Our First Liberty Fund Experience

Monica Hingst is a consultant at Schunk Moreland Strategies, a boutique firm that offers strategic consulting for mission-driven organizations. Monica has a bachelor's degree from Purdue University, an MPA from Indiana University, and is wrapping up the final month of a doctoral program at the University of Southern California.

Our First Liberty Fund Discussion

There are some discussions you leave with more answers. Our First Liberty Fund discussion wasn’t one of them. Instead, I left with better questions, a deeper appreciation for my Class IX peers, and a renewed sense that values-based leadership begins with knowing what you stand for and staying curious enough to learn from others who might stand somewhere else. 

A unique part of the Fellowship is our partnership with Liberty Fund, an institution dedicated to exploring the ideals of a free and responsible society. Through Liberty Fund's Socratic discussions, expertly facilitated by Senior Fellow Pat Lynch, we spent our day grappling with big ideas. Class IX prepped for our first Liberty Fund discussions through pre-reads and initial reflection on a few guiding questions. In the discussion room, there is (pointedly) no lecture, no technology, and no expectation of where the conversation will lead. 

Our first Liberty Fund class day focused on The State of the Economy. The morning session explored the economic way of thinking, and the afternoon session explored the relationship between politics, policies, and the economy. Between the two discussions, we participated in a core values workshop that tied the day's conversations back to leadership. I could write pages about my own reflections from this day (the TLDR? I loved it), but the voices that have stayed with me belong to my classmates. My fellow Class Niners are thoughtful, brave, generous with their perspectives, and deeply curious. 

Session 1: The Economic Way of Thinking: Understanding trade-offs in the world of economic scarcity

Our morning discussion challenged us to think about economics in ways often overlooked outside the field. Economics doesn't tell us what is right or wrong; as a concept, it’s amoral. Instead, it helps us understand the tradeoffs in a scarce world behind the choices we make. 

My classmate Jesse pointed out that social media often encourages us to believe we can have everything at once. We hear and see promises of “having it all,” whether they're coming from influencers or politicians, but they rarely acknowledge what must be given up in return. Lower taxes and better roads sound great together, but economics reminds us that every decision comes with tradeoffs in a world of finite resources. We can't have it all, all the time. Understanding those tradeoffs is what helps us make better decisions for ourselves and for society.

We also explored another important question: Who has the knowledge to make good decisions? Depending on who holds the information and how they use it, the answer can look very different. What might be a sound decision for one person or group may not be for another. That question naturally led us into our second discussion on politics and economics.

Session 2: Politics, Policies, and the Economy: Understanding how they interact and relate

The afternoon conversation focused on what good governance actually looks like. We discussed how political institutions respond to people and whether they always do or should. Fellow Class Niner, Cody, pointed out that feedback in politics is often much more immediate than it is in other parts of society. That creates pressure for elected officials to respond quickly, sometimes in ways that are productive and sometimes in ways that prioritize the short term over the long term.

Another theme that surfaced throughout the discussion was that people often agree on the destination but disagree on the route. Most people want institutions and politicians that promote the public good. The challenge is that we rarely agree on what the best path to get there looks like. Nick raised the profound question: Should elected officials always respond to voters, or, when leading, might they be better off making unpopular decisions that run counter to voter preferences? This part of the discussion led us to a deeper question: How do we live and lead well when reasonable people see the world differently?

Sharla reflected that the farther we get from one another's lived experiences, the farther we drift from political unity. That comment resonated with me because it reminded us of the importance of getting to know our neighbors, connecting over shared values, and staying curious to learn from others. Even when we disagree, we share the important value of pluralism, valuing the freedom to hold different beliefs and perspectives while respecting one another's right to do the same.

Discovering Your Core Values and Putting Them to Work

Our Liberty Fund discussions focused on the kind of society we hope to build. Dick Hester challenged us to consider the kind of people we must be to build it. After lunch, Dick shifted our focus inward with a workshop on values-based leadership. He shared that values-based leaders know their values, communicate them clearly, and intentionally live them out every day. They ask questions instead of making assumptions. They stay curious. They seek out people with different perspectives because those differences make teams and communities stronger.

Dick then led us through an exercise that I would encourage anyone to try. We sorted dozens of values into three categories, narrowed them to our top three core values, identified our greatest passions and the community issues we care most deeply about, and then used those reflections to draft a personal mission statement. 

Listening to everyone share their values and passions was one of the most meaningful parts of the day. It reminded me that leadership starts with understanding who you are and what you stand for.

As we wrapped up our first Liberty Fund experience, Class Niner Sam offered a resonating reminder to pursue the true, the good, and the beautiful. We searched for the true by wrestling honestly with tradeoffs and asking who possesses the knowledge needed to make sound decisions. We explored the good by identifying the values that shape our own leadership and asking how we can leave our communities better than we found them. And, perhaps, I found the beautiful sitting around the discussion table. It was the willingness of my fellow classmates to grapple outwardly with difficult ideas, to challenge assertions with poise, and to share pieces of themselves with honesty.