When you think of the word “leader” what comes to
your mind? A president or governor? Your boss or school principal? What if I told you that you can be a leader? In fact, you may already be one and not realize it.
Before taking a leadership class recently, I always thought that some people were simply born leaders. But that changed when Iread a book for the class called The Leadership Challenge by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner. The following quote really hit home for me:
“It’s just a pure myth that only a lucky few can ever understand the intricacies of leadership. Leadership is not a gene, and it’s not a secret code that can’t be deciphered by ordinary people.”
You don’t have to be the class president at school or the shift leader at your after-school job to be a leader. You can be a leader to your younger brothers and sisters or within your church youth group or within a club at school. And it’s OK if speaking in front of people makes you nervous and you don’t know all the answers. Leadership can be learned just like math or science, and it can be strengthened by practice.
Developing your leadership skills can mean a higher chance of gaining admission to a college or university, getting hired by an employer or earning a scholarship. Showing leadership experience can set you apart from other candidates. This doesn’t mean that you should over burden yourself by being involved in every club or sport on campus. Instead, pick one or two activities that you’re really into and grow within them.
Leadership starts with your belief in yourself. Not all of us will be famous leaders, but we can be leaders in our everyday lives and within our everyday activities. And that’s what will make our schools, communities and state even better.
Best wishes,
Ashley
Ashley’s ideas for developing your leadership skills:
1. Join a student organization you’re interested in. If there’s not one that interests you, start one.
2. Volunteer in a political campaign. Check out page 32 for list of election websites, or click here.
3. Ask to shadow a leader in your community. Ask him or her to be your mentor.
4. Never stop learning. Check out leadership books from the library. Read newspapers, magazines and blogs to learn from the examples of local, national and world leaders.
http://www.floridanext.com/welcome/article_view.asp?id=592
–Ashley Cisneros
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Ashley Cisneros is a co-founder of Chatter Buzz Media, an Orlando Internet marketing firm that helps companies and organizations engage with their target markets through inbound marketing via the Internet. Chatter Buzz Media, which won the Social Madness competition for the Orlando small business market, is a full-service digital marketing firm specializing in website design, search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing and content creation. Prior to founding Chatter Buzz, Ashley worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine editor, technical writer, marketing manager, public relations practitioner and freelance journalist. To see Ashley’s content writing, visit www.ashleycisneros.com. You can also reach Ashley on her Google profile.
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