The Leader in the College Student by Cory

The Leader in the College Student by Cory - March 2015 Scholarship Essay

According to social workers, James Kouzes and Barry Posner, there are five leadership skills that are vital to the success of any leader whether you are a billion-dollar business man, or a freshman college student. These leadership skills are not only important in the business world and workforce. They are also important in obtaining an education.

To model the way, means to exhibit positive, personal values; to show you mean business with your behavior (Posner & Kouzes, 2008). In college, your title is student which means you are learning to obtain knowledge. In order to prove your worth to high-titled people, you can model the way by attending class; by asking questions during and after class; by participating in clubs and student-organized events (those who do exhibit higher self-esteem and social interaction with faculty and students); and by proceeding with your personal life. All of these can help you, the college student, convey a message that everyone should be like you because you do all you can to strive and express high educational values. Eventually, plenty listeners will be inspired by your model for them.

When you inspire people, you influence them to do the things that you do. Some people improve aspects of their life because they see that you had success in doing the same. To inspire a shared vision is to have one first, then influence others to agree, make it happen, and make it personal (Posner & Kouzes, 2008). The situations in which you can inspire others are group projects and discussions. You can say anything and everything related to the project while getting a point across. In most group situations no one, firstly, speaks up about what they want to do. Almost everyone likes to hear what others have to say before adding input (which is good), so the way you can inspire a vision is to be the last person to add. You would have time to contemplate your suggestion which could become super influential. Say your idea was chosen for the project but another member disagrees and they feel strongly (but they aren't rude with their opposition). Everyone but the opposed agrees that your idea is best but they don’t want to harshly let them down.

The opposing member is challenging the process. This is not declaring that someone’s ideas, rules, and values are wrong, presenting yours and demanding that they be used. It’s not destroying things that need repair, nor is it negatively criticizing risk takers. Instead, it’s understanding someone else’s ideas, decisions, and values and easily and calmly explain how an idea could work but something else is better; it’s making every task an adventure; it’s fixing things that are broken and praising those who conquer risks (the Shelton Challenge, 2012). So, the opposing member is definitely being a leader in this aspect because he or she isn't allowing anything to go by his or her head without questioning it. The rest of the group is leading also by the fact that they are not judging or criticizing the other member. Once all decisions on the project topic have been made, each member must attain a task.
Enabling others to act involves the group leader to do the following: delegate tasks, be reachable, focus on gains, and create interactions with all people. College students who participate in Student Government have the best chance to exhibit this skill. These students decide what happens at their school; they also decide who can attend events. The Student Government of Cleveland Community College decided that the community, college students, early college students, and faculty were able to participate in seasonal events including Fall Festival and Spring Fling. The SG of CCC was accessible in that, anyone could have asked for information. Being accessible is vital to this because, if a leader can’t be reached, it’s only going to discourage team mates and it’s important to encourage team mates.

The best leaders always encourage the hearts of team mates. These leaders love what they do, they have high expectations for their colleagues, and they connect performance to reward. These are the caring leaders who care more about their team than getting things done. College students are always rushing to get work done, running errands; sometimes working two jobs and supporting a family. Things get busy, everyone knows, and it gets in the way of truly connecting with people. Students who encourage the heart always make time for others, even though it could be detrimental to something in their lives – they take relationships that seriously. To be a successful leader as a college student in this aspect, you absolutely have to make time for others, not necessarily to the degree of hurting your schooling, but to a degree in which you have some form of constant communication with others.

So, when you become the role model people want to be; become inspiration others need; become the person who accepts and dishes out challenges to the status quo; become the team leader who focuses on team gains and social interaction; and become a lover in the team and what is done, then you, the student, succeeds.

Works Cited

Posner, B. Z., & Kouzes, J. M. (2008). the Student Leadership Challenge. San Francisco, California, USA: Jossey-Bass.

the Shelton Challenge. (2012). NC State Student Manual (p. 18). Raleigh: General H. Hugh Shelton Leadership Center.