All programs are designed, owned, and facilitated by The Leadership Center based in Aurora, Nebraska
A New Acronym
The birth of FLEET
Kurt Wissenburg
2/10/20172 min read
We frequently interview people. It’s the nature of the beast in a business like ours. Part-time positions and high school students move on from our community and our team. Since we have experience in hiring and experience in leadership training, we’re qualified to train others to improve their interview skills.
FLEET was developed organically by TLC staff. Over the years, we have been asked to interview youth for leadership positions in organizations, especially local FFA chapters. Through our relationship with FFA, and other career and technical student organizations, our reputation has attracted young leaders to our campus for extended training.
Future Leaders Extended Experience Training (FLEET) is our advanced leadership program tailored to students seeking progression in interviewing skills and capstone award recognition. Initially, it was designed for youth and young adults who are pursuing awards and honors which require interviews and/or extended oral evaluations. Scholarship applicants, pageant contestants, and organization officer candidates are ideal students for a program like FLEET.
During FLEET, students participate in a practice interview conducted by our D4LC staff. This mock interview gives our instructors an opportunity to evaluate students’ current interview skills. Through this professional interview, facilitators can customize an improvement plan for each FLEET student.
Beyond the interview, students take part in a personal introspective activity. This process helps students discover the keys to their personal strengths and weaknesses which evaluators seek to illicit. We have found the better students know themselves, the better they can communicate their strengths and experiences to others. It also forces students to venture out of their comfort zone, enabling frank conversations with people they don’t know well.
Further training in FLEET becomes highly customized, depending on the goals of the students. Through a combination of impromptu oral problem-solving speeches, presentations, and video critiques, FLEET students are able to confront and correct their speaking missteps.
Though the FLEET program was inspired by students’ desires to succeed in scholarships and leadership programs, it is beneficial for all students. We tend to focus on youth, but FLEET training is customizable to the needs of professionals and job-seekers of any age.
Have a great day,
Kurt