CLASSROOM REFLECTION

Carl Nystuen, Bozeman, Class of 2019

During the recent Leadership Montana sessions in White Sulphur Springs and Great Falls we discussed the significance of change (both personal and work-related), considered the importance of building coalitions and reaffirmed that north-central Montana can fall well below zero in February.

As always, the community presentations and panel discussions – on subjects such as the proposed Black Butte Copper Mine in WSS, the youth movement in Great Falls and an eye-opening presentation from Malmstrom AFB – were impactful. However, we focused most on the concepts of change and coalitions.

What is change? Why do things change? How do you handle change within an organization? These are all meaningful questions. With the help of Gracious Space, we looked at the phases of individual transition on Thursday afternoon. The class, myself included, found this topic to be front of mind – with many of us facing major changes in our lives at this particular time. The conversations and presentations helped many of us feel more at ease with change – knowing we can be the leaders we know we are as we guide our organizations, families and own lives through these periods of transformation.

We closed the session by starting the first of three conversations about building coalitions to tackle the issues identified by our class as the major hurdles facing the state of Montana today. It seems that people have been talking about these issues for years without making much progress. However, on that snowy Friday morning, our class came together to begin putting ideas in place. We identified key stakeholders and problem solvers throughout the state, in areas such as culture, workforce, state funding and community development, who can join the conversation. We’ve started a discussion that we hope brings change to many of these areas. Stay tuned to this monthly newsletter for ongoing updates as we head to Glasgow and Billings to close LMT.