Unleash the Leader Within

Exercises III and IV of the Career Work-In involve exercising your skills and increasing your flexibility -- your range of motion allowing you to cover more job descriptions. One of the strategies used to increase your flexibility is unleashing your inner leader. Even in turbulent times, hiring managers are looking for leaders to fill the positions they have. The same rings true in higher education as hiring committees search for the best candidates -- the leaders in the pack will be selected first.

Being a leader in higher education is more than holding department or committee chairmanships. It is about being the go-to person in a particular field, being reliable and a proactive problem solver. One way to go about being a leader in your field is to let people outside your department know what you are doing. Something as simple as starting a blog about your discipline where you discuss issues, news/research, and how you are bringing this alive in your work will gain you attention. Do you have instructional strategies that are particularly effective? Share them. Do you have a different take on a topic than is commonly held? Share it. There are professors who use their blogs as test areas for future research and papers.

A way to be viewed as a leader in higher education is by being the go-to person for comments and ideas. Many colleges and universities have media inquiry links on their websites for members of the media to find experts who are willing to give interviews or opinions to the press. Get yourself on that list. Finally, be a proactive problem solver. If your university or department is running into issues that require creative solutions, share your opinion and work through the problems.

No matter if you are currently in-between positions or sitting as a tenured professor, your career can benefit by establishing yourself as a leader. Like Weddle mentions in his book, Work Strong, "...we all have the DNA to become a leader, to infuse our approach to employment with a commitment to serving others, to imbue the purpose of our work with a more inclusive, more impactive vision." Put yourself out there and others will take note of your leadership.