Huffington Post Co-Founder Gives Penn State Students Leadership Advice

Cynthia Hill – crh246@psu.edu

“There is such a thing as decision fatigue.” Arrianna Huffington, co-founder of internet news site the Huffington post, said during a series of talks at a Pennsylvania college Thursday.

She attributed the lack of rest in our nation's leaders to irrational thinking stating and as part of the Distinguished Speakers Series, Arianna Huffington encouraged a few hundred Penn State students and affiliates Thursday while conveying her unique political message of ridding America of executive burnout, and encouraging students to seek to become societal leaders.

 

Huffington hails from Greece and moved to the United States in 1980 and later divorcing from her former-politician husband, Michael Huffington. While raising two children and caring for her mother, Huffington left to New York to later co-found the Huffington Post and develop a sustained career in politics and communications.

During her speech in the Eisenhower Auditorium on Penn State’s campus, she conveyed her experience living the American dream, juggling children and work, and strongly, almost harshly, emphasized the need for women to take leadership roles in society. 

Huffington insisted women were better leaders than their counterparts. So much so that during the question-answer period at the event's end, only young women proceed to the microphones to asked questions and after answering a few she said, “This is an amazing time to be a woman.”

 

“I like the last response about life not being a straight path,” Georjanne Williams said, reflecting on Arianna’s encouraging words about overcoming hard life issues.

When asked if she saw any fault in Huffington’s comment about women being better leaders for America, she said, “I do think we don’t honor empathy and nurturing as leadership qualities.”