Go Forth To Serve

For the last week of lecture, we were privileged to hear from a panel of three alumni and how they have used their education at BYU to go forth to serve others. Service has been a recurring theme of my first semester. I've heard from countless speakers and professors about how important service is. This is something that is very unique, and is not found at most universities. The focus of many of my friends at other schools is "I need to do well so I can get a good job and earn a lot of money." While there are some with this attitude at BYU, it is not as prevalent as those that want to serve others.

I was impressed with the panel, because despite their impressive success in their respective fields, they have not forgotten the importance of service. Many of them stressed the importance of church service. While this is not the only service we render, it is very important and should be a priority for everyone. This has been important to me during this semester as I've served as an Elders Quorum President. I've learned that leadership is not always glamorous as some would have you believe. Most of the work my presidency and I do is behind the scenes and no one ever knows about it. It hasn't been easy serving in my leadership role, especially with school and Lacrosse. However, it has been a very rewarding experience. I've learned a lot about myself, others, and the way in which the Church functions. Even though this class is now over, I will be serving in this role for the next semester, and this challenge to serve will be very important. As I keep my focus on serving others, I will be able to enjoy service more, and become a stronger leader.

Change

This week we discussed change, and how to bring it about as a leader. As I think back on famous leaders and their plans for "change", I separate them into two separate categories: those who actually bring it and those you talk about it. In the 2008 Presidential Election, all Barack Obama talked about was "change". I'm not sure that he even knew what this meant! Some say the President had detailed proposals regarding Energy, Immigration, or Health Care when in reality he never did. Two years later, Obama's poll numbers have plummeted, and caused his party to lose the most Federal, State, and Local seats of any party in the last 80 years. Why is this? Because he failed to define the "change" he wanted to bring.

In the 2010 midterm elections, the Democrats saw their support among Independent voters drop by 12%. This drop is largely attributed to disappointment with the President's message. The slogan of "Change we can believe in" was a remarkable strategy to get elected. However, when it came to governing, the same ambiguity which helped him get elected, frustrated voters who all had a different view of what this "change" was. Leaders must be clear when presented a goal, and must present a goal which is attainable and measurable. If President Obama had said "Unemployment is a problem, this is what we're going to do about it...within one year we want the unemployment rate to drop to 7.5%, and then the following year dropping to 7%", there could have been better puiblic reception.

In my calling, I'd like to see Home Teaching improve dramatically. Last month were around 85%. While this is good, I believe we can do much better. We've made an effort to stress Home Teaching more this month, and hope to see our numbers exceed 90% this month, 95% for January, and 100% for February.