Thoughts on Graduating from Leadership Tuscarawas

Leo Tolstoy once said "Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing themselves." I'm really glad that the Leadership Tuscarawas board believes the opposite - they help us change ourselves so that we can go out and change the world.

Our class of 2009 is an example of change. Since we sent in our applications last July, three members of our class have changed jobs. At least four babies have been born, with one more on the way. Even Leadership Tuscarawas received a new executive director since this time last year. However, as a class, I believe we've changed the most through the knowledge we've gained over the past nine months.

I grew up about seven miles from here, but am returning after living away for many years. This class confirmed what I have always known - that Tuscarawas County is the greatest place on earth as far as I am concerned! (But I'm not biased!)

The most important lesson I've learned from the past nine months is that the greatest resource in our county is its people. Month after month, I've witnessed individuals who have a passion, not only for this county, but also for their chosen cause. They've shared their knowledge freely and have worked hard to inspire us. From our elected officials, to our court system, to law enforcement, to education, to healthcare and community services, to the arts, to dealing with death, we've been fortunate to view our county from many perspectives.

And I also give Leadership Tuscarawas credit for exposing us to the underbelly of our county - from those recovering from domestic violence at Harbor House, to the inmates at the county jail, to frank discussions about the drug and alcohol abuse issues in our county, to poverty to a tour of the Kimble Landfill. It would be very easy to sweep these problems under the rug and ignore them, but we cannot begin to address the problems that face our communities until we've seen and understand them.

Our program days have also included progressive, cutting-edge educational topics such as emotional intelligence, affirmative inquiry, personality testing and management and conflict resolution. I commend the program committee for the great job they did in providing us with such a well-rounded curriculum.

The members of the class of 2009 have been inspired to do things I don't think any of us could have imagined last July. And I couldn't have gone through this experience with a greater group of beautiful, talented and caring people. I consider you all my friends and it's going to be weird not to see you once a month!

To the families, friends, bosses and coworkers of our class members, I say a sincere thank you for your support and patience with us as we traveled this journey. I know my own boss, Katie, enthusiastically offered ideas and brainstormed with me as we worked on our class project and the different issues each month, and I greatly appreciated her help.

I'd also like to thank the Leadership Tuscarawas board of directors for their foresight in starting this program, and also congratulate them on their ongoing work and continued enthusiasm for this organization. It's one thing to start a cause, but it can be another thing altogether to put the time and hard work into keeping it going seven years later. Here is a quote I felt appropriate to address to the board and alumni of Leadership Tuscarawas:
"What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others." Greek Philosopher Pericles

Our programs talked a lot about managing people, and that is the toughest part of becoming a leader, I think - learning to lead people, to mange them and learning to embrace the gifts they have to offer. It takes hard work to do that. It's easy to form opinions about the people you work with - good or bad, especially if you work with them for any length of time. There is one lesson I learned from one of my mentors that I would like to share with you. It is that you need to separate the messenger from the message. As my mentor, Denny Hales, would say, the WHAT is much more important than the WHO. Anyone can have a good idea.

With that thought in mind, I'd like to share the following quote with all of you, but especially my classmates.
"Don't get to comfortable with who you are at any given time -
you may miss the opportunity to become who you want to be."

I've given you the WHAT, now here is the WHO - this quote is from Jon Bon Jovi. Even a rock star can say something profound!

So continue to change. Continue to learn. Set your sites high. Follow your passion. And take the opportunity to become who you want to be.