Being a coxswain teaches me how to be a better leader.
Through my work as a coxswain, I have learned what it means to be a servant leader: my job is to make things easier and better for the rest of the team. If I do my job right, my teammates will shine. I do this work by being prepared, by knowing the course, by having a thoughtful race plan ready to go on race day, by taking practices seriously but also having fun, and by using our preparation time to get to know one another as a team. On race day, I do my job by using my voice to help my teammates believe in themselves, to stay focused and aligned, and to calmly navigate through difficult situations. And, at the right times, as a coxswain I have the privilege to remind the team to laugh together and to enjoy the natural beauty of the course. I love being a servant leader because it is about serving and helping others to be their best selves. In this work, as I coxswain, I learn to be my best self.
As a coxswain, my instruments are my mind and my voice.
Among the many things I love about being a coxswain are the way the job trains both my mind and my voice. As a thinker, a coxswain must be a guide and a problem solver. As a speaker, a coxswain must use her voice to convey confidence and belief in the team, savoring the moment, bringing everyone together and working through unexpected problems with a sense of calm.
I love being on the open water, hearing the oars move in unison, and feeling the rush of wind on my face or my neck as we glide together across the surface.
Being on a boat with teammates during a race is one of the most exhilarating things I have ever experienced. Crew is a sport that connects us to nature in the most beautiful way: we become part of the water itself as we glide along the surface. Every time we race, we encounter a new part of the natural world, each with its own unique features: a lake or a river, surrounded by trees and hills, birds and fish, and the sky above in whatever colors define the day: mixtures of blue and grey and white that are never the same. Sometimes it is raining, sometimes it is sunny, sometimes it is cold, and sometimes it is hot. We take whatever the world gives us, and we feel a part of it all. And, because crew is about the team, we experience it all together: a shared experience that connects us to this place for this brief moment in time. Being on the water with my rowing team is a special experience.
Whatever I do in life and career, I will always be a coxswain.
Being a coxswain is not just something I do. It is something I have become. Learning to serve my teammates has helped me to understand how I want to live and to give back to the world: using my mind and my voice to make things easier and better for others. I will also, more literally, always find my way back to the water for fun and relaxation. In my future career - as a producing artist in design and production for theater, television and film - I will draw on my learning from rowing: servant leadership, using my mind and my voice, and being part of something bigger than me. In all these ways, I will always be a coxswain.