Citizenship

PowerPoint Definition: Citizenship occurs when one becomes responsibly connected to the community/society in which one resides by actively working towards change to benefit others through care, service, social responsibility, and community involvement.

My Definition: Citizenship is a sense of belonging to a community. This community could be a literal place or an intangible friend group or company. Citizenship is having a sense of invested involvement to drive the community in the way of positive social change.

So What? My experience... Here I can provide two examples both within the same organization as an observation of leadership. Within the Big Event my sophomore year, the leaders were fantastic. They ensured that all of us on committee were there for a common purpose. Not only that, but they created an atmosphere of mutual respect and friendship where we felt like we were working toward a common goal. That year I was so incredibly motivated to work toward this goal and won committee member of the year.

The following year, leadership was too results driven and not enough people driven. When leaders don't value people, they lose respect. No community is able to be built when I felt like I was on constant defense mode. What used to be a positive organization felt like a complete change of face to become a negative leadership style. As a result, I felt less motivated and disconnected from the organizations mission.

Now What? My reflection...Whenever I start working with a new team, I first try to have us all get to know one another better. When friendships form, people become accountable to each other and feel welcomed in. This belonging, or citizenship, is not only fun to create but leads to an easier team to manage. When people belong, they belong to a common purpose, and they move as a functional unit toward accomplishing a goal.