Have you read the first two articles in this series? They will help you understand the subject matter better. You may also like to share this series with other student leaders.
The next step to getting student leadership right is setting and maintaining clear boundaries. You are likely to agree that many people do not have a healthy relationship with that phrase. Scratch that; humans do not like to have their behaviour regulated. However, without clear boundaries, there will be avoidable conflicts and ineffective team relations.
How does a student leader navigate creating and maintaining the boundaries necessary for simultaneous excellent duty execution and personal growth? Here are some things I learnt:
Sit with yourself, a pen and some paper. Start with a clear description of your duties, in the office you occupy. You definitely had an idea what you were getting into, right? Itemise your current behavioural strengths and weaknesses, so you can envision how the former can enhance your role and how your role can help improve the latter.
2a. Prioritise activities that lead to the most significant result because each role often combines ceremonial functions with executive ones. Focus, daily, on what you need to do. You most likely have teammates or junior colleagues. Become comfortable with delegating tasks; it proves that you are a secure leader who is committed to raising other leaders.
2b. Decide what you will, and won’t, be responsible for. Never procrastinate the tasks that YOU alone can do, by virtue of authority or access to exclusive information and/or resources. Respect superiors, team mates and everyone else.
3. Keep your eyes on the goal, which is for a better you to emerge (as you add value to others). Your life is not defined by an office. Give your best and learn fast from your mistakes. Define your moral/ethical values and let no situation cause you to shift the goal post, even by the tenth of an inch. Compromise is like cancer.
4. Safeguard your health, academics and valuable relations from the demands of work. Study appropriately, create time for rest, eat properly, catch up with loved ones, speak with mentors, improve your skills through relevant courses and engage in hobbies. In short, create and follow a schedule that keeps you whole.
5. Plan ahead for demands on your time but stay flexible. Having a schedule does not mean that life is stuck in stone. A test or assignment could be suddenly announced. Superiors may show up with unexpected tasks and team mates may slacken in their own duties. Get ready to switch plans, fill in, or re-delegate; usually at the last minute.
6. Let people experience the consequences of their choices. Don’t always stand in for lazy or carefree team mates. Don’t let the students you serve coax you into bending rules or avoiding punishment. Don’t put your own studentship on the line.
Dear student leader, ensuring that your life works well – through a carefully designed system that involves others – is a gift that only you can give yourself. Remember, boundaries show what you own and are responsible for. They are to ensure that humans treat one another properly.
______________________ Gbemisola is blessed with a voice that enriches what she says. She has honoured 20+ virtual speaking invitations from 2020 till date. These engagements covered topics around: writing, content creation, online business, social media positioning, public speaking, (self) leadership, the Christian faith and albinism. She looks forward to more of these, as well as to features in the media and TED(X). Gbemisola is a student of International Relations at Covenant University who has had the privilege of occupying different leadership offices. She is a recipient of numerous certificates and awards. She is an ardent believer that individuals are responsible for the achievement of organisational and national goals. She is a lover of Abba and of the progress of others. She likes to sing, learn other languages and make beaded articles. She Ioves the colours, purple and lemon. Email: gbemisolaoluwasina@gmail.com YouTube, Facebook and LinkedIn: Gbemisola Oluwasina Telegram channel, Instagram and Facebook pages: Elegant Inker.
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