Here, after much delay, is my journal for Seminar 2 of the Wisconsin Rural Leadership Program. Life does tend to get in the way of the things we'd really like to be doing, but at least I'm getting this out before our next seminar.

I've also created a web site to archive all issues of this journal. You can find the entire series, along with photographs (and probably some documents before we're done) at http://www.dennisdeery.com/wrlp.

You're receiving this email because I've taken the liberty of signing you up for this journal. You can expect to receive emails about every other month, following each of our 11 seminars over the next two years. If you wish to stop receiving these emails, please hit Reply, type remove and send the message - you will be automatically removed from the list. If you choose to keep receiving the email, and would like more detail on any topics covered, please don't hesitate to drop me an email. I look forward to any feedback you might care to offer!

Dennis Deery
dennis@irose.com
 

With a 3+ hour drive to this seminar, several classmates from western Wisconsin tried to organize a carpool. For a variety of reasons, from a dog-sitting crisis to an emergency root canal, the carpool fell apart the day of the seminar. I did manage to connect with one classmate in Wausau, and we shared quite a nice ride to Tomahawk. The timing was perfect, a gorgeous late-afternoon/early-evening ride across northern Wisconsin in fall. We stopped for snacks and a quick dinner in Tomahawk and ran into other classmates doing the same. In the brief jaunt from Tomahawk to the seminar site at Treehaven, we saw several deer, a couple of hawks, and various other wildlife. Turning onto the road to Treehaven, it was clear that the setting for this seminar was quite beautiful. Treehaven is a field station for UW-Stevens Point. It comes complete with classroom facilities, a cafeteria, dormitories, a pond, campfire ring, and miles of hiking and skiing trails. We would quickly learn that the accommodations were first-rate, including incredible home-style meals.

We began our seminar on Tuesday evening with "Reflections on the Essence of Leadership." Prior to the seminar, we had all been asked to submit two photographs that for us displayed the essence of leadership. Each member of the group took a turn explaining their photographs to the group while they were displayed on a screen in front of the room. My photographs are shown below.

Dad Teaching Hunter Safety

A Lecture at the Aldo Leopold Shack

The first photograph probably takes little explanation for anyone that knows me. My dad has always been a great role model, and has always set an example by donating time and effort to various things. He was a volunteer fireman in Belmont, and served as chief of the department for many years. Over the years raising his family he at various times taught hunter safety, served as a scout master, volunteered for the local rescue squad (EMS), and countless other things. He's never made a big deal out of these things, instead accepting that it's just a part of life.

The second photo was taken this past summer at the Aldo Leopold shack. For those of you not familiar with Aldo Leopold, he was a conservationist and writer who lived for many years in Wisconsin. He taught at the University of Wisconsin in the 1930s and 1940s. He is widely credited with being at least one of the creators of modern-day environmentalism, touting the idea of the land ethic and man's place as part of the natural world. The Aldo Leopold Foundation carries on this legacy through various educational and environmental activities. One such program is the "Shack Seminar" series. On alternating Monday evenings through the summer they invite various speakers to the shack, Leopold's weekend getaway and living laboratory, to discuss environmental issues. I thought this showed the essence of leadership for a couple of reasons. First, I think education in all forms is a necessary component, perhaps the most important component, of leadership. Secondly, I think the fact that such seminars and activities are carried on over 50 years after Leopold's death shows the incredible legacy that true leadership can create.

Next we had a brief discussion of the elements of a personal working leadership philosophy, and a brief overview of the rest of the seminar. We were then set free to spend the evening however we wanted. Being primary election day, and a group filled with political junkies, we headed for the game room where we could watch election results on TV. We also had a pool table, dart board, and plenty of refreshments, so we had a really enjoyable night catching up with everyone.

Wednesday morning, September 11, was the 1st anniversary of the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks. After breakfast (and a brief morning hike for me), we gathered in the classroom for a brief remembrance of the tragedy. Gathered around some candles and a photo of the burning towers, shot by a classmate's New York friend, several members of the group shared their thoughts and memories of the day. Having known these people for only a few months, and not at all a year ago, I was surprised at how important it felt to mark this day with this group.

Next we moved on to a discussion of personality types and interactions. This discussion focused on the personality types we had all learned about at our orientation by taking the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) evaluation. The MBTI is basically a broad categorization of various personality types. Under the MBTI, there are 16 different personality types, created from 4 pairs of different preferences. People are classified as introvert or extrovert (I or E), sensing or intuitive (S or N), thinking or feeling (T or F), and judging or perceiving (J or P). For the record, I tested as an INTP.

