Leaders, Followers, Influencers and Supporters by Kesia

Leaders, Followers, Influencers and Supporters by Kesia - March 2015 Scholarship Essay

I have seen leaders fail and failures lead in my lifetime and have found that on the journey to success there are many different paths that can be taken.

In college there are many different aspirations students strive for. Some want to excel, some want to be popular and have fun while others simply want to obtain a degree. Success is in the eye of the beholder. To be successful in college to me however, means finding what it is that drives you and makes you passionate and I believe it does not take any amount of leadership skills to do this.

I obtained my undergraduate degree for the wrong reasons. I did what I felt was expected of me by my family, friends and the weight society puts on an education. I didn’t want to be seen as a failure. I at that time fell into the category where I thought success was only a Bachelor’s of Arts. Once it was completed though, I felt very empty. I worked corporate job after corporate job and realized I wasn’t being fulfilled and that perhaps Communications, while it taught me many useful things, may have not been meant for me. I can’t say that I regret pursuing a degree in a Major that provided a diverse set of skills throughout its course, but I can say that I am very lucky in having the chance to do it all over again and pursue a Master’s in a writing program and fulfill what I deem my life’s purpose.

Leaders, followers, influencers and supporters are all equally important in my eyes. All of these personality types make up a college and one is not more successful than another. The leaders at my school were usually outgoing, confident and resourceful. Not everyone has these traits naturally. Also, one can get distracted when they have their hands in too many clubs, committees and extracurricular activities. College is a time when mistakes aren’t only made but also learned from. In doing this, one hopefully has enough time within four years to find what class made education interesting in a way where they wanted more. The characteristics of a leader can definitely help to achieve this, but they are not necessary.

Now that I know what it is I can use in my part to make this world a little bit better, I hope to fall into the category where I excel and hone my skills in an attempt to lead through my beliefs, influence through my words, follow those that came before me and to support everyone who has ever had an honorable dream.