University of Arizona Greek life is reflected in the concept of "servant leadership." Fraternities have a lot to offer and servant leadership is just one of many great opportunities provided by Greek life.
Servant Leadership is both a leadership philosophy and a set of leadership practices. Traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the “top of the pyramid.” By comparison, the servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible.
Our generation has been granted an
opportunity.Here, at the University of Arizona, Greek life students are faced
with decisions of servant leadership, daily. With the help of an ancient philosophy
and Robert K. Greenleaf, University Greek life serves as your diving board into
the pool of the modern movement known as servant leadership.
Although
you might not know it, you have been a servant leader your whole life.
Whether it was serving the needs of others or simply pushing around the
people you care about, these all make you a servant leader. This fall, at
the University of Arizona, over 1200 new students have already taken their first step towards being a servant leader by registering for recruitment.
You might
not be able to pinpoint exactly why you want to rush but, the
fact of the matter is, you want, and stand for, something larger than
yourself. As a new member of your organization, you will be
exposed, not only to leadership, but to what makes you a leader. Here are some of the basic characteristics of servant leadership.
Listen, listen, and
listen. You will find that people are more compliant to offer support when
they feel listened to. Not only will listening allow you to learn significantly more about others, but you will also gain more information without even
trying.
Put yourself in other
people’s shoes. Empathy is vital for your success, when it comes to
understanding others. The phrase, “manage people not employees,” is a direct
result of empathizing.
Be on the mend.
Make an effort to assist others solve their
issues or conflicts. Make this effort not for your personal benefit, but for
the development of each individual.
Mind the gap. The
most successful leaders thrive by being self-aware. Self-awareness keeps you
humble by making you aware as to what you might be
susceptible to. Once self-awareness is
gained, you must become aware of others around you in order to grow.
Inspired by you. You have the power to sell anything. The more
passion you have for a cause, and the better you are able to relay your passion to others, the more likely it is the people will buy into
your cause. Naturally, some servant leaders achieve more success through
inspiring others because they are better able to express their passion. You must respect your power and avoid taking advantage of
others. Passion sells.
Mental picture. You rarely think
day-to-day, instead you build a vision that trumps your reality. The vision
of your life that you imagine for yourself is reflected in your reality. Greek life puts you in a position to think
like a servant leader. Whether you have experienced one of those characteristics, or
all of them, the journey of servant leadership begins with your rush
registration, and continues on from there.