Building Hothouses

Last week, I attended an interesting class at K-State. The discussion during the class focused on one specific topic: hothouses. Now, what exactly is a hothouse? It’s simple: “hothouse” is a synonym of the word “greenhouse.” These structures, built using a transparent material, allow plants to grow out of season and in areas where the climate is too cold for plants to thrive.

Image Source: The Telegraph

However, the discussion in this class did not focus on how hothouses are used to grow plants. Instead, the discussion focused on the idea that hothouses “nurture what might otherwise die.” Throughout society, metaphorical hothouses exist and have been built to nurture things such as certain ideas, skills, and abilities. Our schools, families, and FFA chapters are all examples of these hothouses!

What ideas, skills, and abilities do we nurture within our FFA chapters? Do we “build hothouses” to nurture leadership skills within our members that might otherwise die? As leaders within our FFA chapters, this is an important question to consider. Being intentional about what we do as FFA members to grow as leaders will allow us to have the greatest possible impact within our schools, chapters, and communities.

This mindset applies to areas of our lives outside of the FFA. Whether we are looking at other student organizations (such as Student Council or National Honor Society), or even looking at our families, it is important to think about the “hothouses” we are building and the leadership skills we are nurturing.

“Leadership is about nurturing and enhancing.” – Tom Peters