This week my 8 year old ran for 4th Grade Vice President. The rules of the election stated: 1) students must be approved by their teacher (meaning academically completing assignments), 2) be interviewed by another teacher, 3) hang one poster at the school, 4) give a short one minute speech to the entire grade and 5) no passing out any candy or otherwise “buying” votes.
Averi is pretty quiet and I was excited when she decided to give this campaign a try. It was a stretch for her, outside her comfort zone. She worked pretty hard (so did my wife) getting ready for Election Day. With poster in hand, speech memorized and smile on her face she strode to school determined to win. It got me thinking about the qualities of a leader and how they were reinforced by my 8 year old.
1- Preparation- a leader must be prepared to lead. That preparation begins long before the moment of leadership arrives. Before she could take part in the student elections she was approved by her teacher. They look for kids that have consistently finished assignments and behave in class. If not, you are not allowed to participate. You never know when opportunities to lead will arise but if you are prepared, have handled assignments consistently and accurately in the past, you are qualified to lead.
2- Make each opportunity count. Your opportunity to lead might be small so you need to make every opportunity count. Averi was only allowed 1 poster and so that poster had to count. She spent a lot of time designing, spacing the lettering and applying liberal amounts of glitter. In leadership you often have only a single chance to make a good impression. As a leader you are always being observed, every decision and action makes you a stronger or weaker leader in the eyes of your followers. Make every opportunity to lead count.
3- Leadership cannot be bought. A leader must be authentic, someone that others will follow into battle or stay late to finish a project. This type of loyalty cannot be bought with free donuts and coffee in the lunch room. Being a leader is earned by working with and for those you lead.
4- Step outside your comfort zone- no one is ever fully prepared to lead. As a leader there will always be skills you need to improve. Leadership is not having all the answers; it is about making decisions and following through with commitments. It is about inspiring others to be the best that they can be. Averi got up in front of the nearly 100 kids in her grade and delivered her speech on why she is “a very good choice” for VP. She confidently stood before her peers and delivered her memorized speech. I saw the commitment of a leader. I also could see she was nervous but she overcame those hesitations and stepped out of her comfort zone.
5- Leadership opportunities come often. There is no shortage of leadership opportunities, just a shortage of leaders. Every day we have opportunities to lead. There are more opportunities to lead than there are leaders willing to step up.
6- Sometimes a leader is ready to lead but the followers are not quite ready to follow. Being a leader is not just a role formally bestowed. It can also mean being a good follower when someone else selected. Unfortunately, at the end of the voting my daughter was not chosen as the 4th grade Vice President. Someone else was chosen for that opportunity and will do a great job. Of course Averi was crushed, she really wanted to win, but the lessons that she learned about leadership will last her entire life.
7- Ice Cream and many more opportunities. Last night I took Averi to get ice cream and share how proud I am that she worked hard, prepared, stepped out of her comfort zone and ran for Vice President. She and I counted how many years of school she has left (13) and how many more chances she will have to run for student office. We talked about how she is a leader and others look to her as an example. She is determined that she will start today preparing for next year’s election by making friends, helping those she can and working hard academically. Other opportunities to lead will arise, maybe even today, and I have no doubt this experience has helped her to grow.
Leadership opportunities abound and true leaders rise to the occasion. Preparation for leadership is not a class or a book but a way of life. Be the leader your family, team or organization needs.
Question: What leadership lesson has had the biggest impact on your development? Leave your comments below or by clicking here.
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