Congruence + Values: Brené Brown and the Power of Vulnerability (that is, the Power of Being Open)

Unfortunately, my video--the first one--is super-lengthy, but I can't even begin to express how well I think that they align well with my top values of openness and love. Watch it if you have time; not only is Brené Brown super funny, but she is excellent at getting her point across. If you like it and want more, watch the second video, which, for the first few minutes, actually fits a bit better with what I'm about to say:

We cannot be fully open to other people, to new ideas, to the love that can be shared between people and communities, without allowing ourselves to be vulnerable. That is, we must be open. We must allow ourselves to be seen in the truest light. We must be open to growth, to new possibilities; otherwise, we will maintain possibly-biased and one-sided world views and beliefs. We must let ourselves fail; for if we do not, we will simply float along without ever truly achieving anything. You read that correctly: our biggest achievements are had when we fail. Thomas Edison would be a great example; he went through hundreds of designs before he settled on what later became the traditional incandescent light bulb. What could be more vulnerable than failure?

In sum, and connecting with congruence, I try to live my life by being open to...almost everything. To growth. To other people. To failure. To success. To knowing that I can be wrong. To new possibilities and points of view. I try to welcome my successes and my failures with open arms, because I know that I wouldn't be who I am without both of those experiences. Foremost, however, I try to be open to other people.

And I believe firmly that when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable (that is, when we allow ourselves to be open), we form greater communities, greater friendships, greater bonds than we would otherwise. We build better things, find better answers, and we don't break a sweat. Because we know that no matter what, someone else has also failed, someone else has also lost a friend, someone else has also suffered.

Empathy, community, love, openness, and vulnerability are interconnected and you cannot separate one from the other. And together, they form my number one value.

What do you think?

ESFJ: Or, why it's always so difficult for me to make decisions

This describes in perfect detail the feelings I have when I make a decision. Not even simply while I'm making a decision, but also while after it. For example, is SCU really the right fit for me, even now, after I've been here for a while already? Or does somewhere else still better fit my personality?

ESFJ. ESFJ. Could I really be an ESFJ? Me? Really?

I was initially shocked to discover that my MBTI had labeled me an ESFJ (Extraversion, Sensing, Feeling, Judgment). I had taken the test in high school, and I expected to either again be marked as an ESTJ (Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking, Judgment) or be thrown into something entirely different, like Introversion, for which my association is not high. Alas, such a similar-but-not-similar characterization aroused surprise.

But the thing is, the more I reflected on the idea of ESFJ, the more the category seemed to fit. I do, indeed, take pleasure in the happiness of others. I trust the literal and concrete information gathered by the senses. I take a genuine interest in the well-beings of my friends and family, as well as others. I am vocal about  my sense of right and wrong, but I want to understand varying points of view. My values tend to be based on the good of the social group rather than so much the good of the individual. I like a sense of structure, and I try to create it wherever I can.

These are all great qualities, and ones that I believe describe me well.

But wait, hold on a second...my association with "Feeling" over "Thinking" is only a one-point association? Maybe I am an ESTJ after all! Well, let's see...what do "Thinking" people prefer?

"Heroic Leadership"..."Magis Leadership"? Or, the uniquely Ignatian approach to leadership that anyone can follow

The "Heroic Leadership Model" can best be described as a leadership model that everyone can use; it's more of a way of living one's life than a way of leading. Central to the model is the idea that we should "live for more." That is, we should strive for something greater than ourselves.

While each of the leadership models we have so far discussed has its merits, it turns out that the best leadership model for me remains the Heroic Leadership Model. Outlined by Chris Lowney in his book, Heroic Leadership: Best Practices from a 450-Year-Old Company That Changed the World, the model discusses the various leadership and self-development practices of the Society of Jesus, the Jesuits, over their lengthy and austere history.

Notably, and perhaps most importantly, "Heroic Leadership Model" is a misnomer. In fact, I want to start out by renaming the model for my own purposes so as to better understand its processes. In order to do that, we need to take a quick look at the history of the Jesuits. (Please note that the following is adapted from a short print article entitled "Ignatius and His Exercises" by Barry Barfield.)

In the 1500s, Iñigo of Loyola was a Basque warrior with a love of chivalry and the knightly code of conduct (bravery, honor, gallantry, etc.). Though he was the youngest of thirteen children and it would have thus been the custom of the day for him to become a priest, his worldly exploits quickly put an end to that. Badly wounded by a cannonball in a battle with the French, he suffered two excruciating operations to set his shattered leg. During his recovery, he engaged in numerous vivid daydreams that set about his personal conversion and formed the basis of his work in the Spiritual Exercises, a sort of guidebook toward discernment that has since become a model for meditation used by the Society of Jesus, the religious order which he founded, and other organizations worldwide, both religious and nonreligious.

One of the key movements in the Spiritual Exercises is toward what St. Ignatius called "the magis," best understood as its direct Latin translation: "the more." This could easily be regarded as the sole point of Ignatian spirituality, of Ignatian living: to constantly be striving for "the more"; more thoughtful, open, and loving relationships, more open and direct communication, more of a difference made to our communities, more of a difference made for others, more of everything good in our lives. And importantly, St. Ignatius meant for this to be applied in every aspect of our lives; to him, spirituality was as much about our personal living as it was about our relationships with God.

So I propose that we rename the "Heroic Leadership Model" as the "Magis Leadership Model," the better to understand more deeply the point which Mr. Lowney is attempting to get across in his book.

"Social Change Model": In which I describe the connections to Social Change in Phone Banking

Barack Obama joins campaign volunteers to make a few calls in support of his re-election in 2012. Phone-banking is an excellent example of the "Social Change Model" put to good use.

Phone banking is a time-honored tradition in the Democratic Party. While used, albeit to a lesser extent, in Republican nominating and Presidential contests, it played a much larger role for the community-based organizing of the Barack Obama campaign in 2008 and 2012.

(While this forms more of an example of the "Social Change Model" in action than a representation or approximation, I must be clear: the same could be said of similar activities on the other side of the aisle. It was just easier to find a picture of people phone-banking for a Democratic candidate.)

Participants are working to effect their idea of positive change through phone banking to ensure that citizens vote. This encourages citizenship as much as taking an active role in the political process through volunteerism. The group works with a common purpose and in the spirit of collaboration. Notably, in the phone banks in which I've participated, controversy has been addressed with the utmost civility and sincerity. That is, opponents are addressed positively, rather than through negative attacks. When a non-supporter answers the phone, phone-bankers are urged to simply thank the person on the other end for their time and politely end the conversation. Finally, each phone-banker makes a conscious choice to take time out of their busy schedule to make calls. Commitment is key.

"Elevator Speech": Or, what makes me, me.

My name is Anthony Gill. I'm from Spokane, Washington and I'm currently a freshman at Santa Clara University, Undeclared in the College of Arts & Sciences.

While I have many interests (which probably explains why I'm undeclared), foremost among them is skiing. Since the age of four, I've been skiing at Schweitzer Mountain Resort in northern Idaho overlooking Lake Pend Oreille and Sandpoint. While college will force skiing to take a temporary backseat, I'm looking forward to a few modest trips to Tahoe to take advantage of Squaw Valley and KT-22.

Lake Pend Oreille is visible from Schweitzer Mountain Resort, the largest ski resort in Idaho and my favorite place on the face of this planet. I've been skiing since the age of four.