blog posts

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  6 Tips for Successfully Leading a Team

  Jan 27, 2023 10:45 am81 views

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

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  7 Ways to Improve Your Self-Management Skills

  Sep 29, 2022 1:30 pm40170 views

  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.

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  A Call to Action: Social Change in our Leadership

  Oct 13, 2020 9:15 am547 views

  This post goes into detail about what the Social Change Model of Leadership is and how we can use it in our every day lives with relation to leadership. 

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

  Jan 23, 2023 4:00 pm73 views

  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!

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

  Mar 1, 2022 11:45 am516 views

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

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  Becoming a Culturally Competent Leader

  Nov 30, 2022 1:15 pm4181 views

  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.

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  Becoming an Effective Leader in your first leadership position

  Feb 24, 2022 12:15 pm60 views

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

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  Being a Leader in the Advertising Industry

  Apr 14, 2020 12:00 am207 views

  This blog sums up the leadership qualities necessary for success when working in an advertising agency. It teaches college students how to prepare for the industry by being mindful of the way they act and work with others.

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  Challenges You Need To Encounter As A Leader

  Apr 15, 2020 5:00 pm165 views

  Leaders have the power to control people to do what they want. However, being a leader is not easy. He or she needs to face many challenges to build a strong, healthy working relationship with employees.

• Compassionate Leadership: What I've Learned

  Nov 8, 2023 3:30 pm77 views

  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.

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  COVID-19 Updates

  Apr 16, 2020 1:15 pm20 views

  As the spread of the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) creates uncertainty and concerns both globally and here in our community, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign continues to monitor developments and to take any new actions that are warranted as new information emerges in this rapidly changing situation. Click here for information and updates about the impact of the COVID-19 virus on our university.

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  Donaldson Gift to the Illinois Leadership Center Makes History

  Jun 8, 2020 9:15 am11 views

  The Illinois Leadership® Center (ILC) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has received the largest outright gift in the history of Student Affairs at Illinois with a $1.17 million gift from Jane and William (“Bill”) Donaldson.

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

  Apr 7, 2022 11:15 am71 views

  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.

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  Empathy

  Apr 6, 2021 1:30 pm1027 views

  This post starts by comparing empathy to shoes, displaying a metaphor for being the listener for someone's story. This post also shares a comparison and a way to think of empathy in a different way. 

• Empathy: Stepping into others’ shoes without tripping over our own

  Oct 14, 2024 3:15 pm123 views

  In this blog post, I go over the difference between sympathy and empathy and ways we can practice empathy. I use several personal anecdotes but also highlight that too much of everything is harmful and it is equally important to sometimes take a step back when you feel that being empathetic is taking up too much of your energy.

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  How Leaders Communicate Effectively

  Sep 22, 2020 10:30 am175 views

  Communication is something key in leadership as well as our everyday lives. This post goes into more detail on communication and gives some great advice on how to effectively use communication in different areas. 

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  How My Experience at The LeaderShape® Institute™ Shaped My Understanding of Social Justice

  Feb 16, 2021 1:00 pm91 views

  The LeaderShape®  Institute™ was a great opportunity to learn more about social justice and hear from different viewpoints. My time at The LeaderShape®  Institute™  was very influential and I wanted to share how it helped my viewpoint of social justice. 

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

  Oct 18, 2021 1:15 pm129 views

  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. 

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  How to be a Leader in a Virtual Setting

  Mar 22, 2022 11:45 am94 views

  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.

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  How to be a Leader in a Virtual Setting

  Apr 25, 2022 11:30 am86 views

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

• How to Establish a Psychologically Safe Team

  Feb 21, 2024 12:15 pm34 views

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

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  How to Prioritize our Emotional Wellness 

  Oct 11, 2021 2:15 pm2620 views

  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. 

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  How To Set the Right Goals for Yourself and Succeed

  Apr 14, 2022 1:15 pm2669 views

  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.

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  How to stay (sorta) stress-free in college

  Nov 15, 2021 12:45 pm227 views

  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!

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

  Dec 1, 2023 1:00 pm39 views

  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. 

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  Human Dignity in Leadership

  Nov 30, 2020 11:00 am3987 views

  This post explains the importance of one of the ILC's competencies, human dignity, and how it is important in leadership. 

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  Indecisiveness & Leadership

  Sep 7, 2022 11:00 am150 views

  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.

