Nearly 40 women from throughout Iowa attended the pre-conference “Yes, We Can” leadership workshop led by Mary Ann Ahrens, Jan Mitchell and Jan Heinicke at the 2007 Iowa AAUW Annual Meeting. The following summary of workshop thoughts and ideas may be used at branch and/or board meetings to stimulate discussion, gain new knowledge, and implement new ideas.

Leadership means many things to many people. Leaders are developed by their life, work, and skill building experiences. Developing and learning is lifelong. Leadership is the responsibility of every person, not just the elected/appointed leaders. We can all lead in AAUW. Yes, we can!

Leadership is “fusing thoughts (using our heads), feelings (using our hearts), and actions (using our hands) to move others towards values (what’s desirable) and purposes (what’s to be accomplished).”

Each of us has special skills we’ve found to be useful. Those special skills emerge into a style of leadership. Our leader styles (actions, attitudes, and word choices) affect the process and outcomes within our branches. The process and outcomes affect member loyalty, motivation, attitudes and satisfaction as volunteers/employees.

Different Types of Leaders

Some leaders are very directive and view tasks as more important than people. Some leaders are very democratic and view tasks and people as equally important. Other leaders are non-interfering and view people as more important than tasks. There are appropriate and inappropriate situations when using any of these styles. No one style is appropriate in every situation. Effective leaders use adaptive leadership in working with volunteers/employees. They know their style, recognize the style of others, and adapt their style to the situation. Retaining members and building loyalty happens when leadership is shared and the different styles are used to add strength to the organization.

Effective leaders deal in possibilities, working with others in ways which allow ideas and ownership to be shared. Leaders set an atmosphere for collaboration and positive thinking, using tools that prime the process for planning which meets the groups’ evolving needs. “Yes, and…” thinking stimulates ideas. “Yes, but…” thinking kills ideas. Effective leaders steer groups away from “Yes, but…” thoughts.

Good discussion questions include:

1. Pulling from your volunteer/work experiences, cite a leader style example (directive, democratic, non-interfering, or other) and   describe how it felt to work under that style.

2. As a group, discuss the relationship/effects between

 (a) leader style and participation,

 (b) leader style and group performance with time constraints, and

  c) leader style and member/employee satisfaction in the short-run, long run.

3. What is your natural leader style? How have you used it successfully? Unsuccessfully? What can you do as a leader/active follower to adapt your style to enhance and expand group participation/action/satisfaction?

4. Discuss the following questions using the “Yes, and…” transition rather than the old “yes, but…” transition. :

 (a) How can we generate “new energy” within our branches?

 (b) How can we cultivate “emerging leaders” to step forward and lead our branches?

Monitor the group to avoid killer statements.

Who to contact:

As our branches continue to evolve and change, it is important to stimulate periodic discussions with members as we plan for the next year. Sharing concerns, new ideas, and collectively planning for the future not only provides broader perspectives but can create greater ownership and involvement in branch goal accomplishment. If you have questions or need more information about workshop content/exercises, please contact Mary Ann Ahrens at maahrens@mchsi.com , or Jan Mitchell at jan.mitchell@dybb.com , or Dr. Jan Heinicke at janetheinicke@earthlink.net .