Group XII (2006-2008) News

Group XII Leadership & Community Seminar, September 12-15, 2006

True Colors Shine Through

by David Beimborn, Group 12 Participant

As Group 12 participants prepared for the leadership seminar at Imago Dei Village near Clintonville, many thoughts and levels of preparation were achieved. We were soon introducing ourselves and describing how our images of the perception of leadership portrayed leadership--once again a wide variety of images from children and parents, work, adults, animals, posters or quotes.  The rest of the seminar took us through a variety of speakers, opportunities to socialize, and time to experience the beauty of Wisconsin in the Clintonville area.  Many were challenged with the exercises, while others were enlightened by determining their personality style and thus their color.  The personality style/color exercise just reinforced that there are diverse ways of processing, thinking, doing, reacting, and preparing for activities.  This concept carried over in to the remaining activities of the seminar with comments such as “that’s so blue of you” or “the orange in me says...” or “I’m a green”.  Blue, gold, green, or orange, it is a continuum and the diversity, difference, and strength of each is to be celebrated. 

Once again, being challenged to “step out of your box” was presented.  For some a large part of the seminar was just that, an “out of my comfort zone” experience.  For others it wasn’t as much.  Again, there was a realization that we all are at a different place in our lives and our leadership experience.  Understanding that doesn’t make it right or wrong, just different places on the same path, an exciting journey with parts of the trail uphill, some parts wide, some parts narrow, some parts rocky and some parts slippery.  But as one participant expressed near the end of the seminar when we were looking at ourselves and our leadership--“we’re all on the journey so when we start to slip we can reach out and there will be a hand to grab on to help us along, and when we reach a hilltop someone will be there to celebrate and to encourage.” 

The challenge of the journey is to develop leadership and skill, to understand that each of us has a different style as leaders and that each person that finds themselves following one of us brings different experiences and views.  The diversity among leaders and those being led could also be seen as seminar participants chose what they preferred, from being inside or being outside, visiting a local establishment for pool and refreshments, canoeing, sitting around the campfire, visiting a nature center, or going for a hike.  None of the activities were good or bad, right or wrong, they were just preferences that people had that they developed through their own life experiences.  Again, evidence of the diversity of leaders and those being led.

Each person has their own set of experiences that shape their values.  With that variety many of the same words and characteristics were described throughout the week as qualities of a leader...trust, values, leading by example, servant leader, integrity, honesty, leaving a legacy of other passionate leaders.  We are all in a position and are challenged as leaders to influence others and effect change to help make our work, families, church, communities and world a better place.

Chairing this seminar was Dan Hill, Local Government Specialist, UW-Extension and Bill Rizzo, Community Resource Development Educator, UW-Extension.

David Beimborn is a physical therapist at St. Nicholas Hospital in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

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