Chris Lowney

Yesterday I attended Chris Lowney’s lecture about leadership. I have not yet been to a lecture at Loyola so I was surprised to see how interactive it was. He took a very dynamic approach towards engaging everyone in the room. Before he even began speaking formally, he walked around McGuire Hall and introduced himself individually to every person in the audience. He took the time to learn everyone’s names and where they were from, as though he was sincerely interested in each person’s background. His introductory approach turned out to be in keeping with the theme for the rest of his talk. His talk progressed from paying attention to all of the individuals in the room to suggesting that each and every one of us is a leader. The personal attention he paid to everyone at the beginning made it seem as though each of our leadership qualities were extremely vital in the bigger picture.
Before Chris Lowney even began speaking about the characteristics of leadership, he questioned the audience, asking who we thought was an important leader. I was caught off guard at having to think so quickly and the first person that came to mind was someone I knew very little about: Condoleezza Rice. I knew she was the Secretary of State, but other than that I was unsure about her leadership role or her convictions. But, something made me choose her, so then when Chris Lowney asked us what qualities the leaders we chose had, I had to think even quicker. I figured I chose her since she was the first African American woman to serve as secretary of state, she was outspoken, and she was always influencing people to agree with her decisions. After spending a minute thinking, Chris Lowney brought back our attention and made a startling comment: “I bet none of you mentioned your own name.”
Come to think of it, I never really thought of myself as a leader. I had to ask myself, “Is he serious?” Then, after considering what constitutes good leadership, I discovered that the definition remains somewhat ambiguous. To be a leader you must motivate those you work with and influence others to work towards a common goal. So then I guess Chris Lowney is right; I could potentially be a leader or a role model. After listening to the four key points of leadership: self-awareness, ingenuity, heroism, and love, I started to think about what I could do to become a better role model for those around me. That ties in with the point of self-awareness; he made me think about what’s actually important in the grand scheme of life and what I can do to better myself.
Something that really struck me while I continued to listen to these four key points was the concept of heroism. Chris Lowney brought up a good argument by saying that we can’t all compete in battles in order to be called hero. He explained that being a hero is an issue of circumstance. Though we may never be placed on the front line of a war, everyone is capable of being a hero. The example that I found most effective was when he began talking about professors. Professors can be labeled heroes because they are working as though they might make a difference, by showing up every day and dedicating their time and effort to educating their students, even though there is no guarantee that they are actually affecting anyone’s life. One way that Chris Lowney appropriately described this was by saying that being a hero is “giving up a piece of yourself to a project that is bigger than you.”
Towards the end, when Chris Lowney was summing up his talk, he made a point of saying that our lives are a leadership opportunity. This reminded me that I should be taking advantage of all life has to offer and I should strive to be that great person who makes a difference. I particularly felt changed when he asked the audience, “What kind of statement do you want to make with your life?” That is a big question to be asking a group of teenagers, but it made me reconsider my actions and the way I spend my time. Therefore, I am considering following Chris Lowney’s suggestions and taking time to reflect a few times each day. He described this as taking time to “invest in yourself” and find areas of your life that need improvement, or lessons that you have learned throughout the day which might be helpful in the future. I think the reason I am so willing to take Chris Lowney’s advice is because I respect the choices he has made and the way in which he chose to communicate them during this lecture.