What I Learned about Leadership from a Bunch of Cheeseheads

It’s simple; it’s not simplistic. You already know it, but you can’t bullet point it.

Before I landed in my current role, as the director of a writing program at a state university in northern Wisconsin, I bounced around the country working jobs to which I was variably committed depending upon how much I cared about the particular job and how entrenched I was at the time in parenting.

During those years, I paid close attention to my bosses, just in case. I didn’t ever really expect to be anyone’s boss, but life can surprise you.

I worked in a mostly-clerical role at a trailer factory in northern Indiana, as an architectural draftsperson in Denver, Colorado, as a public library designer in suburban Ohio, and, just before I started professoring, I taught high school in a woefully under-resourced high school in a godforsaken rural town.

During those years I had the fun-but-disorganized boss, the misogynistic boss, the even-tempered and consistently effectual boss, the temperamental genius boss, and one boss whom I’m almost certain is a verifiable sociopath.

I’ve also read a lot — a lot — of books on leadership. I’ve learned about leaning in and getting to yes and eating frogs. I know exactly how to react when someone moves my cheese.