While a leader can be defined as the person who commands a group or as the one who is selected to run the show and call the shots per say, our 6th president John Quincy Adams embodied the character traits of a true leader. Although he only served one term as president, his leadership and service to our nation as both a diplomat before his presidency and in the United States House of Representatives after his presidency exemplify that a leader does not have to be elected to the top office to shape an organization even as important as our nation.
In middle school, I decided I would try out for our school competition cheer squad that competes at a high level in the sport. I practiced with an older member of the team for several weeks to prepare for the tryout day. I knew that I was stepping out of my comfort zone in trying out for this team as I was a rather shy person and making the team would require performing in front of large crowds. While I was nervous about meeting the criteria due to my quiet demeaner and limited athletic ability, I never wavered in my enthusiasm. The story could end here when I did not make the squad. Not
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I know that simply acquiring positions of authority does not make me a leader. Holding these positions are an honor and I understand that a fancy title is truly temporary; however, being elected as cheer captain of the reigning high school National Championship team is more than an honor. It is the culmination of years of being the first to arrive and the last to leave, volunteering time to coach younger teammates, never giving in to negativity, and leading by example of good sportsmanship in all areas of my life. Written on the bottom of my cheer shoes is a verse from Philippian’s 4:5, “Let everyone see that you are considerate in all you do.” The legacy I leave my team is to continue their focus on being accountable to one another to achieve great