Texas Bandmasters Association
Bandmasters Review • April 2014
9
Doing Things Better Than We Think
They Need To Be Done
Having spent 35 years traveling
all over the world presenting clinics
and workshops for aspiring student
leaders, there have been countless
young people who have come to the
forefront to embrace the challenges
of the leadership agenda. Through
all the successes (and some non-
successes), certain people stand out
from the rest of the pack. This
short story spotlights one of THE
VERY BEST of THE VERY BEST. It
spotlights a very special young gal
who in a signature quiet fashion
demonstrated a level of leadership
unknown in common hours. She
lived the adage: LEADERSHIP
ISN’T SOMETHING YOU DO;
LEADERSHIP IS SOMETHING
YOU ARE.
Enjoy this heart-warming story,
and invite your own students
to realize EVERYONE has the
potential to be an exemplary leader
at all times.
As we were preparing for the
marathon of our rigorous summer
schedule, a band director colleague
called and said, “Tim, I have a
remarkable sophomore student who
is the ultimate leader. Is there any
chance she could be a volunteer at
one of your camps? I do think she
could make a wonderful contribution
and she is eager to be involved.”
A sophomore?!…you must be
joking!…you think a sophomore is
readyfor this levelof responsibility?!!
It’s difficult for the adult volunteers
to meet the high demands placed
on them during one of the intensive
leadership retreats.
He was insistent,
so despite my
skepticism I agreed
to have the young
lady come along
even though I had
little (if any) hope
for her success, especially since
she was going to be surrounded by
people who were on their A-game
at all times.
She was quiet, polite, connected,
and demonstrated a high level of
appreciation for all. During the pre-
event staff meetings she made it a
point to meet the rest of the adult/
college volunteers and showed a
sincere interest in their personal
and professional lives. She willingly
took on many of the less-than-
glamorous tasks with a sense of
purpose and passion. She was
always the first to show up and the
last to leave, and she never failed to
thank me at the end of the day…
NEVER.
Her contribution to the entire
week was beyond measure, and
her efforts far surpassed many
of the veteran volunteers. Her
energy level was always positive,
her emphasis was on the welfare
of others, and she had an innate
ability to see what needed to be
done before others identified the
area of concern.
At the conclu-
sion of the event,
we all said our
farewells,
the
volunteers were
given their due
accolades, and
everyone left the site with grand
feelings of accomplishment. As I
made the final pass through the
various classrooms to make sure
nothing had been left, I spotted
the young lady rearranging the
chairs, cleaning the whiteboards,
etc. Amazing...simply amazing.
When all was neatly put away
and the details had been handled,
she handed me a thank you card,
gave me a big hug, and said, “There
is no way I can express how much I
appreciate your willingness to let me
be a part of this experience; I know
you took a chance and I’m indebted.
It was an honor to serve alongside
you and your colleagues.” I asked her
to sit down and share her secret to
leadership success. She responded,
“This is my mantra: I make an
effort to do everything better than
I think it needs to be done.”
Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser
“This is my mantra:
I make an effort to
do everything better
than I think i t needs
to be done. ”