Course 3, Discussion 1: Service Leadership at 7 Cups
The term Service leadership (based on the philosophy of servant leadership, in which the main goal of the leader is to serve). Sometimes leaders or community members who help with projects receive high praise for their efforts (and they all deserve it) but this is never to take away or undermine the contributions of listeners who fly a little bit more under the radar. How one chooses to spend their volunteer time on 7 Cups is up to them & we love you all the same!
We've long said that if you want to be a mentor, be a mentor, eventually you'll get a badge. These service leadership roles are incredibly important to the functionality of our community. The individuals in these posts do an excellent job helping to keep our community safe and positive. I am very thankful for them.
Service leadership is simply about where you plan to spend your time. To those of you out there who focus 100% on member chats, we LOVE YOU! To those of you out there who focus on community programs, we LOVE YOU TOO! All of these contributions are equally valuable and important. As a collective community, our aim is to honor your contributions, no matter where or how they manifest.
In this vein, my hope is that you will remember 3 key things:
1. Self-care - always! Make sure self-care is baked into your volunteer work here
2. Don't take on more than you are able. If you don't have the bandwidth to do something, you owe it to yourself and the community to say no. It is 100% okay to say no. (And if you are asking someone to help you with a project, please do not get upset if someone has to say no.)
3. Remember that 7 Cups is an ecosystem. Every single contribution matters!
If you'd like to be in a service leadership role, my advice would be:
1. Pay attention to how others are contributing
2. Figure out what gets you excited in the community!
3. Once you have an idea of what gets you excited, dive in! You dont need to have a mentor badge to help out, get involved & start learning.
4. If you're not sure how to get involved, you can chat with a mentor or sign up for listener coaching.
5. Once you feel comfortable with your area of attention, apply for the appropriate mentor track.
✒️ Question: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
✒️ Please reply to at least 1 of your peers in this thread with encouraging or supportive words!
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@FrenchToast
✒️ Question: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
It's all about serving others but it doesn't mean serving others at the expense of your wellbeing. At 7 cups there are many roles that are contributing roles to the community with helping people in different ways, such as mentors, academy mentors, safety patrol, etc.
@EllaListens I think this is a great point you bring up! Everyone has their own way of serving the community in a way that feels right to them. Contributing to 7cups in your areas of strength will help keep your well-being up as you'll probably enjoy what you do, preventing burnout!
@royalpainting409
Everyone contributes in their own way based on their ability, availability, and resources. But each one adds up bit by bit and everything just comes together to create the kind of community we have today. Our engagement no matter how small makes a difference.
@FrenchToast
Yep I agree. It's very important.
@Diego7Cups
That's so rightly pointed out that, a servant leader expects nothing in return but selflessly serves the people! Really appreciable! I wish you the very best in your journey ahead!💕
@FrenchToast
✒️ Question: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
I think service leadership is simply how one chooses to spend their time volunteering at 7cups. This can be as a mentor, or in community forums, or in member chats.
One examples of service leadership I have seen on 7cups is where I see listeners post community forum posts where they try to get everyone to participate. This can be posts such as icebreakers or check-ins or something along the lines of "What do you do for self-care". Just anything that gets the community involved in the forum.
@FrenchToast
Service leadership means taking initiative and actions for the benefit of others, by engaging and connecting with people on a deeper level. Offering appropriate guidance, to inspire and to lead the community in the right direction. One example I could give is how each leader, be it Chatroom Moderator or Room Supporter, having their respective responsibilities and experiences, they both share the same goal of keeping the rooms safe and inclusive. Such team work and dedication will always be appreciated and rap great rewards along the way.
@adorableGrace87
-> Reap great benefits*
@adorableGrace87
This is an excellent take on what it means to engage oneself in service leadership. I love how you pointed out that although there are various different types of leaders, these leaders are still similar in the sense that they are united in their goals of promoting safety. Thank you for sharing!
Service leadership is great. It is people focused hence supportive and ethical which leads to good collaboration for the greater good. Service leadership like mentoring. It is encouraging and empathetic
✒️ Question: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
Service leadership is essentially providing service to others in need through one's good-hearted nature. It entails selflessly offering one's time to guide and support others. One prominent example of service leadership is the plethora of adult and teen quality mentors who continuously provide guidance and advice to rising listeners.
Keep it up! Keep going.😃
Service leadership occurs when a leader seeks to serve other people instead of focusing on himself/herself. A leader who practices servant leadership style is more focused on fulfilling people's needs.
An example of service leadership is when doing chats with members. In this scenario, the listener listens to the members' needs and helps the member find the solution to their problem. It even occurs in forums.
Dear @Admirablerainbow2825,
I really like your answer. Keep it up and keep shining ✨
I see that service leadership makes the work easier and better to everyone. One of the clearest examples here in 7cups is the chatroom supporters
@AReineRose
I love this answer! And i totally agree that the chat room supporters definitely are service leaders!
@FrenchToast
Question: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
Service leadership is striving to serve others through your leadership, to help and support their growth, it means that the focus is outward on others and not aimed for inward reward. It's much like the mentors in the quality mentoring program, they work to support others to gain skills, knowledge and support with a focus on always an outward support role. They give to the community as much as possible.
@Always25
Awesome answer. Good luck with the rest of the course
@FrenchToast
What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
I feel like any kind of leadership should be a service leadership. Because if you're expecting someone to give you're expected to give back. I think chat mods are a great example of service leadership.
@benevolentCloud9834
Yes I totally agree. The way chat moderators function is a very good example of service leadership. They are there to provide a function of service to all the people who are there to share. They do have to enforce or remind the rules but their position is more in the enabling space.