• Innovation and Leadership

  Apr 6, 2021 1:45 pm115 views

  This post talks about innovation and the impacts it has on leadership. Innovation helps start trendsetters and conversation starters for leaders. It is important to recognize the impact innovation has on leaders. 

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  Innovation in Leadership

  Apr 6, 2021 1:45 pm127 views

  This post goes into details on Innovation in leadership. It describes what innovation is and ways to embrace innovation in leadership and in our daily lives. 

• Is Leadership Conditional?

  May 3, 2022 11:30 am78 views

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

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  Jump Start Your Career with Leadership

  Apr 16, 2020 8:00 pm154 views

  This blog post highlights the importance of leadership and how it can positively influence your career readiness. Leadership is about constantly learning and to do this you must seek out experiences that will enhance your life design.

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  Leadership in Social Justice

  Jan 27, 2023 11:00 am389 views

  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.

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  Leadership Lessons from President Zelensky

  Mar 29, 2022 11:15 am10812 views

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

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

  Apr 29, 2022 11:15 am67 views

  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. 

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  Leading by Creativity

  Dec 7, 2021 1:15 pm2212 views

  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. 

• Leading Through Crisis

  Dec 11, 2024 1:15 pm19 views

  In this blog post Kristian Robbins talks about how leading through a crisis can be challenging and difficult for many people to navigate. As a leader who has navigated both internal and external struggles, Kristian gives us her best techniques for practicing authentic leadership and managing challenges without compromising leadership abilities.
  
  

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

  Nov 29, 2021 1:15 pm42398 views

  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.

• Listening as a Leader

  Feb 12, 2025 1:15 pm52 views

  In this blog post, Emily Chang, a Graf Intern at the Illinois Leadership Center, discusses how listening is an often-overlooked leadership quality and how it can be beneficial in making others feel more comfortable participating.

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  My Definition of Leadership

  Apr 15, 2020 11:30 pm26897 views

  I go into detail on what I believe is the true definition of leadership and how this reflects all the good leaders in our lives. I also give my perspective on the definition of leadership.

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  My Time at the ILC

  Apr 26, 2022 1:15 pm114 views

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

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  National Make a Difference Day

  Oct 20, 2020 10:30 am416 views

  National Make a Difference Day focuses on aspects of service in our community. This post goes into more detail about the day and introduces the topic of servant leadership. 

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  One Question to Answer Before Deciding Your Career Path

  Jan 26, 2021 2:45 pm8 views

  Remember the saying that we all wanted to believe as kids? You can be anything you want to be when you grow up. One of the best ways to end up in the kind of career that earns you respect, recognition, success, and happiness is to do more of what you're good at.

  Click the title to read this article by Jessica Buono from Gallup with CliftonStrengths, one of the programs presented at the ILC!

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  Organizing for Social Change: An Interview with a First-Timer

  Jun 12, 2020 11:45 am158 views

  I first met Paul Saban at the 2019 session of the Institute by LeaderShape. When Paul informed me that he was organizing a demonstration for Black Lives Matter in his hometown in Monticello, I decided that I would interview him about his experience following the demonstration. This was his first time organizing an event of this kind. The demonstration was held in the main square of Monticello, Illinois on Saturday, June 6.

• Recognizing my Strengths as a Leader

  Jul 7, 2021 1:15 pm55 views

  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. 

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  Reflections: Being a Student Leader in a Pandemic and Lessons Learned

  Dec 14, 2020 9:30 am25934 views

  This post provides reflections from UIUC students on this past Fall semester and how they felt about the changes and transition to online classes. 

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

  Dec 6, 2021 2:15 pm257 views

  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.

• Role Modeling and Strength: The Heart of Leadership

  Feb 26, 2025 2:00 pm10 views

  In this blog post, Tyler writes about how effective leadership is rooted in being a role model and demonstrating strength. By leading with integrity and fostering inclusivity, He aims to empower others and create a trusting environment.

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  Role of a Leader - establish automation & system

  Jan 28, 2025 8:00 am26 views

  In this post Tim Chen speaks on how efficiency is key to all bodies, and how the role of a leader is to "manage" and establish systematic processes and automation.

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  Self Leadership

  Apr 28, 2022 11:00 am79 views

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

• Special Situations in Private Markets

  Jan 26, 2024 1:30 pm79 views

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