Leadership Has Changed My Life

Leadership is “the fusion of heart and mind, selfless action, encourage betterment of others, and to make a difference. It is the process of influencing

Leadership is the action of leading a group of people or an organization. Leadership is necessary in all facets of life. Not everyone has leadership abilities, and those who do, are gifted with an amazing capability: to lead. In the past year I have demonstrated leadership on and off the playing field, whether that be on the track, the baseball field, or the hockey rink.

Leadership has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”...

Leadership is a skill that one is not able to learn based on a set teaching, but rather a skill based off personal experiences. I am the leader, everywhere I turn, everyone I talk to, from a school game to a class party – feeling like I am critiqued for everything I do and say.

Leadership is the ability to prepare, coordinate, learn, and follow, a group in a quest to accomplish a specific task/mission, or a state of being over-all successful. Keeping the group’s motivation, dedication, esprit de corps, and over-all well being positive. Ensuring failures are considered learning points for improvement and successes are recognized. Furthermore the ability to foster these abilities in other members of your group as to take your place in the future should be equally as important as the primary result.

One of the beautiful things about leadership is that it is all encompassing and fluid. Leadership is defined as “the action of leading a group of people or an organization”, yet that definition doesn’t even come close to actually defining and describing what leadership can mean to a person. Leadership is a complex value, and it took a long time to grasp and apply it to my life. Through my experiences in high school and my church youth group I have come to realize that for me, leadership is the ability to inspire and positively impact the lives around me with quiet examples and actions.

Leadership encompasses the world around us, and is seen in some shape or form every single day. Without it, there would be no sense of direction for anyone, people would be lost. Leaders are those who take initiative to do what others won’t. Those who strive to make a difference in our ill directed world and guide those who need to be guided, or pushed, further than they deem themselves capable. Leadership doesn’t take enormous physical strength or even a booming voice. All it takes is a strong mind, full heart, and a purpose.

For eight years of my life, I spent a large majority of my time on the soccer field. Out of everything I learned in my time playing on team, leadership is my most valued skill. Generally, it’s always been very easy for me to work well and communicate with my, but when it came to being a leader I found this to be much more difficult but much more rewarding.

Throughout my life, I have been in many situations where I have to step up and be a leader. I have experienced certain leadership traits being on multiple sports teams, having to help lead Wednesday night church services, and also being a role in my family. I have acquired many different leadership qualities throughout this including how to be a good listener, how to be a team player and how to find the good in every situation. However, there are still some things that I have to work on. Such as, having patience, having self control, and being there for anyone no matter the circumstances.

I have long observed many leaders in my time since enlisting in the Coast Guard from an early age. I have seen the good leadership styles and the bad. Each observation is equally important as it helped build my foundation and principles for which I choose to lead. Leadership to me is the simple fact of establishing guiding principles for others to follow. If done correctly each individual that is affected by my leadership should have a positive experience. I have had many great leaders in my career that have had a great influence on me.

I couldn't be a leader until I set personal goals and worked like a Trojan to fulfill them. Leadership isn’t just concerned with authority. I wanted to have the ability to define what I wanted out of my life and with it have the ability to take the action required to reach there. At that point in my life I was a young soul eager to fit in. I did everything- music, science club, academics, public speaking, sports to ensure this. My personality was hidden behind books, clubs and endless competitions. All there was was an overenthusiastic but ineffective person. I had to start afresh and take control of my actions, pursuing only those things that genuinely interested me. My foremost thought was unequivocally basketball. Walking into the gym with my basketball shoes on made me feel absolutely gratified. I wasn’t the best player in that gym but I had passion for the game and each obstacle that came my way felt more like an

This student has held a lifelong interest in the area of leadership. From as early as age 8, this student has been intrigued with the sense of exuberance, found in personal success and achievement and began to wonder if others could be made to feel the same sense of excitement and belief in themselves. Thus, began this student’s endeavor to helping others “become”, “believe”, “expand” and “succeed”. But, was that leadership or the expression of a trait, or perhaps it was something spiritual or maybe it was an exertion of power over my life or the life of another. To answer the question, “What does leadership mean? ”, this student has selected the article “Leadership is about What We Deliver; Shaping culture, Creating Patterns of Success.”

Being a leader starts young. In my small community, I’ve fortunately been exposed to many incredible leaders who introduced a sense of pride and value in leadership. For as long as I can remember, my parents have been teaching me to help others, work hard, and value strong leadership and they certainly lead by example. My parents were the first coaches I ever had. My father coached little league soccer and my mother, basketball. Through their coaching and parenting alike, they

Leadership has been studied extensively and many varying definitions exist. Hughes, Ginnett and Curphy (2015, p.4) review many of these definitions and consequently describe leadership as ‘the process of influencing an organised group towards its goals’. Leadership involves the interplay of a range of different factors, not least the leader themselves, the followers and the situation. For

Over the years, a great deal of time, and research has been dedicate to the study of leadership. Even with extensive data on the topic, many still disagree on what leadership really means. Hence, leadership is a word that has many different meanings and different researched theories associated with it. On a basic level, leadership involves having and establishing a clear vision, sharing that vision with followers, respecting followers, and leading an organization with excellence while ensuring that everyone is part of the team. Leadership is also a method by which a leader uses his or her influence towards getting a group of followers to take ownership or buy into a vision.