Leading Oneself with Purpose and Meaning
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Leading Oneself with Purpose and Meaning
This course is part of Principles of Leadership: Leading Oneself Specialization
Instructor: Ron Duren Jr.
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What you'll learn
Reflect on what it means to you to live a good life so you can live with intent.
Define the elements of a personal ethos and understand how to lead a values-based life.
Reflect on how important legacy is to you and how it can shape your actions and behaviors.
Details to know
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There are 5 modules in this course
Before we can lead others well, we must first learn to lead ourselves well. Knowing your why is an important part of this journey. In this course, you will identify your core purpose and recognize meaning in your life, explore the power of spirituality and embracing our mortality, create a lasting impact by serving a greater good, describe your character and practice personal excellence.
This course can be taken for academic credit as part of CU Boulder’s Master of Engineering in Engineering Management (ME-EM) degree offered on the Coursera platform. The ME-EM is designed to help engineers, scientists, and technical professionals move into leadership and management roles in the engineering and technical sectors. With performance-based admissions and no application process, the ME-EM is ideal for individuals with a broad range of undergraduate education and/or professional experience. Learn more about the ME-EM program at https://www.coursera.org/degrees/me-engineering-management-boulder.
Before any successful flight, a destination must be chosen—and the same is true for a meaningful life. This week, you’ll explore the foundational concepts of purpose and meaning through questions like: Why am I here? and What gives my life significance? You’ll learn how coherence, purpose, and significance work together to shape a life of intentional impact. By the end, you’ll craft your Flight Destination Statement—a personal guide to lead with clarity and live with purpose
What's included
5 videos6 readings3 assignments
5 videos•Total 39 minutes
- Meet your Professor (for new learners)•3 minutes
- Course Summary•4 minutes
- Purpose•14 minutes
- Meaning•6 minutes
- Living With Intent•12 minutes
6 readings•Total 131 minutes
- Non-Credit Students: Welcome and Where to Find Help•10 minutes
- Course Updates and Accessibility Support•1 minute
- A Personal Message from Captain Ron•10 minutes
- Download Your Personal Leadership Flight Plan•10 minutes
- Flight Destination Statement (Purpose & Meaning)•90 minutes
- Assignment Overview•10 minutes
3 assignments•Total 90 minutes
- Waypoint Reflection: Your Purpose, Alignment and Coherence•30 minutes
- Immersive Quiz: The Search for Meaning•30 minutes
- Week 1 Personal Leadership Flight Plan•30 minutes
This week, we’ll climb to cruising altitude and take a wider view of life, leadership, and meaning. You’ll explore spirituality as a personal connection to something greater than yourself—whether that’s faith, nature, humanity, or legacy. We’ll also reflect on mortality, not to provoke fear, but to clarify what truly matters while we’re here. Gaining perspective beyond the horizon allows you to live and lead with deeper presence, purpose, and peace.
What's included
2 videos2 readings3 assignments
2 videos•Total 27 minutes
- Spirituality•12 minutes
- Mortality•15 minutes
2 readings•Total 100 minutes
- A Personal Message from Captain Ron•10 minutes
- Beyond the Horizon Reflection (Spirituality & Mortality)•90 minutes
3 assignments•Total 90 minutes
- Waypoint Reflection: Your Horizon Log•30 minutes
- Immersive Quiz: Facing Mortality and Transcendence •30 minutes
- Week 2 Personal Leadership Flight Plan•30 minutes
Every flight leaves a wake—just as every life leaves a legacy. This week, you’ll explore what kind of impact you’re making, and what values you want to be known for. Whether or not you think about legacy often, you are shaping one every day—through your choices, your character, and your presence. By the end, you’ll begin crafting your Leadership Impact Statement as a compass for how you lead and live going forward.
What's included
2 videos2 readings3 assignments
2 videos•Total 25 minutes
- Legacy•16 minutes
- Impact•8 minutes
2 readings•Total 20 minutes
- A Personal Message from Captain Ron•10 minutes
- Leadership Impact Statement (Impact & Legacy)•10 minutes
3 assignments•Total 90 minutes
- Waypoint Reflection: Your Impact & Legacy Statement•30 minutes
- Immersive Quiz: Gratitude and Legacy •30 minutes
- Week 3 Personal Leadership Flight Plan•30 minutes
As a pilot sets a heading to stay on course, leaders must define their values to navigate life with integrity. This week, you’ll clarify what you stand for and craft your personal ethos—a values-driven statement that guides how you lead, decide, and live each day. Your ethos becomes your internal heading—steadying you through pressure, distraction, and uncertainty. With this in place, you’ll fly with a clearer sense of purpose, direction, and character.
What's included
2 videos2 readings3 assignments
2 videos•Total 18 minutes
- Character and Ethos•8 minutes
- Personal Values•10 minutes
2 readings•Total 100 minutes
- A Personal Message from Captain Ron•10 minutes
- Ethos & Heading (Values & Character)•90 minutes
3 assignments•Total 90 minutes
- Waypoint Reflection: Your Values & Personal Ethos•30 minutes
- Immersive Quiz: Character and Ethos •30 minutes
- Week 4 Personal Leadership Flight Plan•30 minutes
This week, you’ll explore what it truly means to perform at your best—not through perfection, but through intentional growth. You’ll examine the downsides of perfectionism and how it impacts mental well-being, while learning to replace it with a healthier model rooted in personal excellence and mastery mindset. Just like a seasoned pilot trusts their system and adapts in real time, you’ll build a performance model that is sustainable and self-aware. By the end, you’ll know what your “flight mode” looks like when you’re operating at your highest and healthiest level.
What's included
4 videos2 readings3 assignments
4 videos•Total 47 minutes
- Perfectionism•15 minutes
- Personal Excellence•13 minutes
- Mastery Mindset•18 minutes
- Outro Video•2 minutes
2 readings•Total 100 minutes
- A Personal Message from Captain Ron•10 minutes
- Flight Mode Blueprint (Personal Excellence) •90 minutes
3 assignments•Total 90 minutes
- Waypoint Reflection: Your Flight Mode & Excellence•30 minutes
- Immersive Quiz: Excellence and Imperfection •30 minutes
- Week 5 Personal Leadership Flight Plan•30 minutes
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Build toward a degree
This course is part of the following degree program(s) offered by University of Colorado Boulder. If you are admitted and enroll, your completed coursework may count toward your degree learning and your progress can transfer with you.¹
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Reviewed on Jul 15, 2025
Everybody wants to get home, but only a few know wjere is home andnhow to get. Begin with the end in mind
Reviewed on Sep 15, 2025
Love the entire Leading Oneself Specialization. I thought I was in tune with all the topics but I learned so much and at the perfect time! Highly Recommend!
Frequently asked questions
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When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.
Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.
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