leadership was the Boss vs. Leader idea. He mentioned how his favorite thing to see as the sustainability chair was with the Sustain-In, which other students created. He said this is the biggest aspect of leadership which is making others around you innovate and start to be leaders as well. Connor said that a boss tells people exactly what to do, and a leader helps and makes others innovate. This was very interesting to see this connection made by someone I interviewed to the book I finished reading.

Thanks,

Chase

This week I interviewed Mr. Ulku-Steiner. This interview went very well. I recorded the interview so I could get the most out of it at the moment. Today I listened to the interview and took down notes on the things that grabbed me. This technique really helped me because this made it so that I was able to really listen to the person I was interviewing, and show them I am listening.

Next week:

Next week im planning on interviewing five people in the 0-25 age range. I have around 30 pages left in my first book, so I will finish that this weekend. Overall im feeling back on track with my independent study and caught up.

This week I met with Mr. Phu. He helped me take a step deeper into my independent study. He made me realize there are many things I can do to make my study on leadership unique, and unlike many others. For example:

1. Diversity in people I interview. (Outside of DA)
2. Answer my interview questions for myself before the end of the semester. Then see how they change when I answer them after.
3. One main aspect of this study is for me to become a better leader.

The third point he illustrated is something that is important I get out of this. In my other activities like athletics this study is something that will help me become a better leader and I can apply.

This week I worked on reconstructing my interview questions. Along with this I kept reading my book On Becoming a Leader. One quote I thought was very powerful that I got from what I read this week was, “How can you best express yourself? The first test is knowing what you want, knowing your abilities and capacities, and recognizing the difference between the two.”

Looking ahead to Next week: This weekend im going to polish my interview questions. Then I will practice by interviewing Mrs. Frasher. Next week I’m hoping to interview about 3 people in the 0-25 age range.

This week I have been finishing one of my two books. Which is On Becoming a Leader by Warren Bennis. I’ve gotten a lot of important stories and ideas from this book. This book is very story based which keeps me interested. Reading this, again confirms to me that my final product needs to be story based. This will make for an entertaining final product.

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