Reflections Upon a Very Rewarding Journey: Almost a Decade Later

Serving as APA President is a wonderful experience that provides an opportunity to truly make a difference for psychology and our nation. Psychology's ability to influence national policy requires the association and its president appreciate the potential of the discipline to effect national policy. APA governance should focus upon the development of substantive, meaningful policy agendas, not merely those of interest to a few or upon internal governance politics. New leaders must recognize the importance of both the broad perspective addressing all of psychology and the relatively short window of achieving results. Leaders must develop the next generation of leaders and facilitate their integration into the new roles. In this paper, I discuss my experience as President of the American Psychological Association, and how I believe leadership in APA can make a difference.