THE FINAL BLOG: What I've Learned Part 4

This is my final blog, and I feel I need to dedicate it to something incredibly important. I've been sitting staring at a blank page for about thirty minutes now, waiting for a moment of brilliance to occur. It finally hit me...leadership. Since I was a child, I have been fascinated with being a leader. Not just any leader, I might add...THE BEST leader. I have written research projects on famous leaders just to have a reason to do research on them and their techniques (I know I'm a nerd). I was elected Vice President in 7th grade and then President in 8th grade. In high school, I was a class secretary, and captain of my drill team. I have always felt the need to be in charge. Perhaps I am a control freak, but I like to use the term "leadership." It sounds more eloquent. 

This year I decided to run for Captain of the TCU Elite dance team. When I was elected, I hardly knew what was in store for me. It was all excitement at first. Little did I know, it would nearly change my life. Starting out, I was friends with all the girls on the team and we all continue to hang out outside of practice. However, being a captain is more than just fun. In fact, it is a stressful position. Being a leader, especially of something that means a great deal to you and to others is difficult. You often have to be the bad guy, and it often is your best friends you are the bad guy towards. Though it has been stressful carrying this title this year, I have enjoyed it more than anything else. 

Leadership: this word insinuates a passion and confidence for something special. It also tends to mean a positive thing. You don't often think of leaders as being bad or malicious people. However, they definitely do exist. Adolf Hitler and Jim Jones of the People's Temple were most definitely leaders, however their motives at the end of their lives were destructive and ruined the lives of many people. Leaders such as Abraham Lincoln show the opposite morality. He was a great leader with constructive ideals and goals that ended up helping many people in America. 

Though being a leader means a position of high standing, it can often mean losing friends. You have to do things for the good of a whole group, as opposed to what you would like to do or what your best friend wants you to do. You become responsible for the activities of many people in the group. It deals with more maturity and responsibility. Many people don't have the energy or courage to be a leader, since it often means you have to go against your friends to do something right for the rest of the group. 

I discovered this difficulty in being a leader when I was captain of my high school drill team. The girls on the team were some of my very best friends, but if they were talking in practice or disrupting and event, I was the person who had to tell them to stop. I had to be the bad guy. I am not going to lie, I lost some friends through this process. It was incredibly hard to stay neutral, but it had to be done for the team. Though I am sad I lost some friends, I grew so much as a person being a leader and dealing with the hardships of being one as well.

Now as Captain of a college team, I was a little more scared. Next semester, our coach and one of my close friends will be studying abroad, which basically means I will be in charge of the team. This is terrifying. I am already super busy and next semester I will be taking MCAT prep courses and working towards my goals of becoming a doctor. I am terrified that I will fail at the task of being a good coach and leader. I can only pray that I will have some guidance and help from people around me. 

Being a leader doesn't mean being everyone's friend. It means doing what is best for the group and sticking to the goals and ideals of the group. It is seldom an easy task nor a fun one, but it can do powerful things for an individual. I feel I have learned a great deal from being a leader in the past and I can only pray it continues to help me in the future. 

Have a Merry Christmas and God bless you!