Leading Myself to Success by Liam

Leading Myself to Success by Liam - March 2015 Scholarship Essay

Leadership is rare quality that is difficult to find in a world full of peer pressure. Leadership is a characteristic that includes being able to do the right thing when the wrong is thrown in your face. It allows you to guide peers in the correct direction in any form of success whether that'd be on a football team or in a dance studio. Any situation in life could use some leadership, without it, it may be deemed as a failure. My own leadership skills will put me in the front seat to success for a number of reasons, let me explain how.

My parents raised me to be a leader, and even further, my football coach Tom Gallehue taught me how to be a leader. At a young age, I learned to take blame for others in which I'm in control of a situation. When I played quarterback and threw a perfect ball to the receiver, it was my fault if he dropped it. It was a habit I caught onto very quickly. Coach Gallehue preached doing the right thing. At parties, turning down a shot and a hit was the right thing to do. Driving all the way around the high school to park instead of taking an illegal turn for a short cut was the right thing to do. By preaching these practices, it conditioned me to constantly do the right thing, and in turn, others followed. When I was named captain of the football team, the group was in shambles. I had a set goal in mind: to get these group of athletes to work together as a team, and then win games. Team work is everything, but a leader was in need. I was honored to be the one to step up and take charge of what became a conference championship football team.

So you ask how this will help me achieve success in college? College is a true test to see if an individual is ready to become a real adult. There is very little supervision, you are on your own. Nobody is there to wake you up for class or advise you to stay in and study while everyone else is out partying. With leadership, I can have the confidence in myself to turn the non sense away from me. I plan on having a structured lifestyle while at college by balancing football and academics. I don't have time to mess around, and I certainly can't afford it.

In conclusion, my years of building good character and leadership qualities will definitely pay off while I am away at college. I feel more than ready to move up to the next step.