Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2016

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Forum in Singapore in 2015. As a member of the Girls Grammar School team, Anastasia was required to research, prepare and present, with due respect and understanding for the opinions of her international compatriots, to reach understanding and consensus on social issues relevant to our changing world. Anastasia received the Outstanding Speaker Award and was a member of the combined international group awarded Best Group Presentation at the Forum. Such opportunities have enabled Anastasia to develop her creativity along with her collaborative and decision- making skills, but it was her role as Shuttle Commander on the 2015 US Space Trip that she describes as most rewarding in developing her teamwork and leadership skills — although ‘terrifying!’. Participants were required to work in teams in a stimulating and challenging environment where problem-solving and decision-making were employed to achieve successful outcomes. In Anastasia’s case, she was responsible for the success and safety of all personnel while overseeing the completion of the flight mission. While Anastasia has not, over the years, been elected to the position of House Captain or Sports Captain, nor has she been the recipient of a badge to acknowledge any traditional School leadership position, she has followed quite a different path, taking advantage of the many opportunities that the School offers to students who are willing to take a step forward. Anastasia clearly demonstrates Malley’s top five priorities for effective young leaders. She is combining passionate pursuit with her leadership goals and that is evident in her noticeable and authentic energy. She is experiencing the importance of learning about the personalities of the people she is working with – understanding their strengths, weaknesses and motivations. Through all of this, a strong sense of personal identity, empathy and self-awareness is emerging. Anastasia is clearly on the pathway to becoming an authentic and inspiring leader of the future.

around them (Marcus, 2016). For students to be able to visualise what success in leadership looks like is very powerful. Providing our younger students with access to as many leaders as possible, in as many fields as possible, through events such as the Grammar Women Programme, helps to open up the vast horizons of opportunity that are available to them. Year 11 O’Connor student Anastasia Georgiou is a wonderful example of a Grammar girl enthusiastically selecting opportunities to develop her leadership skills. Her pathway to becoming an authentic and effective leader of the future, as suggested by Malley (2016), demonstrates her desire to form and understand her personal interests and values, and to consider how she might share these with others. She is developing her leadership dream rather than plotting her personal leadership plan . In his TED talk, How great leaders inspire action (2009), Simon Sinek reminds us of Martin Luther King’s great quote, ‘I have a dream’. Would the people have been so captivated by his leadership if he had said, ‘I have a plan?’.

Anastasia Georgiou (11O) and co-founder of IYLF Mr Ang.

As a member of the BGGS Athene Club, Anastasia is challenged to contribute to vibrant discussion about a select topic with a diverse group of her Year 11 and 12 peers and Brisbane Grammar School students. Demanding intense listening skills and thought, the Club challenges members to consider and contribute to the diverse opinions presented within the group. These meetings undoubtedly call upon skills she developed and honed as a delegate at the International Young Leaders

REFERENCES Malley, A. (2014). The 5 qualities of successful young leaders. Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140519073354-322130907-the-5- qualities-of-successful-young-leaders Marcus, L. (2016). Developing women leaders: Five factors that matter. Retrieved from https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20130101170009- 60894986-developing-women-leaders-five-essentials Sinck, S. (Sept 2009). How great leaders inspire action [Audio file]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_ leaders_inspire_action?language=en

AUTUMN ISSUE / 2016

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