<p>What is everyone's view on leadership and how do you become a leader? If you were to write a book on leadership, what would be your main points. Speak from experience.</p>
<p>We all know that being a leader is a key to getting into college and leading a successful life. What is you take on it?</p>
<p>A leader is a figure who people can look at for guidance and aspire to achieve because of the impression such a figure has made. A leader must be involved and take on responsibilities no one else did. A leader should strive for improvement and progress and not be satisfied with how things are, no matter how good.</p>
<p>I always saw a leader as someone who was not capricious or ambivalent. They are stern and unchanging and masters of compromise.</p>
<p>A good leader has an easy time getting into college if s/he has good grades and SAT scores to match.</p>
<p>What does a leader mean, RBase, is the question.</p>
<p>A leader is someone everyone has the potential to be. A teacher is a leader. A doctor is a leader. A writer is, too. Almost everyone has someone who looks up to them. It's how many people who look up to them that a leader is recognized by the public.</p>
<p>"A leader is a figure who people can look at for guidance and aspire to achieve because of the impression such a figure has made."</p>
<p>I agree with you 100%. However, In high school, this doesn't apply to all leaders. Many people run for officer positions in clubs/organizations/sports at their schools, so that their accomplishments will "look good on a college app". IMO these people are not true leaders becuase they are not motivated intrinsically (sp?). One girl at my school aspires to be a doctor someday, and wants to go to a really cometitive college. She ran for an officer position in pretty much EVERY SINGLE CLUB that she is involved in. Frankly, she acquired the position for most of the clubs. However, I would not say she is the best leader of all these clubs per se, but she is a great person to be around. She is definitely one of the nicest people you will ever meet. Well, my point is that while she is involved in many clubs, she is not fervently passionate about all of her activities. There are other people involved in the clubs in which she participates, who i think would do a much better job, becuase they really enjoy it. this girl basically garnered all of the leadership positions that other people were after, who could have been better leaders and improved the clubs more because they are very passionate about them. </p>
<p>Of course, no offense to those who lead many clubs, but actually devote not only their time, but also their love of and their devotion to the betterment of, whichever club it may be.</p>
<p>I just wanted to share my views on "leadership", and what it means to be a true "leader".</p>
<p>i don't see why every college is obsessed with "leadership qualities" in students. i'm not one of those, but that doesn't mean i'm dumb or unqualified or anything. i just don't have that in me. i'm not born that way!!!!</p>
<p>Colleges want students with leadership quantities because these students are good investments. Ideally, the students will make an impact in the world when they graduate. This will increase the prestige of the college and, if they are really successful, donate to and gain money for their alma mater.</p>
<p>"Colleges want students with leadership quantities because these students are good investments. Ideally, the students will make an impact in the world when they graduate."</p>
<p>BUT.......</p>
<p>Did you mean "quantities" or "qualities"? I really believe quality supercedes quantity. Someone can be president of like 10 clubs at school, but not devote as much time as another person who is president of one club but goes all out, and makes a huge impact on the club/school.</p>
<p>in my school, you have to be "popular(loud, etc)" and not necessarily "devoted, talented, smart" to hold a leadership position such as"class officer" or "club president" and such. </p>
<p>I'll almost jump out of my skin if i were to read a speech in front of a crowd anyways. (that's what leaders do. right?)</p>
<p>lol Ultima - its kinda like that at my school. All of the class officers are like the popular, loud type.</p>
<p>Ultima: </p>
<p>Leaders must be popular, too, to reach the top. What do all leaders have in common? A strong following of supporters who will help them reach their goal. Have you ever notice that are current president is not that smart, but he is still the president of the U.S. Why? He knew how to use and make connections with the right people.</p>
<p>kcAZN123: </p>
<p>I wrote post nine not to defend that girl's pseudo-leadership but in general. Usually, colleges look down upon students who head dozens of clubs. By overloading on activities, students reveal nothing about their interests and strengths. That post was directed towards the individuals who, like you said, shows passion for their few activities and better that club or orginization.</p>
