Design Leadership & Entrepreneurship
Elective
Grade: 8
Competency Areas Built
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Creativity + Aesthetics
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Business + Entrepreneurship
About
In the Design Leadership and Entrepreneurship course, I learned about various leadership styles and approaches and positioned myself as a design leader within them. I took this course before I realized that I was better suited to a design leadership position centred around research. However, the reflection that I made in this course still represents who I consider myself to be as a leader.
In this course, we had to communicate what we learned through making infographics. This was my first time really making a coherent set of infographics and I discovered that I enjoy it a lot. I found that it is a great way for me to think through a new subject and I grew a lot in my ability to communicate through graphics while finding a signature style..
Below you can find some excerpts of my reflections from the course:
Reflection
On design leadership:
I naturally gravitate towards leadership roles, and I am proud of the leadership style I have developed. I am very lucky that the settings which I have worked in have focused on leadership skills as something you can actively work on and develop. I have grown beyond the mindset that leaders are the people at the front telling other people what to do, and into the belief that leaders inspire and help others to move to the front. I think that this also mimics the shifting role of designers in society. We have the skills to tackle and manage complex problems with innovative solutions and alternative strategies. This is one of the reasons why I chose Design leadership and Entrepreneurship. I want to further understand the potential of designers as leaders and see how I can best position myself as one
On Transactional, Transformational and Transformative leadership:
Here, I confront my internal assumptions about the transactional, transformational and transformative leadership styles. My leadership style borrows from both transformational and transformative. I am a strong believer in practicing what you preach and I value team building and bringing your whole self to work. I like to challenge the traditional, patriarchal belief that there is no room for emotion and softness in the leadership role. I believe that we are all better off in diverse workplaces which actively work to dismantle the racist, sexist and oppressive locker room culture that is all too present in the workplace today. I see myself using the position of a transformational leader and working the system to increasingly incorporate transformative practices
On my future:
In the far future, I will be head of my own multinational department with a mission to create positive social impact. I will be a leader who has developed their own style with a mix of transformational and transformative practices. I will use my network and experiences to bridge the public and private sectors, encouraging collaboration to get things done. I will help others to grow into better leaders, with a personalized mentorship style. Throughout my career, I will have brought my whole self to work and made more room for women at the top.