Course 2: Becoming a 7 Cups Leader - (Discussion #2) Service Leadership at 7 Cups
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Being a leader at 7 Cups takes many forms. One thing every listener has in common is that we are all agents of service. Whether we are taking member chats or we are welcoming a new listener to the community, every unique contribution made by listeners is equally wonderful and valuable.
There are many ways to spend our  volunteer time at 7 Cups. Some of you will choose to focus on member chats and others will choose to be involved with our community programs, or both!  No matter which path, all contributions are considered incredibly valuable and special.
The term  Service leadership  (based on the philosophy of servant leadership, in  which the main goal of the leader is to serve)  can be explained in this way:  "Traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the top of the pyramid. By comparison, the servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible."
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!
Leadership - Becoming a Teen Star, Mentor, Mentor Leader or Ambassador.
Weve long said⦠that if you want to be a mentor, be a mentor, eventually youll 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.
One misconception I have heard floating around is that once youre in one of these roles you need to do more, be more, show more, etc. The reality could not be any further from the truth. These roles signify contributions that are currently being made & are not about contributions we hope these individuals will make in the future.
Another way to think about this is - Â if youre accepted to be a mentor leader or ambassador, we will not be giving you more work. Our aim is to honor the work you have been previously/currently doing. In fact, wed love for you to add more self-care to your regular routine. These titles are reserved for successful project leaders & community members who are already involved in community engagement projects and actively making a positive impact. In some cases, we may give you more tools to do your specific projects more effectively.
In this sense, 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. Dont take on more than you are able. If you dont 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! Â
If youd 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 youre 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.
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Questions: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
How can you become a better "servant' to our community?
Activity: Please reply to 3 of your peers  in this thread with encouraging or supportive words!
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What do you think of the idea of service leadership?
I think service leadership is a brilliant idea. I attended some leadership classes in my college and they taught how important it is to serve as a leader. A good leader will make sure that everyone gets everything they need to improve themselves, and able to perform at their best. A good leader is someone to look up to because of their modesty; continuous supports and encouragements that are provided is essential to keep everyone feel motivated and acknowledged. And I've seen all this on 7 Cups. So, I think this form of leadership is very well-suited for 7 Cups.
Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
I've experienced how encouraging this community is. Seasoned listeners welcomed, encouraged, supported, and inspired me to get involve in some projects. They also provided some resources to help. I think that's one example of service leadership on 7 Cups. Not to mention, listeners who courageously take 1 on 1 chats, spend their time, heart, and thoughts to ease others' load.
How can you become a better "servant" to our community?
Knowing my limit -- not taking projects more than my ability.
Refueling my tank before it gets empty -- self-care is a necessity.
Acknowledging others -- celebrating victories, mourning setbacks, and to keep growing together.
@Chevy81
Beautiful answers! Thanks a lot for sharing. 
@lyricalAngel70 thank you!
@Chevy81
Those are awesome answers!
Good job answering the 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?
How can you become a better "servant' to our community?
I think very highly of the idea of service leadership. It allows people to be very conscientious and contribute to their community, allowing them to help others and themselves grow.
One example of service leadership I have seen on 7 cups is the peer supporters in the group chats. They are always there to help and have a way of making the listeners feel relaxed, especially after a conversation that had quite an impact on them.
I could be a better servant by honing on my listening skills and allocating more time to participating in the community.
@giggleSun1695 nice!
Well said @giggleSun1695
@Heather225 service leadership is serving others with diligence and respect. any contribution to the community is service and its valuable, i have been a listener for a year now. to be a better servant you have to take care of yourself, take only what you can handle, handle everyone with kindeness and respect.
@wanjiku I love your answer! It's amazing!
@Heather225
* Service leadership is definitely a unique aspect of leadership in which the main goal of the leader is to serve. Participating in service leadership is simply giving back to the community through sharing and inspiring the team with utter dedication and clear vision.
* One example of service leadership would be a listener who is passionate about the work that is being done here on 7 Cups and they would like to help as best as they can.
* In order to become a better servant, you should love what you do and enjoy spending time doing it, You should always listen to your team and share your power and high spirit with them. Be a role model that they will look up to and get motivated.
@Anexmos This is a good answer!
@Heather225
Questions: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
How can you become a better "servant' to our community?
Service leadership is a brialliant idea where it pieces together the map to achieving and contributing to a goal in service. Service leaderiship to me means engaging in a task with others to perform a goal collectively and it is for the service of others and not oneself.
7 cups is the epitome of service leadership. A specific example would be the mentors who guide us and support us on becoming better listeners which again contributes to the goal of 7 cups which is to 'listen' to others and be there for them.
I can be a servant to the community by engaging more in roles and collaborating with others to achieve a common goal.
@Dazzle28purvi oh yes definitely, working collaboratively is a great way to be more servant to the community! And, it helps to not feel so much pressure to do everything yourself, since you can work together :)
@Heather225
What do you think of the idea of service leadership?
I think the service leadership model outlines and portraits ideal leadership. I do believe each leader should aim into helping others row and develop, so the goals can be achieved easily and others can learn and flourish.
Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
A great example would be the way 7 Cups shows gratitude towards listeners dedicating time and effort serving for the well being of the platform, by giving them the opportunity to succeed even further, learn new skills and get better at what they aspire. 7 Cups invests in all volunteers by providing them with necessary knowledge, training, and further opportunities that one could take up, such as mentoring.
