"To Succeed You Must Lead" by Alexis

"To Succeed You Must Lead" by Alexis - March 2015 Scholarship Essay

A leader is defined as one who takes the initiative in action; an example for others to follow. In college often times students are not only striving for academic success but for personal success as well. Many are just discovering themselves and must learn to lead their own paths for if they continue to follow others they will never truly discover themselves. To be successful in college, one must embody the characteristics of a leader for leadership skills promote individuality, boost confidence, and spark innovation.

If you are always following someone else you are never being true to yourself. Though it is good to have friends and form compromises you must take the initiative sometimes, you must be your own leader. At the end of the day the responsibility for your actions falls on you regardless of how many other people did it. To be a leader you must first be your own person. You have to know yourself and what your goals, morals and limits consist of. In college, if you are always following the crowd you will not succeed for the crowd is usually wrong. Furthermore, when you follow the crowd you can only go as far as the crowd goes. Whereas when you walk alone you will be able to make new discoveries by going where no one else has been.

In life there are some very evil and destructive people. By developing good leadership skills early on in life, such as during college, one is helping to accelerate his/her level of confidence. In order to lead others you must first be confident in yourself and firm in your own beliefs. If you do not have solid leadership skills in college , where you're surrounded by high achievers, you can easily fall into a state of depression. Once you have entered this depressed stage you will no longer have the drive to be successful therefore, some form of leadership skills are vital even if they're minute.

New ideas are derived from leaders. One must step out of the box and explore unknown methods to find new solutions. If in college one never takes initiative or tries something different no new discoveries can be made about oneself or the world surrounding him/her.

Leadership skills are crucial to succeed in life. Leaders not only help themselves but the world around them. A leader can help someone achieve their full potential or even discover his own. Being a leader is vital in college for often times this is the stage where the people around you are greatly confused. To succeed in college you must lead. In turn, your confidence will soar, you'll discover your true self and help better the world around you.