Kouzes Ch. 6 and 7

     These two chapters pretty seem to be talking about everything I have written or spoken about this semester. It was interesting to finish up practicing my PLP speech on inspiring action, then to open up Kouzes and see "Enable Others to Act."
     It is interesting as well that the two chapters were separate or - more noticeably - that "Enable Others to Act" isn't the very last chapter. What I'm getting at is: encouraging the heart is enabling others to act.

"To get extraordinary things done you must foster collaboration and create conditions whereby people know they can count on one another, by building trust and strong relationships within your group" (Enable Others to Act, 99).

This can only be done by "Acknowledging the community ("common unity"), student leaders create a sense of belonging and team spirit, building and maintaining the necessary social support, especially in stressful times" (Encouraging the Heart, 132).

     My own responses to the chapter questions also surprised me; the first three from Enabling Others to Act were all moments from the same team. It just goes to show that every person is a leader, whether they know or acknowledge that title. One team member can say something that makes you feel small and weak; the coach can say something that makes you feel powerful; the whole team can still - in most moments - click. But what I learned from these responses is that in order to make others always feel powerful - in order to build a team and a community, a leader must "Learn from the many small and often casual acts of appreciation what works for each constituent and how best to personalize recognition." In order to build a community, a leader must encourage the heart. More specifically, a leader must strive to learn as much about the individuals he or she is leading as possible.