Welcome everyone! I’m back in the office today, but still chilling in the same beanbag in which I wrote my blog last week (it’s practically my desk). So, as I promised last week, I’d like to take the time this week to tell you more about how I’ve grown as a leader and person from COLA.

Growing up, I have always enjoyed coaching others. Throughout high school, I helped volunteer with Special Olympics Basketball and Soccer. Being a volunteer coach helped make me who I am today. It was a very rewarding experience because I got to watch the athletes grow and become better at the game. As I grow older, I have realized that I still want to help others by coaching or even mentoring now. This week provided me a perfect opportunity to take all that I’ve learned this summer and help coach and mentor these younger leaders to become their best selves. It’s crazy to say, but I’ve gotten to the age where I’m almost out of college and can now help guide others in their college selection process. I had multiple students ask me questions about Ohio State, Fisher School of Business, or the Summer Fellowship Program I’m in. I don’t mind answering as many questions as possible because if I could help them in any way at all then I’d be satisfied with the work I have done.

Over the course of the 6 days I spent being a facilitator, I was able to realize my purpose of being there that week. I was meant to serve as a guide or mentor for these high schoolers in whatever way possible. There were a few students in my cohort that I knew were shy from day 1 and that’s okay because it takes time to feel comfortable to open up to others and be vulnerable. All it took for me was to find out what they are passionate about and then give them the opportunity to tell me more about it. These students were extremely intelligent and had amazing passions, no one would’ve known about it unless they said something. My goal as a facilitator was to slowly break open their shell and give them the opportunity to tell me more. This could be done by just simply sitting next to them at lunch and letting them tell me more about themselves. I wanted them to know that I care and that I wanted to know these things about them.

Throughout the week, our cohort conversations progressively got more open and comfortable. They had grown not only on a personal level but as a team. When the students started to create their impact statements, that’s where I felt I could really help facilitate them. Some students just needed a small push or guidance to get to their end goal of what they wanted to accomplish. I loved being able to have these deep conversations with my students to get them thinking more critically about what they can do even in high school. It’s amazing how much you can get from someone just by listening to them tell you what they’re passionate about and what they want to achieve.

At the end of the week, we have a Leadership Luncheon for the students to learn how to network with professionals in various industries. I have mentioned this already but before the summer started, I would get really nervous thinking about networking with strangers I’ve never met before. During this summer, I quickly realized that it’s not as hard as I thought it would be. During the Luncheon, I spent my time walking around the cafeteria breaking up huddles of students and encouraging them to talk to one of the professionals. There were some Leadership Columbus board members in attendance so I could help introduce some students to people I had met already and then get outta there. In one instance, there was a student who was nervous to approach anyone so far. I tried to slightly push them and encourage them into a conversation with one of our board members, Mark Bobo who they had been wanting to speak to. I knew I just needed to slightly guide them into a conversation and they’d be confident enough to take it from there. Eventually, me and another student were able to convince her and rope her into a conversation with Mark. By the end of lunch, she had spoken to so many other people and felt comfortable enough to be doing it on her own. At the end of day, she approached me and thanked me for giving her the small push she needed to speak to the professionals. For me, this moment was very rewarding and I had felt that my time there that week was truly valued. I guess what I’m trying to say is that it felt very natural for me to help her in that situation. I knew exactly what she was feeling and would want someone to do the same for me.

In conclusion this week, I think I managed to not only be a great facilitator but also serve as a wonderful mentor for my students. I struggle with giving myself praise, it just feels uncomfortable to tell yourself that you did a great job. Many of my students personally thanked me and said that they appreciated my guidance and support that week. It’s hard for me to understand the magnitude of the impact that I had on my students and I feel that’s why it’s hard for me to pat myself on the shoulder for it. I am really excited to see what all these students accomplish in the future and I hope they’ll know that they always have me as a resource. We stressed in many conversations throughout COLA and even for me over the summer that us students, both high school and college, are the leaders of today. There is still so much we can do now to help and we shouldn’t have to feel scared to step up and make change even in the smallest ways.

If you’re reading this, I hope you took something out of my insights from COLA week. I truly learned a lot and I hope you did too.

See you next week for our final blog together!

-Austin Gray