How I became a Leader by Jaeden

How I became a Leader by Jaeden - April 2019 Scholarship Essay

I believe a leader is someone who does not order others to do various tasks, but someone who guides others to become the best they can be. With no prior experience, I didn’t know what was expected of me when I became president. I needed to learn on my own what it meant to be a leader.

With only 2 months to prepare for RTC, our advisors planned to hold long tiring practices every week that would soon take a toll on us.

At the end of one practice, our advisors brought us in for a talk. They knew we weren’t reaching our full potential, so they told us the hard truth: we had been slacking. This was where I stepped up to keep our team united and focused. Taking the floor with all eyes on me was nerve wracking since I had never spoken out like this before.

Nevertheless, I spoke from my heart and told them that we needed to work harder than ever. We didn’t work this hard in the beginning to give up in the end. We joined this club for ourselves, but most importantly each other. We are a family that cares for one another and we express ourselves as one.

We needed to show that to everyone who would watch us. We needed to display our genuine love for one another on that day and show how much spirit we had within our club. We needed to remind them why we are in Key Club and what we’re volunteering for because we sometimes forget as we’re too caught up in only doing service.

RTC day ended up being a success because we performed as a family. We were so proud of what we showed that we didn’t even care about placing. Tears never stopped pouring out my eyes as I was grateful to be their president.

As a result, I learned that being a leader wasn’t ordering others around, but to unify a group of people that have lost their way. Utilizing my past experiences, I intend to do the same for others in college.