I love quotes and use them in my leadership presentations. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Habit is habit and not to be flung out of the window by any man, but coaxed downstairs a step at a time. – Mark Twain
• The greatest use of life is to spend it on something that will outlast it. — William James
• Every system is perfectly designed to achieve the results that it gets.  – David Beckwith, M.D.

- Scott J. Allen

I just received my copy of the The Student Leadership Challenge.

Check it out and let us know what you think! – Scott J. Allen

While browsing through the textbook for my social psychology course the other day, I was surprised to stumble upon a section dedicated to leadership. I know that psychology plays a prominent role in leadership theory today, but never had I thought a basic social psychology textbook would address it. So, for those of you who are curious, I thought I’d outline what the book discusses in terms of leadership theory. After all, this may offer some insight into what general knowledge the masses hold on the academic study of leadership.

The text emphasizes that leaders are influenced by social context and then uses this as a segue into the various contexts that manipulate leaders and vice versa. First, it tells how personality traits enable leaders to have a powerful influence over others. Wisely, the book warns that personality traits are not the sole determinants of a leader’s success. Indeed, it shows that the culture of a society, whether collectivist or individualist, encompasses a situational determinant of leadership. Collectivist cultures tend to endorse leaders who nurture group relations whereas individualist ones prefer leaders who focus on the achievement of goals. After a brief section on leadership styles (autocratic, laissez-faire, etc.), the text finishes with a thorough profile of transformational leadership. All in all, I feel as though the book presented a concise yet effective picture of leadership theory for college students in a basic social psychology course. – Jim Meehan

     When it comes time for high school students to search for their future home in higher education, surely they will consider the classic features of an institution’s retention rate, student to teacher ratio, and campus size. Since the undergraduate experience is typically a time for a student’s well-rounded development as a person, shouldn’t we start placing more of an emphasis on what kind of leadership development programs are available at universities? Many higher education institutions have picked up on this trend as seen in the recent growth of emerging leaders programs, similar to that at Case Western Reserve.

     Unfortunately, I do not feel as though universities are advertising such programs well enough in the admissions process. For example, the most common technique is simply to list all the student organizations at each college in the admissions brochures. Of course, this method cannot really sell the student on leadership. Equally as troubling may be the fact that applicants are losing sight of such opportunities in their college searches. So much importance is placed on the numbers, rankings, and academic reputation of universities that students tend to lose sight of extra-curricular development. Kids in high school are quick to get involved so as to stay competitive in the admissions game. So why aren’t they similarly concerned about what their future school can provide in terms of organizational involvement? While I’m certain most university marketing and admission offices are cognizant of the need for effective leadership development programs, there is definite room for growth. Perhaps one day there will be leadership development program rankings for each school in the fashion of the U.S. News and World Report approach.  – Jim Meehan

At the ILA conference I attended a session on the MSL and was impressed with the progress that Susan Komives and her team have made.  What an incredible contribution to the field.  Learn more by clicking here. – Scott J. Allen