Institute News

Servant leadership has gained significant traction in both public and private sectors as a practical approach to leadership that prioritizes the needs of others, fosters community and empowers individuals to perform at their best. Within the University of Tennessee's Institute for Public Service (IPS), which focuses on delivering expert training, consulting and research to support government officials and businesses, servant leadership plays a critical role in meeting the customer service needs of its stakeholders.

Have you ever waited at a railroad crossing and marveled at the graffiti messages written on the shipping containers and box cars going by? I like to try to figure out the intricate words created with a can, or cans, of spray paint and someone’s imagination. Invariably, even with the slowest moving trains and my best efforts, the cars go by, and the message disappears down the track along with any understanding I hoped to gain.

Sometimes I wonder if other people struggle to get the message too. 

If you’ve never read Winnie the Pooh books or watched Winnie the Pooh videos, you’re missing a wealth of life lessons about kindness, friendship and simply getting along with others. It’s been many years since I watched Winnie the Pooh videos over and over with my daughter and even longer since I read the books.

This past week at the TNCPE (Tennessee Center for Performance Excellence) conference, several of us heard my friend David Jones tell the story of his recent challenging experience. You might have heard it, too, as it was aired on multiple media platforms in-state, nationally and internationally.

The short story is that he was travelling from South Carolina to Johnson City for his daughter’s wedding. He was determined to walk her down the aisle.

I recently re-watched all three seasons of Ted Lasso. While the series is centered around sports, it’s about much more than that. It’s really a show about learning to become a leader. Much has already been written about the many lessons the show imparts along with countless lists of leadership themes and quotes, and I won’t attempt to re-invent these here. But one repeated theme from the show that resonates with me is “Be a Goldfish”. The main character, Ted, at one point says to his team, "You know what the happiest animal on Earth is? It’s a goldfish. Do you know why?

Election cycles result in leaders serving in new roles. Sometimes there are clear directives, but even then, there is a period of figuring it out on the fly.

While most any time should be a good time, it doesn’t hurt to remind new leaders of what is important.

An interesting book popped up on my radar recently, and, as if I didn’t have enough books waiting to be read, I ordered it.

“The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort to Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self” is written by former Men’s Health writer Michael Easter. Easter also has a weekly newsletter on improving health through “modern science and evolutionary wisdom.” I’m a health and wellness geek, so the book’s premise appealed to me.

Christmas holidays have come and gone. The time for giving good gifts hasn’t. 

All of us who lead and serve are in a place to give: 

Leadership is the role or position of guiding and directing others. The capacity to lead, and the act or instance of leading. The title leader is often given, but are all people labeled as leaders, leaders? A true leader knows how to bring out the best in those that they lead. I have known great leaders, and I have known leaders who thought they were great. A great leader understands that we are all different. We bring different values and experiences to the table because we have lived different experiences and may have different values.

Today we are having an office holiday potluck luncheon. I spent yesterday afternoon today making a hummingbird cake. It’s going to be great! 

I know it’s going to be great because I followed my grandfather’s tried and true recipe. It has been tested and refined. I’m confident in the outcome because I have followed the recipe in the past myself and it has produced great results. That’s important because Granddad was known to occasionally leave out a secret ingredient or two!