Your task is to demonstrate leadership.

I was quite overwhelmed with anticipation when I arrived at session one. Camera-men were darting across the room like they weren't quite set up and just needed to make a few tweaks. And there sitting on the table in front of each of us was a paper reading simply in large bold font "Your task is to demonstrate leadership." None of us paid any attention to it, we all must've considered it for a moment and then pretended it wasn't there—because it didn't make sense. In fact anytime someone is put in a situation they don't understand or presented with something they don't get they often do the same: consider it for a moment and then leave it alone. Prof. Stefl and Rohm let this go on for 20 minutes as we chatted and then started class, explaining that the exercise was to illustrate that we are responsible for the class and whatever outcome it achieves. It was an interesting note to start the course on, and one I think is worth remembering.