Jennifer Armstrong, Director of Community Arts Development for the Illinois Arts Council Agency, shares her thoughts on building the Emerging Leaders Network and the lessons she learned along the way. This is an excerpt from the talk she gave at ELAN’s last professional development lecture.
____
Leadership….
My goal on a daily basis is not to call myself a leader. My goal is to fulfill my mission each day and to believe I have made an impact on the world that demonstrates my values and beliefs. There are so many theories about leadership, and I don’t believe there is one secret recipe. It’s more complex than that. We all have our own cultures and our own way of being in this world – gender, geography, ethnicity, birth order, faith – all things that helped to shape who we are also shape how we lead. Let your skills and knowledge fuse with who you are, and lead with substance from your soul.
Network…
In 1999, Americans for the Arts held the Winston-Salem Arts Convocation, a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the local arts agency movement. I was fortunate to be one of 100 delegates invited to come together to envision the next fifty years of the field. Looking around the room, I couldn’t help but wonder who would be in the room in fifty years. Four delegates present who were under thirty years of age, and a couple of allies, spoke up at that meeting and expressed concern that at convenings like that across the country, younger voices were not included.
An informal ‘ad hoc’ committee formed to help develop and implement a series of programs and services through Americans for the Arts to meet the needs of emerging arts leaders. We wanted:
- an increased focus on younger professionals career development,
- a peer network,
- AND to be at the table with other leaders of various experiences and ages
- to learn together,
- have greater opportunities to advance, change or create the agenda,
- and to build our collective future.
Today, the Americans for the Arts Emerging Leaders Network works to identify and cultivate the next generation of arts leaders in America through professional development and peer networking opportunities on the national and local levels. This network has changed everything for how emerging leaders are welcomed into, nurtured, and connected to one another within the not-for-profit arts industry.
AFTA’s ELN didn’t start as a movement. It started with a question. A question with no specific demand in mind. Why are you talking about a future that we will be leading, without asking us to help develop it, without giving us opportunity to be part of the conversation in a meaningful way, without helping us to develop so that we are prepared to lead? And, it began through leaders in positions of power that heard the question, and responded with an open hand, space to create, and support. Collaboratively, the vision took shape. The momentum grew; support for the work grew and diversified; the structure formalized; the dialogue spread; engagement increased; the ownership and leadership were distributed; and new tools and resources developed…over time. It was not overnight, and more develops each day. The question, led to the exploration that led to the investment that led to the network…that changed everything. We have gone from individuals in their own pocket of the universe with feelings of isolation and underestimation to a strong, supported, and large network of leaders emerging into the field with greater opportunities, peer sustenance, visibility, and influence.
Top 5 Lessons I’ve Learned Along My Journey
- Speaking up and listening in – Learn when to speak up, and when to listen. Some of the most importazt things I have gained came from listening to people with far greater wisdom, with different life perspectives than my own, and in rooms where the conversation seemingly had nothing to do with me or my work. As important as listening is, speaking up can be just as critical. When you hear something that doesn’t align with your values, speak up. When you notice a striking silence of unheard, undervalued, or underrepresented voices, speak up. When you have the answer, the big idea, or the right question, speak up.
- Running on fumes and filling your tank – This work takes a toll on your physical, emotional, spiritual and mental well being. If you don’t pay close enough attention to symptoms, you may find yourself in burnout city. You need to find the people and places that fill up your tank. Schedule time with them. Walk in some grass and breathe fresh air. Eat lunch away from your desk. Take a real vacation. Knit. Dance. Paint. Play guitar. Or watch someone else do it.
- Defining values and making difficult choices – When deciding where to plant your roots, you need to know what your values are, priorities, and where you are willing to compromise. What matters most – weather, family, job culture, geography, benefits, salary? Life will bring change. Priorities will change. Maintain alignment with each move you make.
- Build authentic relationships –Relationships are the basis of this work. Meet people where they are, not where you need them to be. Break bread together with no agenda. Discover your humanity and then you can begin to discover how to work together toward a shared goal or purpose. Beware of your cultural assumptions. Be ready to go places where you look different, talk different, or think different. Be open to what you hear. Be ready to change yourself before you work to change the world.
- Realistic expectations – Consider what you have to do, what you would like to do, and what would really be awesome if you did. Then consider what you can realistically do with your resources – time, people, money, energy, etc. It’s especially difficult with creative people. We are never short on ideas. Never lacking in bold dreams. We see it, and we want to make it happen. Now. Sometimes though, we have to scale it back or just be patient and have some long view endurance.
Activate …
Sometimes stepping up as a leader is a methodical, deliberate choice, and sometimes situations arise that suddenly thrust you into a leadership position. Leadership doesn’t automatically come to you with a bigger title or birthday, and you may find yourself leading from anywhere within a system or hierarchy. Let’s agree to develop as leaders who activate meaningful change in all places we find ourselves.
Jennifer Armstrong is the Director of Community Arts Development for the Illinois Arts Council Agency, working with local arts agencies, arts service organizations and community development stakeholders across the state to help build a strong, creative and connected Illinois. She serves on the Chicago Cultural Vitality Indicators Task Force, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s (CMAP) Arts and Culture Toolkit Advisory Group, and recently served on the Arts and Culture Advisory Committee for CMAP’s Go To 2040 comprehensive plan. Jennifer has just joined the Americans for the Arts/National Endowment for the Arts Local Arts Agency Census Project Task Force. She is a co-director for Illinois’ biennial statewide arts conference and the Illinois Local Arts Network, both in partnership with Arts Alliance Illinois. Jennifer serves on the boards of The Association of American Cultures and the Robert E. Gard Foundation. She is a co-founder and past Chair of Americans for the Arts Emerging Leader Council, and was the recipient of the inaugural Emerging Leader Award in 2006. Previously, Jennifer served as Executive Director of 40 North | 88 West – Champaign County’s Arts Council – after moving back to Illinois in 2004 from Phoenix, Arizona, where she worked as Program Coordinator for the Department of Dance at Arizona State University. An Illinois native, Jennifer also served as Managing Director of the Peoria Area Arts Council. She studied business administration, theater and dance at Millikin University in Decatur, IL.
