Leadership V Bossiness

The day I realised I wanted to become a leader was, like many others I'm sure, while watching another great leader on their stage.

I've always been boddy, and I make no attempt to hide that behind shades of grey. I am bossy. I'm also whiny, opinionated and quietly judgemental. However, my bossiness has allowed me to force my way into the realm of group leaders all throughout my schooling life. As far back as I can remember, I've always been the one who steps up and takes charge, automatically delegating and making the final decisions. I have never settled well for second in command or to be the one taking the orders. Interestingly, if not all that surprisingly, I was never actually elected by my peers to lead or captain a team.

However incorrectly, I had always assumed that this tendency to be abrasive and domineering were endearing qualities in a leader. Looking back now, I cannot believe how narrow minded and arrogant I have been.

This all changed the day I discovered I yearned to be recognised as an actual leader, however. This realisation was accompanied by the sudden grasping of the fact that I had never once behaved as a leader in my life. I was sitting on a selection panel, giving my piece in the options for my high schools' captains. My official task was to listen, analyse and provide feedback as to whether the students really are what they say they are. I sat, I listened. I crossed and un-crossed my legs multiple times and chewed on the nib of my beloved water bottle. None of this made the clock move any faster, much to my disgust. In hind sight, I can see that I was a pretty terrible choice for that selection panel. I was not only voting out of friendship rather than leadership qualities, but I couldn't really have cared less about the end result. I was there so when it came to be my turn, the panel would know me and automatically be impressed by me.

The day I discovered I could become a leader in spite of my authoritarian personality came not long after the day of captain selection. As part of the Student Voice Executive (similar to an SRC), I was expected to partake in a leadership training day held at a high-ropes course. As a group of roughly eleven people, we were required to encourage each other through the course and work to develop our own capabilities. The course was quite physically demanding, and as I am not exactly physically adept I gave everything the obligatory go and then retired to screaming encouragements from the ground. This backfired in that I wasn't like the other members of the team; I needed to remind myself to encourage the others and not just shoot out orders like a dictator. By the end of the day I felt I had bettered myself and maybe even learned something. I was beginning to see myself as someone on their way to becoming a successful leader.

The day I recognised the true traits of a leader did not arrive until months after these first realizations.

I had skipped school on the premise of completing work experience at my mothers office, but really I was just keen on participating in the game of Laser Skirmish they had planned for the afternoon. My mother is a supervisor/team leader/boss, whatever you want to call it, she's a superior to roughly twenty four staff. On this particular day she was running team building exercises, hence the laser skirmish. I was looking forward to the end of the day, but prepared to drag my feet through mud for the six hours before that. What I was not prepared for, however, was the chance to see my mother, the person who gets stains out of my white jeans, as a professional in her element. I witnessed the transformation in this group of people, who came in loud, unruly and uncooperative in every sense, return to the civil, friendly people I assume they had once been.

It was then that I learned the true purpose of a leader.

Since that day, I try on a daily basis to improve my people skills and perceptiveness. I do my best to ensure that others voices' are heard, as well as my own.

I now hope that when it comes my turn to interview to represent the students of our school, I will be able to show the panel the progression I have undertaken and the passion I now have for this area.

I hope to go on in the world as someone to make a difference, I hope to be a remembered name where so many are forgotten.