Developmental experiences

Leadership

According to John Maxwell, 'Leadership is influence - nothing more, nothing less.'

Warren Bennis called it the capacity to translate vision into reality.

Personal Leadership Experiences

I volunteered at a non-profit organization for 4 years called “YOUTHUNITE”, aimed towards helping children from the economically weaker section, fund their education, and help them grow and succeed in life. When I started, there weren’t many students enrolled with the organization. I worked with other colleagues and designed flyers, shared information about the organization using social media channels and radio (I had a friend working in Radio, who helped me with that). We also tried to reach shelter homes and create awareness among the people. We were able to set up classes, where other volunteers taught the kids. We were also able to generate some money in form of donations, which were used to help support education costs for most of the students who needed help. One of the highlight of this experience was one of the students, whom we taught, got scholarships from universities abroad. We were able to make a difference in the lives of a lot of people. This experience helped me develop my communication skills, I was fortunate enough to meet a lot of like-minded people. This experience inculcated Gratitude, Respect, and Empathy in me. Empathy is one of the skills, I believe a lot of leaders lack and is very difficult to find.

 

Another experience I had was where, I was asked to supervise 3 consultants and 2 interns, which included training and mentoring them. Although I did not have an official designation, I was given an opportunity to show my leadership skills, since I was one of the core member of the project and had complete knowledge about the project. With this experience, I gained project management experience. I took this opportunity as a challenge and I was able to build my confidence and also understand what skills I lack, and need to improve on in my career. I was also able to make an impact, one of the intern got a full-time job with the company, and we were also able to get them up to speed and deliver a quality project as a team. This experience taught me delegation skills and helped me improve my problem-solving skills. It also taught me to care for others, as there was an intern who was just starting off in the corporate world, and there was always a sense of responsibility, to give him the best first-hand experience.

 

References

Bateman, T., Snell, S., & Konopaske, R. (2019). Management: Leading & Collaborating in a Competitive World. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Pathak, Anjan (2021). 25 Leadership Qualities That Makes You A Good Leader.  https://blog.vantagecircle.com/leadership-qualities/