Blog Post #2

For our New York Times project , my group chose the topic leadership. Leadership is a key part of our every day lives and something we should all be striving for. In order to strive to become leaders, we must look at role models that not only affect us directly but also indirectly. For my personal article I wrote about Jerry Kill, the coach of the Minnesota College Football team, someone who I think is the prime example of a good leader and whose passion, diligence and authority is truly admirable. In the New York Times article, “A Coach’s Difficult, But Prudent, Decision” by Greg Bishop, Jerry Kill is described as the kind of coach who would “go through a seizure in a packed stadium and return to work as if nothing happened” (B12). Kill had promised since his first seizure in 2000, and eventual diagnosis of epilepsy,  that as long as his seizures did not affect his ability to coach he would continue leading his then-undefeated football program into victory. On Oct. 11^th 2013, for the first time, Kill did not attend a game at all for a seizure and since then decided to take time off to focus on his treatment and better manage his epilepsy. Besides being an inspiration to thousands of epileptics and anyone whose attended one of his games and a strong example to his players, Jerry Kill is also a dominant leader to his staff whether in presence or in absence. According to the article, “no staff in the country is better prepared to handle the absence, however brief or extended, of a head coach” (B12). Reading Jerry Kill’s story has inspired me to constantly push myself no matter what the circumstance. I now can see and understand how by simply pushing through and exceeding the expected limits (for example, getting up from a seizure as if nothing happened) can do more than inspire the people around you, it can inspire thousands.