Leadership Reflections

A course in spring 2022 made a connection with a local children's center to allow students to volunteer and lead small group activities to benefit our learning and their programming. I made a plan to go with three of my classmates and lead a group that would allow us to connect with both the children and the caregivers. We were working on a sensory-based group that provided a play opportunity and chance for education on integrating sensory activities at home. This would give me the chance to lead my peers and to lead a group-based activity, emphasizing play as an occupation between child and caregiver.

This activity never actually happened, but I think the leadership learning opportunities still occurred. For this particular activity I was working with two classmates that I had not done assignments/groups with before, and one more familiar classmate. I took on the role of being the coordinator and attempted contact with the center four times. During that time, I kept my group up to date on what I was doing and began guiding the process of what type of activity would be ideal for the location. From this, I learned that when I am in situations of leadership, with others counting on me, I want to allow even more time to complete a task than is required. When it is just my schedule, and my assignment, the stakes are lower. But, for this my classmates did not have a role in how and when the contacts were made or the coordination of the activity planning and as things did not work out, their stress level rose. In situations of leadership the stakes are higher because the impact is higher. Allowing buffer time in task completion and offering support for alternative solutions is important in showing respect for those counting on me to lead them. Being in the role of leadership in this format also taught me that even if things are not working out or are taking time, updates and communication are comforting and keep relationships stronger. Being left to wonder if I was even working on getting this set-up for several weeks would have caused tension and loss of trust. These lessons learned apply in small group settings still as I develop as a professional and in my future career in OT with leading client groups, teams, or departments etc.