Effective Leadership

Effective Leadership

BUS 119 Principles of Personal & Organizational Leadership

Effective Leadership

Naturally celebrities have the platform to make noise in the headlines. They can quickly draw eyes to their projects or foundations by creating hype through the media. Some do it for the wrong reasons. They want to try and improve their image, grow their popularity or they are simply looking to profit. That is not why J.J. Watt does it. He does it because it’s the right thing to do. I am going to tell you a little bit about who J.J. Watt is, his foundation, his values, his integrity and his image.

J.J. Watt was selected eleventh overall in the 2011 NFL draft by the Houston Texans. This is his day job, but he was raised to be more than an NFL star. Growing up he and his two younger brothers were continually told by their father to “act like somebody.” This was the family mantra and it meant to be positive, to be respectful and to be a leader . J.J. Watt was raised with a giving and service mentality. His grandfather served in the armed forces and his father was a fire fighter. So naturally he and his brothers started giving back when they were very young, they started by doing their neighbors yard work . J.J Watt is a natural leader and was voted to be a team captain by his teammates. Each team has over fifty players, so it is truly an honor to carry that designation. It took him less than two years to earn that privilege, this says a lot about him as a leader. He has the respect of the owner, the coaches, his teammates, the league, and his fans . He is known as being a hard worker on the field. He plays like he has something to prove. He is a natural underdog because he was told by a lot of people that he would never make it in the league . Determination and perseverance are some of the qualities he exudes. He has been recognized as one of the best players in the league and he has won the man of the year award for what he has done with his foundation. He is very real, he has never been a part of any scandal, and he has never had any poor press. This is a guy we should all strive to be like. He has overcome adversity, injury and doubt and shown he is an excellent player and an outstanding human being.

J.J. Watt is not my favorite athlete and he does not play for my favorite team. I am a fan because he goes above and beyond and he does more than most when it comes to giving back. He does what I aspire to do and that is to make this world a better place. He is the president of the Justin J. Watt Foundation. J.J. Watt launched his foundation in 2010 when he was a junior at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. He wasn’t famous, he was just a college kid that saw the opportunity to help. He was volunteering at a middle school where he discovered a situation with a troubled student. This young boy spent several hours after school unsupervised and he got into some trouble. J.J. found out that the school did not have the funding to finance any kind of after school athletics. This situation triggered J.J. to work with the legal department at his University to start his foundation. He had to jump through several hoops to get it going because college athletes aren’t allowed to except money. The legal department and he were able to find a way . The Justin J. Watt foundation has donated more than one million dollars to after school athletics. If that isn’t enough to impress everyone. Than his contribution in facilitating the effort to raise over thirty-seven million for the devastation that Hurricane Harvey caused on Houston should certainly catch your attention . It says a lot about someone that has more money than they will ever need, that plays a sport for work and still puts forth the effort to help humanity. He began the effort to raise over thirty-seven million for Hurricane Harvey because he felt helpless in his hotel room. He saw strangers helping strangers and people giving even though they didn’t have much to give. J.J. used his social influence to raise the money, he asked for donations, he put in the work both physically and mentally and surpassed his original goal of producing two hundred thousand. He successfully instilled his values on others. Because of his influence, children created lemonade stands to raise money, families donated as little as five dollars, corporations donated upwards of five million, perfect strangers donated their time and effort and he was able to get other athletes to contribute and participate as well .

J.J. Watt’s charisma and influential ability is what makes him and his foundation successful. In a leadership and integrity article, the author says that one of the greatest qualities of a leader is integrity. It is when you are committed to doing the right thing for the right reason, regardless of the circumstances . J.J. feels a moral obligation to helping and supporting those who are less fortunate and that lack opportunity. He has developed a quality image by doing the right things. He is intelligent, confident, charismatic, determined, sociable and he carries himself with integrity, these are the six key traits to being a successful leader . These traits are what makes his life successful in both his football career and in his foundation. It is J.J.’s integrity that serves as the foundation of his image. If you google his name, you will probably find more information about his generosity, his foundation and how he gives back. He is the perfect example of how to use ones social influence and their celebrity to gain awareness, drive results and to do good for others. Not because he wants money or fame, he isn’t in it for self-gain. He does it because it’s the right thing to do.

In conclusion, J.J Watt is an amazing person. He is a NFL superstar that has been awarded defensive player of the year three times. More importantly he is a compassionate humanitarian that has been recognized as the NFL’s man of the year. He has used his positive image, his values and his natural leadership ability to help thousands of people. When it is all said and done, in my opinion he will not be remembered by the sport he played. He will never be forgotten, because his selflessness and desire to help others.