Look at This Cool Bridge I Just Bought!

I know that most people would rather have their eyes poked out with sticks than attend such things as "leadership training" but this program is actually quite effective and engaging. I have met some truly wonderful people from the other participating schools (NYU and Oklahoma U) and developed stronger relationships with my colleagues at the UW. The first session was held a couple months ago here in Seattle. In October we travel to Norman, OK, for Session 3. The program wraps up in December at MIT in Boston.

The program's guiding principle is that leadership consists of skills and knowledge that can be learned, which is counter to prevailing wisdom about "born leaders." Leadership is defined as distinct from "doing" and "managing," and relates to setting vision, strategy, and engaging others. Prior to this program, I'd never really thought about the qualities of a "leader" and have always focused largely on being a good manager. That's not a bad thing, but I now understand that I have not realized my full potential.

I truly loved spending time in Manhattan. I hadn't been since a dozen or so years ago, and I got to explore parts of the city that I didn't get to see last time. On our way to dinner Tuesday night, our hosts guided us from our Washington Square hotel through SoHo, Little Italy, and Chinatown before we ended up at Pier 17 by the Brooklyn Bridge. After dinner, we were led back via a roundabout route that passed through Battery Park at the southern tip of the island, up the edge of the lower west side, over to the WTC site, and then back up to the West Village. All in all, we probably walked six or seven miles, and it was exhilarating rather than tiring.

On Wednesday night, a small group of us took the subway to Central Park, walked down 5th Avenue, stopped for dinner at Rockefeller Center, and ended up in Times Square -- a garish nightmare of lights, images, and advertising that was both amazing and disgusting.

New York, New York is a helluva town. I only wish someone would write a song about it.