“Leadership requires empathy. Being able to think from others’ perspective can help you to know what they want and help you adapt well in any situation.” – Winnie Ma
As the president of Engineers Without Borders, University of Toronto Chapter (EWB UofT), Winnie Ma (ECE 1T6+PEY) developed her leadership skills by seeking to understand the motivation of different members. EWB UofT is striving to address social injustices where there are difficult constraints and no clear solutions. With the idea of “failing forward and actively learning from mistakes,” Winnie leads her team to be brave and try different approaches.
What does leadership mean to you?
To me, a leader is an enabler: someone who is not only able to appreciate each and every member on the team, but is also able to show that appreciation. A leader understands the strengths and weaknesses of the team and is able to make decisions that can best guide the team towards the vision of the organization.
What do you think is the most important part of leadership in your team?
For EWB UofT, it’s not that easy to measure impact, the things we have done probably don’t have immediate results, which is why motivation is very important. Knowing your team well is essential because it allows you to understand what your team wants and to motivate them to move forward. The leader needs to inspire the team to move in the same direction and make sure that the team is gaining valuable learnings from their experiences.
Have you been through a rough time while you are leading you group?
The biggest thing is that we’re not always making measurable impact. Because a lot of the events are focused on raising awareness or sharing knowledge, so it’s not immediate impact and it’s not super measurable. A lot of people lose heart; and that’s the worst feeling – when you see your members leaving.
When this happens, what do you do to motivate the team?
First of all you have to admit that EWB UofT is not for everyone, and not take anything personally. I will sit down and have an honest conversation with whoever is concerned. So given the situation and the context, I try to really understand their perspective. If anything, at least learn something from this experience. For me, I am already happy that this person took the initiative to get involved with the organization and it is completely fine if the person wants different things.
If you received an award 5 years later, what do you want the title of the award to be?
In compassion, in caring, in kindness, in loving and in accepting people who they are.
-Odo Wang