I'm sure after reading that butchered description of the MBTI, Kathleen is cringing. You can learn a bit more about the MBTI here, or by emailing Kathleen. The site includes brief descriptions of the various types.

The MBTI provides a good starting point for discussions about personality, and how people with different personalities interact, which was our purpose for it. We got a ton of great information throughout the seminar about the strengths and weaknesses of the different personality types. Most illuminating for me were group exercises we did where people of like types sat together and talked about our desires and dislikes for our work environment. It was strikingly clear how things that we take for granted in ourselves can really cause problems for other people. Over and over we saw the importance of trying to take into account the views of others when trying to work in a group.

Wednesday afternoon we got a chance to enjoy the perfect fall weather by working outside. We played a number of games to teach group dynamics and trust, such as the ever-popular falling backwards to let team members catch you. Sprinkled among the games were some cool activities to get us talking to everyone in the group, and sharing tidbits about ourselves. I was struck by the depth of some of the things people were willing to share. I think we all came out of the afternoon feeling like we were beginning to really get to know each other.

Wednesday evening we discussed "Reflection as a Skill." Scattered throughout this session, and most others, were opportunities for personal reflection or small-group discussion on the topic at hand. We were encouraged to give some thought to our personal leadership beliefs, our goals, and our methods for getting there. The location and weather for the seminar proved to be perfect for this kind of activity, because we could all take time to get outdoors and spend some quiet time sitting under pine trees. I think spending time being quiet and thinking is incredibly important, but I realized during this seminar how little I've done that lately. Having had some pretty stark reminders of the importance of this in the past, it was good to get a gentle reminder this time around.

Wednesday evening was spent chatting around the campfire next to Treehaven's pond. Before the night was over we were treated to a sing-along, and it was a treat because some of our group members have really great voices. The evening wound down with more than 1/2 hour's worth (yes, that many) of Ole and Lena jokes.

Thursday morning I was up before sunrise (yes, I was!) to take advantage of the great scenery around Treehaven. There are miles of hiking trails, so I did a little hiking and watched the sun come up over the pond. Be sure to check out the pictures! The sunrise with fog laying over the pond was so great, I managed to roll out of bed early enough to watch it on Friday as well.

Next we discussed leadership theory, then moved on to talking about community. I really enjoyed this session because I think small towns and rural areas really highlight the strength of real communities in dealing with tough issues. We had some great small-group discussions where we got to hear about each group member's action case, a write-up of an issue facing the member's community. If you're interested, you can see my action case here.

Thursday afternoon we were fortunate to have some free time. I went for a good long hike on Treehaven's trails with a classmate. The abundance of wildlife around was apparent as we saw deer, coon and wolf tracks, and bear scat. The wolf tracks were confirmed Thursday night when we heard wolves howling as we sat around the campfire. After dinner we had a session on meeting facilitation and group dynamics. Once again we had some great demonstrations of the importance of being aware of personality types.

Friday morning brought a session on one of my favorite topics, ethics. Most of our time was spent in small groups discussing ethical what-if scenarios that we were given. Always one to play the devil's advocate, I enjoyed trying to get classmates to look at all sides of the issues we were discussing. I think we were all in the frame of mind to try to see all sides after all we'd learned, but some folks still stuck pretty tightly to their own ethical frame of reference - another good lesson on dealing with different personalities in the real world.

Finally, we had a short discussion of finding a leadership style that fits who we are, then a chance for each group member to share what they had learned in the seminar.

Not long after our Treehaven seminar, I had an opportunity to put some of these lessons to practical use. I belong to an organization called Wisconsin Rural Partners which looks at issues facing rural Wisconsin and ways to address them. One way they do this is to provide teams that visit communities in the state, by invitation, to evaluate strengths and weaknesses of the community. The team makes a public presentation to the community, then follows up with a written report recommending things the community can do to improve itself. I served on a team that visited Adams County, Wisconsin, two weeks after the WRLP seminar.

The teams are made up of volunteers, and we met the day we began the Adams County visit. The entire week in Adams County was a shining example of putting to work all that we had learned in the WRLP seminar. Our team had to hold 14 listening sessions with community members, then draft a public presentation and report, all in one week's time. It was really interesting to see the interplay between team members as I recalled all I had learned about personality types and work styles. It was certainly a better experience for me because of what I had learned, but it was also a great reminder that I need more real-world practice to improve my people skills - again, no great surprise to anyone who knows me.

For more information about the Wisconsin Rural Leadership Program, check out their web site at http://www.uwex.edu/ces/wrlp/.