At the beginning of his session Ian Tyson (the motivational speaker, not the singer/songwriter) asked the assembled students how many of them had kept the ticket stubs to their favourite concert or sporting event.
A forest of arms from the over 180 Grade 9 and 10 students from schools across the Northwest School Division went up into the air.
Organized by staff and students of the division's Leadership Academy, the Emerging Leaders Symposium, held in Lashburn this past week, featured a themed production about Leadership by Motivational Media, a superb keynote address by Ian Tyson, a presentation by three Leadership Academy delegates and a 'speed leading' session which consisted in students moving from one small group to another as Academy members and presenters from Synergy Credit Union shared their experiences and ideas.
"Our goal was to bring together a target group of potential leaders from Grades 9 and 10," said Don Wheler, the head of the Leadership Academy. "We believe that we need to invest in our students at a younger age so that they have the tools, the skills and the interest to be involved in leadership. We were clear with them that we wanted to invest in them so that we can have their talents in our schools and so that everyone can benefit from their abilities."
"We began with the Motivational Media presentation," Wheler continued, "using it to gain attention and put words in their heads that they would hear again - in an expanded version - later in the day."
And they were words to live by: 'Be responsible for your life and help others,' 'Work hard and make good decisions,' 'Our choices define us,' 'Use positive words and acts of kindness to turn discouragement into hope,' 'Make the right choice and do the right thing throughout life'.
"After that presentation the students listened to Ian Tyson, our keynote presenter. Ian is a deep, thoughtful and balanced presenter who effectively lives leadership," said Wheler.
"I use humour,' said Tyson, "and I talk about leadership and what being involved in it has meant to me, and how it can affect others. The idea is to attempt to transform a number of young people from being spectators to being leaders. Leadership in a high school setting can be many different things: while you want them to look beyond, the immediate concern is what they can do in school - whether that's community service, being involved with student leadership or just taking the lead in an activity."
"It's a start to building the habits of a lifetime," he continued. "Employers in the workplace want people who will just do, rather than people who wait to be told what to do - they want people who, when they see that something needs to be done, will just do it, and take the lead in that way. That's not traditional, top-down, managerial leadership - it's a 'getting things done and taking the initiative' habit, and that, more than anything, is the type of leadership that needs to be instilled in people, and which will put them further ahead later in life."
"Further than this, it's very important to encourage young people to keep on believing in the best in people - to rise above cliques and image, and to maintain the innocence of childhood as a way of becoming a leader. A kid in kindergarten or first grade who looks around doesn't see the clothes somebody's wearing. They don't see skin colour, and they don't see religion. They just see someone who could be their friend. And that's a good thing. Getting that back, and holding onto it, is very important."
"I also focus," he said, "on positivity. If I can pull a kid away for an hour and make them laugh and smile and forget about everything else that's going on, that's a good thing. Negativity is a downhill slope for kids - it's easier to tear someone down than build them up. Positivity is hard and it takes work. I want to show young people the road map to being positive and help to make their life better."
"It was one of the best presentations I've gone to," said Maidstone Grade 10 student Courtney Gerbig. "I really liked Ian Tyson's talk - he was amazing! I learned good things about being positive, and his speech helped me make a decision that I've been struggling with for a while. I'd recommend the day to everyone!"
Following a lunch superbly prepared and catered by teacher Tracy Doering and the Happy Camper's Canoe Club, the delegates listened to presentations by Leadership Academy students. Edam's Shanae Blaquiere, and Sydney Lake and Kennedy Lundberg from Turtleford spoke passionately about the neat things they've been able to do and the ways that they've been able to help others through their involvement in the Leadership Academy.
After their talk the students participated in a 'Speed Leading' session. Each student was able to choose five out of 14 tables, (with 14 leaders and 14 topics) and listen to a veritable smorgasbord of ideas about service projects, fundraisers, self-improvement, global issues and spirit activities.
Presenters from the Northwest Leadership Academy included Beth Nerbas, Ali Franks, Astrid Nyame and Kali Selski from Maidstone, Coleton Ethier and Katelyn Morin from Meadow Lake's Carpenter High, Arielle McRae and Sarah Logan from Pierceland, Lashburn's Tyrell Grassl, Destiny Young and Kirstyn Holmstrom, Sydney Lake and Kennedy Lundberg from Turtleford, and Shanae Blaquiere from Edam, A team of four young leaders from Synergy Credit Union, Melanie Mari, Stephanie Harris, Amanda Renaud and Maranda Sheahan, delivered sessions on Effective Leadership, Volunteerism and Leadership, Credit for Entrepreneurs and Business Etiquette.
"The speed leading session was really cool," Gerbig noted. "You spent 10 minutes at each of the tables. They threw out ideas and things that they do in their school or at their company, and you got to take those ideas and work with them in your head and suggest your own ideas. It was really, really good. The one Synergy Credit Union table was excellent. I listened as the girl talked about hiring people based on their attitude and the importance of learning about a person and accepting them for what they are good at."
And that ticket stub? At the wrap-up at the end of the day Tyson tied it all together. "You make your own memories," he said. "It's by involvement and through leadership that you get the chance to print your own ticket stub and create those great moments for yourself and for others at your school - the ones that you, and they, will always remember."
