By: Rachel McCollaum (Year 1 DP Student)
Recently I had the amazing opportunity, along with ten other ISD students, to attend the 2019 Leadership WAISAL Conference held in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire. Three other WAISAL schools also participated. Before coming, we took a personality test, and during the conference, we learned about our strengths and possible limiters. We learned that being self-aware is a keystone for us to improve, showing that if we know about ourselves, then we understand how best we learn and possible setbacks. Not only did we gain self-awareness, but we also learned about other personality types and how important it is to understand how other people learn. We learned how important it is to understand our purpose, which helps us to become better leaders. When setting goals, we will make sure that our mission is aligned with them as they work hand in hand.
Additionally, we learned how building trust and good relationships with teammates creates a positive environment where we can both give and receive critical feedback. We see this relationship demonstrated through communication face to face and the utilization of social media. The WAISAL Leadership Conference builds understanding through communities, teammates, and our strengths and potential limiters.
Through this conference, we were able to bond with other schools without the usual “competitiveness” often found in sports events. We were all there to learn and cooperate to build relationships with other schools, but also break the negativity of a “rival” school mentality. Now when we meet for sports events, we know each other better and can demonstrate positive sportsmanship and support each other more fully.