Leadership is a Game of Poker

An executive told me that leadership is like a game of poker. You observe the cards, you observe those around you - the blatantly obvious, the hard-to-read - and when the opportunity is ripe, you seize the chance on your own terms.

Leadership is the same way in that when you come into a work place, you first mainly observe. You observe the field you're in, you observe the work place, and you observe the people. You relate all your assignments to the bigger picture, and when the opportunity comes, you seize that chance to move your organization in the right direction.

It's hard for a 9-week intern to think that he or she has the competence to make a change in this organization. A definite challenge for me was to think, "How can I make a difference in this organization?" We've been talking about the "plus one" concept for a while now, and it's something that I've integrated into my tasks for many jobs. I see myself asking questions and initiating tasks. I see forming valuable relationships. I see making a difference in a finite sense - making graphs, analyzing data, creating presentations - but will that be enough? How am I measuring that "difference?"

But as my friend told me, I need to make this internship mine. Forget the assignments, the "impress your mentor" guidelines, but observe this internship and see how I can truly enjoy it and get the most out of it.

One thing I look forward to is a meeting with my mentor for Wednesday's lunch. I want to ask my mentor more questions. He's in Florida at the moment, but when he comes back on Wednesday, I'm holding my executive interview with him. I would love to ask him more questions. The feedback I got from him before definitely added to the finite experience (or "vocational" experience as he put it). I want to talk in terms of an infinite experience. I want to come back to what another mentor told me a few weeks ago, and that was he wanted me to initiate. If I wanted to get involved with something, initiate - because that's the only way I'll get the most out of this experience.

It's been a long 4 weeks of poker. You see, I don't want to be the one that leaves the game early. Nor do I want to be the one that wins and then retires. I want to be the one who comes back to play each time.