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The #IlliniLeader's Digest
A digital space for ILC stakeholders to learn and voice their perspectives about leadership...

blog posts

  • Work-Life Balance: Is It Possible?

    In this post Arianna Guerra dives into the struggles of achieving work-life balance and a life-changing revelation she had after receiving advice from a fellow ILC staff member.  

  • The History of Black Housing Discrimination at UIUC

    In this blog post, I talk about the Wicked Problem of Black housing discrimination and segregation at UIUC and how it has been a problem since the opening of this University. With all the strides that Black people have made on this campus, it goes almost unnoticeable today, but we are still seeing the effects of this historical problem in real time.

  • How to Establish a Psychologically Safe Team

    ILC's communication and marketing specialist Eugene Hwang talks about psychological safety and what it takes to have a team where everyone feels comfortable!

  • Special Situations in Private Markets

    Jeremy Giffon's wisdom on passion, advice, and resilience inspires a path to success. Embrace challenges and learn to be "hard to kill".

  • How Trying Calamari (and other things) Helped Me to Have Better Self-Management

    Simplify life's complexities by discovering three transformative mindsets—curiosity, embracing opportunities, and reframing problems for effective self-management. With practical insights from her own experiences, an ILC graf intern emphasizes the gradual nature of this process and shares her wisdom on navigating life with intention and pride. 

  • Compassionate Leadership: What I've Learned

    In this blog, an ILC graf intern explores the concept of compassionate leadership and how her time working at the Illinois Leadership Center has made her reevaluate her approach on what makes a competent leader.

  • Lighthouse

    The Optimistic Leader: How to stay resilient in the face of adversity

    In this blog, we explore the powerful connection between optimism and resilience in leadership. Discover how a positive outlook can help you overcome obstacles and inspire those around you, ultimately leading to greater success and fulfillment in both your personal and professional life.

  • imprint

    What Is A Personal Brand Anyway?

    You have likely heard the term 'personal brand' before, but what does that mean? This article discusses what a personal brand is, and why leaders should care about their personal brand. The ways you talk or write, the interactions you have with others, and the way you spend your time are all aspects of your personal brand, whether you intentionally plan them or not. This article will help you begin reflecting on your personal brand.

  • team foxcatcher

    What Can Bad Leadership Lead to?

    The movie Team Foxcatcher (2016) is a perfect example of how multi-faceted ethical leadership issues can be. The story shows what bad leadership can do to subordinates and how maybe the leader isn't the only person to blame for the end result.

  • Crowd marches at the George Floyd protests 6/2/2020

    Leadership in Social Justice

    The Oxford Languages Dictionary defines social justice as “justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society.” The concept of social justice encompasses all oppressed and marginalized groups and it is formed on five pillars: access to resources, equity, participation, diversity, and human rights.

  • Leadership photo

    6 Tips for Successfully Leading a Team

    Leading a team can be intimidating, so here are six tips to help you the next time you are tasked to lead a team.

  • Cavenaugh Library

    Add These to Your Leadership Reading List: ILC Resources and Our Upcoming Book Club

    The Illinois Leadership Center’s Cavenaugh Leadership Library is a great resource for students and staff due to its various borrowable activities and books that can help anyone with improving their leadership competency. The ILC will also be launching a brand-new book club for those who enjoy stories of leadership in practice and for those who want to learn about newer, nontraditional theories of leadership. Learn more about what we have to offer!

  • world diversity

    Becoming a Culturally Competent Leader

    Great leaders possess the skills, knowledge, and attitude necessary to build authentic connections with people from different cultures. This blog will highlight qualities of culturally competent leaders and steps you can take to build cultural competence.

  • stressed business woman

    Stress and Free Time: Learning How to Appreciate Leadership

    When was the last time that you got to "stop and smell the roses"? In this post, I will be sharing my personal experiences with the stress that leadership brings and how I manage it. By reading this post, you will gain insight into how you can better appreciate your leadership roles and what you accomplish in them.

  • Characters of people holding time management concept illustration

    7 Ways to Improve Your Self-Management Skills

    Great leaders use their time, energy, and resources effectively. Leaders skilled in self-management act in ways that strengthen their personal, professional, and familial relationships. This post will outline seven ways you can effectively improve your self-management skills.

  • Mountain Road Snowing Snow

    Indecisiveness & Leadership

    It is okay to be unsure so long as you recognize your indecisiveness. Identify what you can control and set goals that focus on it while keeping an eye on uncontrollable factors. If you are lost in a haze, do not hesitate to ask for help from reliable mentors or peers.

  • Is Leadership Conditional?

    When someone mentions the word leadership to you, what comes to mind? How can this concept be applied in a virtual setting? 

  • remote

    Leading a remote team? Here are some tips for asynchronous success.

    In a post-pandemic world, it seems that working remotely is becoming more ingrained into the professional world. Remote team projects are becoming extremely commonplace. However, being a remote leader can be challenging. Here are some tips for leading a remote team from my experience as a remote team leader. 

  • self

    Self Leadership

    This post explains the importance of self-leadership and goes into some topics regarding self-leadership. 

  • 2020

    My Time at the ILC

    This post is a student employee reflection on her time at Illinois and working at the Illinois Leadership Center. 

  • virtual

    How to be a Leader in a Virtual Setting

    This post elaborates on a few strategies that students can implement in order to become a leader in a virtual setting. 

  • Three essential key factors that will help you shine as a leader in your RSO

    This post provides advice on how to navigate the transition to a leadership position in an RSO after experiencing a major part of COVID. 

