Resident Assistant ... not Super Woman

Unrealistic Expectations happen to RA’s all of the time. A Resident Advisor is not super woman. They will not be able to solve all of your problems, or always be on duty. An RA simply does the best they can with the situations that are given to them. Residents need to understand that they are among many other residents, that have just as many issues, and that the Resident Advisor can only do the best they can with the time they are given.

Many times when students first come to college they are unsure of everything. Anything from what clothes to wear for the Gateway Clipper party to how to register for classes, or even if they have made the right choice of college. Often times they rely on their RA to be there for them and their issues. But the truth in the matter is an RA can only do so much.

Yes, RA’s are able to talk things out with students, or to help GUIDE a student in the right direction, so they themselves can eventually solve their problems. However, it is unreasonable for a resident to think that their RA is perfect or on duty all of the time. RA’s will not have all the answers to res-life, family, friends, and educational problems, but they will try their hardest to steer a student in the right direction (whether that be to another RA, GRD or even a counseling service on campus)… which is a true quality of a leader.

15 Minute Leader

I think that a leader is someone who can be trusted in difficult times. Leadership isn’t always smooth sailing, there is going to be times where people or ideas bump heads, and a leader is well prepared for these times to occur.

A leader is someone who is independent, but takes everyone’s opinions into account. A leader should know how to take hold of a situation with their independence, but should gather a group consensus. A leader is someone who cares about the people they are leading (looks at them as human beings). Without others ideas and input, power struggles will occur.

A leader is someone who takes charge of situations. They are not afraid to speak up for what is right. They are motivated and can organize and pull a situation/project together.

A leader is someone cares about a job being done correctly. They can execute a plan by seeing all the possible outcomes and choosing the best way to accomplish a task.

A leader is strong. They know their limitations and are willing to work on them (they know they are not perfect). They have been able to learn from the past and are motivated for the future.

A leader is someone who is approachable. They are someone you should feel as though you are able to talk and give your opinion to.

A leader is intelligent. They understand that they do not know everything, and will continue to learn new things everyday. They make rational, educated choices to get tasks accomplished.

A Leadership Experience

At the start of my high school senior year, I thought I was many things, but a leader was not one of them. I was just your average student who could not wait to graduate from their high school “bubble”. Therefore, I spent most of my time on the things that interest a high school senior the most, living it up with their friends before they leave for college. It was not until speaking with my sister, a freshman in college at the time, that my “senior” outlook on life changed.

Speaking with my sister was always the same; I wanted to know everything about college life since I would shortly be encountering this endeavor. She urged me to forget my “senioritis” and to do something constructive with my time (she mentioned me taking over her position in the club FCCLA which was in the previous year). I didn’t think anything of this; I was only concerned with graduating. However, later that very week I took her up on her advice after hearing about the club on morning announcements.

The first FCCLA (Future Career and Community Leaders of America) meeting I attended had minimal members, and not a lot of motivation. I don’t know what got into me but I knew things had to change. When my sister was involved with this club there was definitely more motivation than there currently was; I knew there had to be a change. After joining, within the next few weeks I found myself leading the club in brainstorming some sort of “community effort”. What we came up with was wonderful. The 2004 Tsunami had just occurred in Asia, and in order to help out we decided to collect money at the next two home football games. In a matter of weeks we collected over 1,000 dollars for a notable relief fund.

This leadership act positively impacted so many lives, and will always remind me not to underestimate my leadership abilities.