<p>i'm obviously not dreaming of becoming a president.</p>
<p>a doctor would be alright. And, i don't think you have to be a club president to become that.</p>
<p>Ultima: </p>
<p>Again, my post was not directed specifically at your situation but to the OP even though I was partly addressing the issue you had with popularity. I don't know how being a club president will help someone be president or a doctor. But, colleges want club presidents, the point of this thread. I got sidetracked by mentioning the presidential position to address the importance of popularity even though I find it to be true. Initially, as you can see in post nine, I was merely giving my opinion on the OP's question before I responded to your post.</p>
<p>You can be a leader without being the president of a club or of the school...you can organize events, find positions outside of school, etc</p>
<p>My D ran for office several times in middle school, won one time...but that experience made her a better leader and better person...</p>
<p>My oldest D decided not to run for school office because she didn't see that they really made much difference, sort of doing the same thing year after year. Instead she became a Youth Commissioner for the Mayor</p>
<p>Leadership in high school generally means being president of the student body, editor of the school newspaper, or president of a club. </p>
<p>The unfortunate thing is that often, these leadership positions are not bestowed upon the smart/talented, but rather the popular/loud kids. At our school, during the run for president of the Student Govt, there were two juniors up as candidates. One was a very smart devoted studious guy, the other was a loud airheaded but popular girl. The girl won...</p>
<p>people who accomplish the goals of a group by fully utilizing the skills of each individual.</p>
<p>Leadership is very loosely used word. From my personal experiences I would say that leadership is a number of things:</p>
<ol>
<li>First and foremost: A servant of others</li>
<li>Someone who has followers</li>
<li>The person who makes the first move</li>
</ol>
<p>School elections are a joke at my school... they are ridiculous. Instead of discovering who would make the best leader... everyone picks based on who they know better. Whoever has more cool points usually wins... Furthermore, I have seen some get elected because people felt sorry for them... (Possibly the worst reason to ever vote someone into student government).</p>
<p>I recently returned from a week long summer camp called RYLA, which stands for Rotary Youth Leadership Awards. Although it might seem to be just a leadership camp, it is so much more and I won't go into detail about why its more since it would be off topic. Throughout my highschool years and from RYLA, I've learned a great deal about leadership.</p>
<p>First and foremost, leadership is the ability to motivate other people to cooperate in achieving a common goal. This is more important than anything else. Someone mentioned above that school elections are just popularity contests and another replied that popularity is what matters in a leader. An outgoing and energetic personality is a must in motivating others. Popularity has nothing to do with being a good leader. It is just sometimes having an outgoing and energetic personality coincides with being popular. Others have also mentioned that very smart people are sometimes not elected to leadership positions. Rather, people who are dumber become the leader elect. Well, only being smart does not make a good leader although it can be a very big plus. There are many more qualities in a good leader and there are many more techniques good leaders employ, but it would take too long to write it all out.</p>
<p>Becoming a leader can be a long arduous journey or only a few phrases away. One of the simplest ways to become a leader is to become elected. But once elected, you should do something with your position. Don't just waste it away. And even if you have a minor position, you can exercise your leadership abilities by setting an example and motivating the non-officers in the club or organization. Another way to becoming a leader is by taking charge. Being a leader of this type is less glamorous and glorious because it is never "official". However, your peers will soon recognize you as a capable leader (if that is the fact) and being elected will become easier. Just "taking charge" can be exemplified in situations such as group projects, organizing your group's prom night, or simply a day to hang out. I know from experience that organizing a group's prom night, not the school's prom just people who you are going with (ie: sharing a limo, having dinner with, etc), is very difficult and stressful.</p>
<p>I do not want to get into school elections because it can vary widely from school to school. If anyone has any specific questions or wants an elaboration, you can contact me.</p>