Hounds with Purpose is a space for alumni to share their stories of purpose and vocational engagement beyond their years at Assumption. This blog is created by the Center for Purpose and Vocation and the Career Development and Internship Center (CDIC) to better connect students and alumni through experiential storytelling.
Dear Graduates: Think about Leadership
By Phil Wyzik ’78, ‘84
Back when I graduated from Assumption, BA in Religious Studies in 1978 and MA in Counseling Psychology in 1984, I had no clue as to what twists my professional career would take through the decades of work that lay ahead. All I knew was that my life would have something to do with service, be it teaching or psychotherapy or both. What happened, however, is a phenomenon captured by the made-up Spanish word “coincidios” – a mash-up of coincidence and God. In one random thing or another, I now see God’s hand in shaping a path for me that I never envisioned.
If I were so bold as to make a prediction about anybody leaving Assumption University to start a new chapter in their life or career, I’d say that sooner or later, like me, you’ll be called to some type of leadership role. When that happens, they might want to recall what the world has seen from Pope Francis.
Say what you will about the Catholic Church, but whether you are an ardent advocate or a die-hard detractor, the leadership legacy of Pope Francis is something to respect. During his 12-year tenure as the head of one of the oldest worldwide organizations, this humble Argentinian might be seen by history as the most influential of the 265 men who occupied the Chair of St Peter before him.
From the many books about him, from his own writing, autobiography and especially his actions, the lessons he taught about leadership are clear.
The primary one to note is that his lifelong work is a matter of the heart. By that, I mean what author and educator Parker Palmer explains about the word “heart” –it’s far more than a feeling, but more of a synthesis of intellect, emotions, experience, culture, learning, and even physical sensations that go to the core of someone’s being. What Pope Francis said and did came not from some shrewd calculation or a strategic plan known only by insiders, but from deep convictions and values that he freely shared.
Francis was honest about failures, both personal and collective. That’s why in every document of his signature initiative known as “synodality” in Catholic circles, the call to sincere self-reflection and appraisal of shortcomings is foundational. He’d probably tell you that it’s only in our acknowledgement of weakness that we can find the energy to move forward toward something better.
In this way, leadership can also mean inspiring followers to move to something new. Change is often threatening to established authorities, structures, groups, and individuals. Still, he taught us that change is often necessary and inevitable. The challenge is to be always compassionate to those stuck in the present or those with opposing views. To me, his message will continue to be open and thoughtful, not just with his allies but also with those not so aligned. He never called them enemies.
“The challenge is to be always compassionate to those struck in the present or those with opposing views.”
Since the Middle Ages, Popes mainly wore red garments because that color was associated with power. Like some others before him, Francis always wore white, perhaps because it symbolizes purity, innocence or rebirth in Western cultures, and death in many Eastern ones. Either way, Francis was hardly about the hard power of force or the crafty politics of transactions and sanctions. His leadership was always about influence and never about punishment or revenge.
For Francis, leadership was about everyone, not just about the 1.4 billion people in his church. This conviction was easily seen in his messages about migrants all over the world, Catholic or not, who often find an inhospitable reception at any border they cross, or stereotypes that they are criminals or deviants. Similarly, his leadership messages about the world’s climate crisis were aimed at every human as he offered two encyclicals during his papacy on the existential threat to the planet that our children and grandchildren will inherit. It’s abundantly clear that Francis cared about everybody. Perhaps that’s why some commentators called Francis the kindly parish priest for the world.
Every student of leadership invariably finds themselves looking for examples of accomplished people from all walks of life. It’s something that no textbook on the subject omits. Be it Abraham Lincoln, Florence Nightingale, Martin Luther King, or countless others, models of leadership are plentiful. It is only a matter of time, it seems to me, that the legacy of Pope Francis will give one more powerful example to our common fund of knowledge about how effective leaders operate.
In the Catholic Church, another title for the Pope is Pontiff. That term means ‘bridge builder.’ When it comes to politics today, that might be a valuable yardstick by which we judge the leadership qualities of those we choose to follow or the type of leader we want to be.
Your time at Assumption, like mine, taught you how to be competent in your field, creative, and dedicated. It made you a person of integrity. People will see all in you as a person they can trust and a leader in the making. So, when the opportunity for leadership arises, remember: Build bridges.
About the author:
Philip Wyzik MA is a retired executive-level professional who has spent over 35 years working in the field of community mental health. He has held CEO positions in three organizations in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Connecticut.
Beginning his mental health career in 1986, he has worked as a therapist, addiction counselor, teacher, and religious education coordinator. He has been a certified trainer for Adult and Youth Mental Health First Aid and for the Signs of Suicide Prevention program for Jr and Sr high grades.
He is the past Chair of the local public health action council and has collaborated in the publishing of 10 professional journal articles and published numerous Op Ed articles in regional newspapers. He has completed 15 presentations at mental health conferences in the US. His most recent publication is a work of fiction entitled Pushed Down, Then Out.
He received his Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology in 1984 from Assumption College in Worcester, MA and has been a lecturer at Granite State College from 2001 to 2010. He has taught online courses in health care finance, health care ethics, and quality improvement. His current volunteer activities include membership in the Keene Elm City Rotary, the Monadnock United Way, and the Monadnock Interfaith Project. With his therapy dog Buddy, he also volunteered for five years at the Cheshire Medical Center.
