I Am Not a Leader by Jasmine

I Am Not a Leader by Jasmine - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

A leader is defined as a person having the ability to guide a person or a group of people. To be able to lead a flock of people, a leader must have a set of characteristics that set them apart from the average human being, such as the ability to articulate themselves clearly, work well in group projects, and demonstrate passion in their line of work.
During my awkward and shy freshman year in high school, my teachers would ask me to repeat myself several times until they heard me. Not only was I very quiet back then, I was also put in positions where my peers undermined my role as a leader for group projects. This ongoing problem started back in middle school, and it progressively grew worse over time. I started to despise who I was. My voice began to vanish and my self-esteem only dwindled. I knew deep down I was capable of advocating for myself and leading group projects. To better myself, I joined OneWorldNow, a language and leadership program that promotes students to study abroad.
To this day, I am thankful that OneWorldNow has helped me become the person I am today. I have learned patience, teamwork, perseverance, courage, and determination, all of which I will continue to carry with me in the future. Through this program, I had many opportunities to speak in a large group about issues the world needs to overcome and develop ideas to solve these issues.
After the completion of OneWorldNow’s leadership program, OneWorldNow has inspired me to spread empowerment to new generations of youth, so I became a OneWorldNow mentor. I wanted to give back to my community and help teens realize that they can be a leader too, even if they doubt their abilities to become one. I wanted to educate students about the world, so that they can one day help make change in the world we live in.
As the school year progressed, I led discussions about self-identity, first impressions, stereotypes, and cultural awareness. Many of the discussions I led were new to my mentees because these topics were not taught in school. Furthermore, many of my mentees claimed that their voices were unheard in their communities. However, I created a friendly environment for my diverse group of students where everyone was able to express themselves freely. Throughout the year, everyone in my group voiced their opinions about issues they truly cared about, and they were able to lead a discussion on how to take action. Soon my role as a mentor slowly diminished and I became more of a facilitator.
Through my mentorship, I equipped students to become spectacular leaders who will improve their communities. They learned to advocate for themselves and were inspired to take on leadership roles. In retrospect of this past year, a few of my students have decided to become OneWorldNow mentors, while others became student ambassadors for the United States, and some took other leadership opportunities.
After witnessing the empowerment I left on my mentees to become fantastic leaders, I realized they are only pieces of the puzzle to help create a marvelous future. My hope for them is to pass their leadership knowledge on to the generations to come.