Ashlinn Hoffmeister

Mrs Godfrey

Honors Leadership

27 April 2019

Final Reflection

During the first semester, our leadership class learned about what true leadership is. We

then moved on to learn about influential leaders from history to present day. Our class had the

opportunity to apply what we learned to listening to guest speakers to attending our own

practicum second semester. I chose to spend my hours at Cape Cod hospital where I saw first

hand, the importance of teamwork, communication skills, conflict management, and having a

goal to work towards.

The words leadership and management often get confused. To understand true leadership,

we must understand that leaders are not people that strictly tell others what to do. Managers

manage people and things, while having a high status over others. They do not have equal

insight. Leaders however develop followers, help others climb to the top, and succeed by helping

others succeed towards one common goal. Oprah Winfrey is a perfect example of a modern day

leader because she has stood up for what she believed in, set a goal, and used her skills to create

a career as well as helping many people along the way. Steve Jobs is also a good example

because he used his interests to become successful in the future. Jobs was not doing it for the

money, he was successful because he had a passion and used it to inspire industries all around

the world. Leaders don’t always have to be famous or well known. We had the opportunity to

talk to local leaders like Kristin O’Malley and John Falone. O’Malley told us to be confident and
be humble, one of my higher goals. Falone told us that careers go all over the place, not linear or

vertical. This gave us seniors some relief while trying to make big college decisions. He also told

us to always know who we are and what we stand for. Knowing what you stand for is a major

step to becoming a true leader. Similar to math or a specific occupation, leadership has different

levels. In order to make it to the highest level, you have to master each step below it. These

levels start from people following you because they have to, to them following you because of

who you are and what you represent. Building trust is important because moving up can be slow,

and moving down can be quick. By knowing who we are and what we stand for, we have the

foundation to make it higher up the ladder with the hope that we can inspire other people to do

the same.

If we know what we stand for, we know what we are talking about. In storytelling and

public speaking, we must do necessary research, become comfortable with the topic, and most

importantly, be confident in what we are saying. Knowing our audience and our space is

important because we would not present statistics to a kindergarten group, or a children's book to

a room full of chemistry professors. It is important for us to focus on the message, not on

ourselves. Leadership is working as a team, and without focusing on others as well, this team

becomes ineffective. There would be low unity of purpose, no discussion, goals, and a sense of

indifference. A good team pays attention to everyone's feelings, discusses differences, has a clear

set goal, and most decisions are made at a point where there is general agreement. Conflict is

discussed in an effective team, where it is a negative thing in ineffective teams. I had the

opportunity to experience first hand, how team work and conflict management act jointly in a

hospital setting.
 Since I am going into nursing and spanish next year, I decided to do my practicum at

Cape Cod Hospital. Before even stepping foot in the hospital, I learned how to find connections

and write a professional email. Connections are important no matter what career you go into and

I am lucky we had the contact for Cape Cod hospital. I am most interested in maternity nursing

and that is what I am hoping to pursue. However with eleven new nurses on that floor, I

shadowed the pediatric floor. It was honestly really hard scheduling hours because the nurse I

shadowed had a lot of other students to teach. Also, I had about 5 hours of visits scheduled for a

week and I was out with a concussion that week and the nurse barely had any available hours

afterwards. I learned to deal with scheduling conflict and how to make the best out of the little

time I had.

The pediatric floor was a lot quieter than I expected because most babies get sent home

after being born. The nurses showed me the hard work they do during their “down time” and I

got to hold, swaddle, and help feed a few sick babies. Holding a baby that is really sick was

really eye opening and made me realize that I wanted to do something similar in the future. I was

proud when the nurses said I was a natural with babies and I would be a good nurse. One of the

most interesting things I experienced was when I put on a contact suit and watched the nurses put

an emergency IV in a tiny baby. The veins were so small and it took a few tries but they all

worked so harmoniously and calmly. I also learned about talking to parents in emergency

situations and how to calm them down. At the hospital, I supplemented my interest in nursing

while seeing what it is like first hand. I shadowed Pediatric nurses, spent time with children and

babies who suffer from pneumonia, asthma, or withdrawal symptoms. I also talked with parents

about their experience staying in a hospital and how helpful the nurses had been. Watching
emergency procedures was really interesting because the nurses remain so calm in all situations.

For example, I watched nurses put an endotracheal tube in an infant and treat babies dealing with

withdrawal.. Often times, the parents take off and these babies are left the first few days of their

life without the human to human contact they need. I loved being able to hold them, feed them,

and learn how nurses have such an impact on lives. Nurses act like mothers when the baby is

missing the motherly care during their first few days of life.

Nurses are leaders because they succeed by helping others succeed. They set the direction

for one specific goal; help others get better. Nurses work as a team, they update eachother with

the patient’s information. They open up and clarify issues, help to resolve problems and move

forward, disclose new information and perspectives, and promote authentic and empathic

communication. Nurses calmly deal with conflict head on. This means they engage in others

collaboration to find a solution everyone can live with and support. They use the accommodation

style to maintain harmonious relationships with the patient and the parents. Although they aren’t

speaking in an auditorium full of people, they use their public speaking skills to know their

audience, be confident with their decisions, and provide a sense of comfort to the patient and

their family. In a hospital setting, there is no time to sit, discuss, and come up with a decision.

The decisions are made in the moment because children’s lives are on the line.

This class is one of the best classes I have ever taken. Not only did I learn about famous

and local leadership, but I learned more about myself and how to become my own form of a

leader. The portfolios we made are useful for the rest of our lives and has helped me get into a

nursing program. I am proud to say that I am less terrified of speaking in front of a big group,

and even if I am, I have the skills to hide it. My goal is to use the skills I learned in this class, and
shadowing at Cape Cod Hospital, in my own career. I have a passion for helping the sick or less

fortunate and I am excited to begin to use my new leadership skills in nursing school next year.

The skills taught and demonstrated in this class, are important life skills that I believe everyone

needs to go far in this world.