How can you become a better "servant' to our community?
Learn from others, find your passion, get involved and start learning in order to be able to develop your own skills, and become better – therefore, become better at providing excellence and quality to the community.
@Ines1229
I also agree with it being an ideal leadership model. I agree whole heartedly about find our passion. When we love something we do excell at it. <3
@Ines1229
Amazing response! I agree with everything you said!
@Heather225
What do you think of the idea of service leadership?
I believe that this idea is great because it lets us know that we all are appreciated for the work we do here on 7 Cups no matter how big or small our achievements maybe but this idea shows that 7 Cups need us all.
Can you list one example of servant leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
I feel that listeners those who themselves reach out to members who are in distress & ask them whether how they would want to be helped is one of the best example.
How can you become a better "servant' to our community?
By being as much active in all my roles that I have on 7 Cups as possible. Due to my offsite duties, it is difficult for me to act on it. Therefore, I am working on this these days & I know I will be successful.
Thank you for reading!
@lyricalAngel70
Sounds like you have a lot going on in your personal life and 7Cups. It is hard sometimes to balance everything. One thing that as mentioned was prioritizing self-care, don't forget that :-)
@Containedchaos
Hey, thanks a lot for your kind words. I am working on it. Thank you for stopping by & reading my response. Have a great year ahead, stay safe! ❤
@lyricalAngel70 being a good servant is also knowing when to say no and let yourself balance your off-site work with your roles here :) so it's great you know your boundaries/limits and still want to contribute to the site! I also agree, I think it's wonderful when listeners pay attention and reach out to members they think may need some extra support (and, I love it when listeners do it to fellow listeners too!)
@TaranWanderer
Hey Taran, thank you so much for stopping by and letting me know about your opinions on the point I wrote.
I agree that managing role offsite and onsite is worth appreciating because it is not an easy job. Also, 7 Cups is so addictive that you are hooked to it forever which makes it even more difficult to concentrate on other things but I am doing my best. Having said that, I have taken a break from listening to new members and I am concentrating on LDP these days.
@Heather225
What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Service Leadership helps leaders encourage constructive relationship building with members who need support and help serve the community at the best.
Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups? Listeners / Mentors running various discussions in the group support rooms. They lead the discussions and help participants get involved in what's going on and pay attention to what members have to say.
How can you become a better "servant' to our community? I can become a better servant for this community by spending time listening to members who need help and show empathy to them also help build the community here on 7cups.
@She13
Great thoughts and ideas I agree with everything you said.
@She13 it may seem so simple but showing empathy can go such a long way and is always appreciated!
What do you think of the idea of service leadership?
I think the idea of service leadership creates an atmosphere of equality, creativity, and because other opinions are considered, it helps target the need of the people and how to better meet that need.
Can you list one example of service leadership you have seen on 7 Cups?
One example I have seen, I have seen many, but one is the moderators for the chatrooms. I appreciate them stepping in, keeping the chatrooms safe, uplifting, and encouraging. They show a lot of professionalism and do well at deescalating and mediating.
How can you become a better "servant' to our community?
Better ways I could be a better servant is offering to help others, hosting sharing circles more often, and making sure that I model appropriate behavior in the chat room, such as not engaging in arguing in front of others. Also, making sure I am inclusive and welcoming to everyone that enters the chatroom.
@Containedchaos
I loved your response, particularly the specific mentioning of the moderators; I agree completely, they do such an awesome job helping out!
@Heather225
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(Questions: What do you think of the idea of service leadership? Can you list one example of servant leadership you have seen on 7 Cups? How can you become a better "servant' to our community?)
I think that the idea of service leadership is a very easy yet effective way to give back to the people around us that have been helping us. I think it is also a great initiative to learn real-life skills as well as how to work under pressure.
One example of servant leadership that I have seen here on 7 Cups is Peer Support and Chat Support.I also think that in a way listeners themselves are a form of servant leadership as they have to navigate their way around to help a member, guests and other listeners.
There are a few things I could do to become a better servant. Firstly, I should hold myself accountable but at the same time know that mistakes do happen and it is okay to take a break sometimes. Secondly, I should be confident in the decisions I make but make sure that those decisions are in favour of everyone involved. Thirdly, I must be able to move out of my comfort zone to be a better leader.
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I have to agree that peer support and. Chat support does a lot for the listener. @cuteOrange213
@cuteOrange213
I really love that you have such a clear action plan for how you want to become a better "servant" to the community, I think that's really awesome! <3
@GlitteringNights I agree
@cuteOrange213
Wonderfully said ⭐︎ Love the ideas of how to become a better "servant" to the community ❤️😊
@cuteOrange213
This is such an inspiring answer
@cuteOrange213
Very nice respose Orange. Your doing an amazing job
@cuteOrange213
accountable confidence, yes! I like that
@cuteOrange213
I appreciate hoe you highlighted three specific things to improve to be a great service leader, and I hope to follow something similar.
I thought you articulated what a service leader is and I am looking forward to continuing this journey with you.
Best of luck on your LDP Journey! :)
@cuteOrange213
Thats very true, all activities here done by listeners is a form of serving
@cuteOrange213 Self accountability is a great deed which most of people run from. Its a great qualities that leaders must have. Thanks for pointing that out.
@cuteOrange213
I love that you point our Peer Supporter and Chat Support! They often help behind the scenes and in private chats so I feel like they're not as well-known a role as others, but they certainly are really helpful!