I am just wrapping up my third official day at the Hanifl Center in Mussoorie, yet it feels like I’ve been here for much longer. We have been enjoying waking up at 5am, meals, walks and hikes, trying to ignore walking by dogs and monkeys, and bonding. Luckily there’s a gym here too so I don’t go crazy without lifting. After getting to know my eight other group members and the staff here, it’s really started to become a community where we can share and talk about anything. These three days have focused on developing leadership skills, which has taken me down a rollercoaster of emotions, thoughts, and experiences in such a short time. We did leadership games where we tested our teamwork, trust, and skills. We also worked to develop personal and group goals to create a culture for this new “family” we are cultivating. My favorite part so far has been the 30 minute “solo” we did during a hike, where we took time to ourselves and found an isolated spot in the mountains to just reflect. It was a very deep and profound time for me to connect with myself and nature that I have really been needing. Doing all of this in the mountains of Mussoorie has been such a beautiful experience so far; I can’t believe we are only wrapping up day 3!

After spending so much time exploring the components of leadership, I definitely have a lot to reflect on and new perspectives on the topic. A concept that particularly resonated with me during these sessions is the SBI feedback model, which stands for Situation, Behavior, Impact. This model emphasizes that effective and productive feedback should describe the specific situation, the observed behavior, and the impact of that behavior. It’s a structured way to communicate that helps avoid misunderstandings and focuses on objective facts rather than personal judgments, and can be used to give both positive and negative feedback. It has also become clear that being a leader is much more involved than I imagined it to be. Beyond the formal, business-like relationship with a team I previously associated with leadership, I’ve learned that truly effective leaders deeply engage with their team members’ personalities and lives. This personal engagement is crucial for understanding team dynamics and performance issues and to be able to cultivate a positive and motivating environment. I think my perspective of leadership has changed because of this real-time practice with a team that is learning to value the same things I am learning through this program. It has shown me how a healthy team filled with leaders in their own way can be so effective and ultimately successful, and how implementing these skills can help me as a leader.

Good leaders have the courage to acknowledge their mistakes. We are all human, and errors are part of the leadership landscape. I learned best approach when a mistake is made is to acknowledge it openly, discuss it with the team, and seek their support to resolve it. This serves as a team learning opportunity and helps maintain trust and respect within the team. Observing such transparency and humility in leadership teaches us to offer grace and understanding, reinforcing a culture where failure is seen as a stepping stone to greater understanding and improvement, not a setback or a bad thing. Leaders who permit themselves and their teams to make mistakes allow for an environment where learning is prioritized over perfection.

Shoutout to Shantanu for leading effective and eye-opening activities for us, and letting our group laugh and have fun (as we have come to do together quite a lot). I am excited for the overnight trek tomorrow and get a taste of what the rapidly approaching 10 day trek will be like, as well as continue to get to know my group members!