Research Study Shows that AIESEC Members are Unique Leaders

Research Study Shows that AIESEC Members are Unique Leaders By David J. Pollay, AIESEC MCP 1989-1990 and International Hall of Fame Member Twenty years ago I was walking in New York City on Seventh Avenue and 23rd Street when I stopped and said, "I've got it " I finally understand it! Seven European nations did not start AIESEC. Students from seven European countries did!? AIESEC was not created by governments or organizations, it was created by young leaders like you and me. These leaders had a vision, passion, and commitment to make this world a better place. It was then that I truly realized how special AIESEC members are. For twenty years I have been impressed with the leaders of AIESEC around the world. I have been amazed at the level of their intelligence, energy, and determination. I saw it as a member, National Committee President, and a National Board Member. I appreciated it in the two dozen AIESEC interns I hired at Yahoo! and MasterCard. And again I experienced the excitement and commitment of AIESEC members when I chaired International Congress 2006 in Poland. We all talk about how AIESEC attracts and produces a different kind of leader. We know from experience how talented AIESEC leaders are However, we have not had hard research to back up our claim. I wanted to see if we could change that. I specialize in the field of Positive Psychology, the study of what makes people happy, passionate, and successful in life. One of the principle keys to a person?s success in life is that they use their most natural strengths every day. In a study I conducted at The University of Pennsylvania I set out to determine if AIESEC leaders have a unique set of strengths when compared to people of their own age and educational background. I was advised by Christopher Peterson, the world?s leading strengths researcher, professor and author. We concluded the study this summer and found the answer: AIESEC leaders are unique. We studied the natural strengths of national presidents of AIESEC and found that the AIESEC leadership does have a distinct leadership strengths profile. AIESEC leaders scored significantly higher than their peers on the dimensions of hope, curiosity, perseverance, leadership, teamwork, fairness, zest, bravery, forgiveness, and perspective. Click here to read the full research study. The study is easy to read and will make you proud to be in AIESEC. AIESEC can now point to this study as support for its claim that it does attract and produce a different type of leader. AIESEC leaders make this world a more beautiful place every day. If you are interested in learning more about our ongoing research with AIESEC, go to our research website at http://www.authentichappiness.sas.upenn.edu/AIESEC;; For more information on The Momentum Project, visit www.themomentumproject.com. David J. Pollay is the founder and president of The Momentum Project (www.themomentumproject.com). A former leader at Yahoo!, MasterCard, Global Payments, and AIESEC, Mr. Pollay is an expert in "Momentum Leadership Development." He writes the popular "Positive Psychology Living" column for The Boca Raton News and the Boomer Times & Senior Life Magazine. Mr. Pollay received his Economics Degree from Yale University, and his Master?s of Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.

ps. The only link for the full research study that I can find requires you to be registered on AIESEC .net. I'll see what I can do. In the meantime, if you are not a registered member and do want to have a read of it, please comment on this post and I'll get back to you. Thanks.

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