Being a student leader in a time where both the University of Exeter and the national landscape of higher education are undergoing significant transformation can sometimes feel a bit Sisyphean. If you’re not a fan of Greek mythology, I basically mean I sometimes feel like I am pushing a very large boulder up a very steep hill (I think Forum Hill is a fitting example).That said, with it being my second year in post, I feel like I’ve learnt a thing or two about being a professional nuisance, and I’m quite lucky in that the people I annoy on a regular basis seem to be on the same page as me about a lot of things. With our Officer elections coming up, I thought now was the perfect time to talk about 3 key things I’ve learnt from my experience of changemaking here at Exeter.
1. Finding your “why”
For any student leader, it’s really important to find your “why”. Returning to that “why” has been absolutely key in finding motivation when you’re facing your 4th setback in a row and that boulder feels like it’s only getting heavier. For me, and for most student leaders, a lot of my purpose comes from the experiences I had during University, whether that was surviving a winter in a flat with a broken boiler in my second year, or wanting to report someone’s behaviour but feeling incredibly disempowered by the process. It’s all unfair, but it’s all important, and it all makes us better leaders and changemakers. Find what lights your fire, and come back to it when the glow gets dim.
2. Know when to follow the rules (and when to bend them)
This one took me a while to get the hang of. A habit I have, whether it’s a good one or not, is to treat everyone like we’re friends from the very beginning. If I’m being honest, this one has caused a few slip ups(like confessing an awful hangover to the Deputy Vice Chancellor), but it’s also made it a lot easier to bend the rules when it’s needed. Sometimes, when I’ve needed something done and I’m running out of time, I’ll send a message to the right person and, (more often than not), they’ve made it happen anyway. Now, this doesn’t mean to say that you should cut corners all the time, and there are definitely processes and procedures that you need to follow because they’re there for a reason, but I’ve found that knowing when to follow the rules and when to bend them slightly has been a huge help in making change happen.
3. Keep the powers-that-be in mind, but keep students at the heart.
Finally, I thought it was important to address the elephant in the room. As a student leader, it sometimes feels like you’re being pulled in all different directions, and when that happens, it’s tricky to balance what’s expected of you vs what’s best for students. And ultimately, what’s best for students is what’s most important. As someone who’s very emotionally driven, I find that keeping students at the heart gives me clearer guidance than keeping the powers-that-be (see here: the University) in mind. Overall, this has really helped me to choose my moments. It’s helped me to know when to press the big red button, compromise and challenge more professionally than I would’ve two years ago, and made me more effective in getting things done. You won’t win every battle, but by keeping students at the heart of what we do, we can win where it counts most for students, and that’s what makes it all worthwhile.