Mastering Essential Communication Skills
Communication is a must-have skill. Taking Leadership Communications and then being GSI for the class allowed me practice and master the small skills—knowing how to enter and leave a room with impact, how to engage and listen, and how to embrace the unknown—that I use every day.
As I get to know my colleagues at Ripple, I’m using the techniques taught in Interpersonal Skills & Embodied Leadership. I’m able to share my story and draw out their stories, in addition to helping others manage conflict effectively. That’s the best way to establish trust and build successful cross-functional teams.
Finding the Right Culture
When I visited campus, I could see my life unfolding there. It wasn’t so much the proximity to Silicon Valley, as it was the energy of the students, and the demonstrated reality of the Defining Leadership Principles. I also found cultural resonance being so close to Oakland, a historically important community for Black history and People of Color.
Wanting my own life and work to have social impact, it was reassuring and inspiring to hear those very words spoken so often in conversations with classmates, faculty, and the administration at Haas.