  • mental health

    Prioritizing Mental Health in Undergraduate Students Working Towards Professional & Graduate Programs

    This post explores mental health in undergraduate students working towards professional and graduate programs. This post also gives advice and strategies on how to manage one’s mental health in college.

  • goals

    How To Set the Right Goals for Yourself and Succeed

    Goal setting is critical for success. Without goals, it’s difficult to measure progress or determine where you are and where you want to be. You also need specific goals in order to develop a plan on how to achieve them. However, there is a right way and wrong way to set goals, which is why following these tips are important.

  • virtual setting

    Unmute, Speak, and Lead

    In a world stuck between virtual and in-person programming, our leadership skills need to encompass both settings. This article discusses one way you can be a leader in a virtual setting.

  • hands

    Do You Really Trust Your Team? Do They Trust You?

    This post details on the importance of being a trustworthy leader and provides a piece of advice on people who are just about to start their leadership role, using soccer as an example.

  • president

    Leadership Lessons from President Zelensky

    Leadership lessons from President Zelensky we can apply in our daily lives.

  • virtual leadership

    How to be a Leader in a Virtual Setting

    This post is about the tools you will need as a leader online, and how to work on the skills you are confident in to succeed in a virtual environment.

  • women

    Why can't women be ambitious and likable?

    This post explores the concept of "The Likeability Trap" as well as the pressures that women encounter in the workplace to curate their appearance and fashion.

  • Advice for someone entering a leadership role for the first time

    This post gives some advice on starting your first leadership role and how to be successful in the role. 

  • Stepping into a Leadership Position for the First Time

    This post explores how shedding the stereotypical perception of a leader as a commander and stepping into the role of a facilitator can help build trust and increase group productivity when stepping into a leadership position for the first time. 

  • When Opportunity Knocks 

    This post talks about how to build your own personal leadership style and the benefits that can come from it. This post also gives advice on ways to improve your leadership and be a better leader to others in many different scenarios of life. 

  • Becoming an Effective Leader in your first leadership position

    This post provides insightful advice on how to be a confident and effective leader in your first leadership position.

  • The Importance of Networking

    This post goes into detail on the importance of networking and some benefits of it. 

  • The Importance of Sustainable Leadership

    This post highlights why being a sustainable leader in today’s climate is important. The author challenges the reader to explore sustainable practices and try to implement them in their daily lives as well as their leadership roles.

  • Team Mentors & Team Members: How a Team Excels

    This post talks about how important team members and team mentors are to an entire team. The post explains the importance of each role and effective ways to go about them. 

  • Leading by Creativity

    This post goes into detail on one of the most important soft skills for a leader to have: creativity! Creativity helps leaders with problem-solving, communication, and team building. 

  • Reflections on the past semester: the progress we have made

    This post reflects on the past semester and all the progress we have made from the start till now. It also emphasizes the importance of your accomplishments and future goals you may set for yourself.

  • Ways to Relieve Stress

    This post shares some ways to help relieve some stress. With the start of a new semester, it's always important to find ways to calm our stressors and still remain calm during all the chaos that is to come. 

  • Let Go of Your Perfectionism: The Best Ways to Stop Being So Hard on Yourself

    We put too much pressure on ourselves to succeed or do everything perfectly. Here are some ways you can stop being so hard on yourself. Understanding the roots of your perfectionism is the first step to overcoming it. Find someone you trust that you can talk to about your struggles. Take time for yourself every day and write down your worries. Give yourself permission to make mistakes and give yourself permission for doing things imperfectly.

  • stress

    How to stay (sorta) stress-free in college

    This post shares some ways to help relieve stress in your life. With the end of the semester quickly approaching, this is a great post that gives some tips on ways to help handle the stress in your life!

  • reflection

    Why reflection is important in a leadership role

    This post talks about the importance of reflection and how it is important for leaders and teams to practice reflection. 

  • openness

    The importance of practicing openness today’s society

    This post talks about the importance of openness and shares how the importance of practicing openness will be impactful in both your professional and personal life. 

  • The Importance of Developing a Community Perspective

    This post talks about the importance of community and volunteering within your own community. The post shares a bit more about how to develop leadership skills through helping out your community. 

  • How My Involvement With The Illinois Leadership Center Transformed My Life

    This post talks a bit about the importance the ILC has had on one of our own employee's college experiences. She shares how she got involved with the ILC and where that has gotten her today as she is finishing her time here at the University of Illinois. 

  • smiley faces

    How to Prioritize our Emotional Wellness 

    This post talks about the importance of emotional wellness and how to prioritize that in our lives. The post also talks a bit more about recognizing our own emotions, stress management, and emotional intelligence. 

  • leadership

    The Importance of Leadership in a Global Pandemic

    This post highlights the importance of leaders navigating the challenges of COVID-19 and how leadership takes flexibility. The author uses their experience on the Illini Union Board to exemplify the challenges faced.

  • Recognizing my Strengths as a Leader

    This post talks about the experience of a Ph.D. student and how the ILC has influenced her journey. Through all the resources offered, she has been able to recognize her strengths as a leader. 

  • leadership

    The Influence of the ILC's Workshops on my Leadership Journey

    This post talks about the experience of a fellow student throughout her time on campus and how the workshops helped with her leadership development today. 

  • inspo

    Tips to Develop Yourself Over Summer

    This post gives 5 tips on ways to develop yourself over the summer. Summer gives us the opportunity to develop ourselves as we get a break after the long, hectic school year. There are many ways to help develop yourself this summer, but these are just 5 examples.