Monument to the Unknown Bureaucrat

#2 What are you hoping to learn about yourself as a leader on this trip?

On this service trip, I hope to learn how to handle stressful and frustrating situations in a more productive and helpful manner rather than in a way that ends up hurting the group's morale. In addition, I want to learn how to communicate more effectively with everyone around me during these types of situations, so that there is no gray area between what I am trying to say and what is understood. When irritating situations during a trip like this are handled in positive ways in which everyone in the group feels like he or she is understood, everyone can move forward faster and a bond is created that can’t be manufactured in any other setting.
I believe that this statue, Monument to the Unkown Beauracrat created by Magnús Tómasson in 1994, can teach everyday leaders useful skills like how to better solve problems and improve communication. The statue depicts a leader who does a needed job, but not for the recognition or fame it will bring him or her. Instead, the leader completes the task because the people around need it done and not for any other reason. Working without expecting or needing a reward is an important part of being a leader because too often people take on roles that they are hoping will give them some kind of reward. The statue sits across from Reyjkavik’s city hall as a reminder to the civil servants that work there that they should be working for the benefit of others and not for themselves.Read more