Leaders in School and Beyond by Gregory

Leaders in School and Beyond by Gregory - March 2015 Scholarship Essay

Leadership is a quality that can present itself in many different ways amongst all types of people. However, leaders possess some unique qualities that set them apart from others and have a direct impact on success in college and after. A leader is someone who influence and commands situations around them, but just having the qualities of a leader does not necessarily mean a person has leadership skills. When a person has leadership, they have a capability to lead which in turn indicates that one’s leadership qualities are put into action. In college, having the ability to be a leader and act upon that is essential to success while at school and after graduation.

There are many qualities of a leader that translate to success during a student’s time in college, but what separates leaders and those who truly succeed is who takes action upon those qualities. A leader is open minded, honest, sets challenging yet reachable goals, and takes initiative. This means that a leader does not just settle with what is easy to get, they work hard to achieve their dreams and makes their dreams goals not just something they imagine about. In doing so, they must take initiative in reaching these lofty yet within reach goals that will push them to heights they never even imagined. In college this means that a leader is the student who dreams big about their major, working for a degree that they have passions about even when it means taking four full science classes with labs each quarter. It is the student who is willing to actively listen to the opinions of other’s and have a calm and productive conversation about differences to work towards a common understanding of where each other is coming from. So many times people can’t even talk about major differences because the conversation gets so heated that those involved cannot look at each other anymore. Thus, a leader is the one who is able to honestly talk about where they are coming from yet see the views of others as valuable and work with others to find common and facilitate productive conversation.

Being a leader is a requirement of those looking for success in college because of the challenges that college presents and must be overcome. To have success in the classroom in college a student needs to be self-motivated, organized, and be able collaborate with classmates. These are all characteristics of a leader and someone who looks to help others and make a difference. If a student does not possess these leadership qualities, they will be hindering their chances of success in the fast-paced, high volume courses in college.

From the classroom to interactions with peers and professors, leadership qualities are essential for a student to have success in college. A leader is someone who is honest and confident yet open minded and willing to discussion differences with others. It is through a conversation like this that true progress can be made in regards to differences in thoughts, ideas, and beliefs. The leadership qualities needed in college includes these as well as time management, problem solving, goal setting, and courage. It takes courage to be a leader amongst people looking to become the future leaders of our world by staying true to oneself through putting others first. When a leader does this, they are doing what a leader is called to do, lift those around them to the highest level possible, either in the classroom, in relationships, and in life.