My senior year of high school I was appointed captain of my color guard team. This was unexpected for me, as I was one of the least able performers on the team. I could easily have named girls who were better than I was at our routines and more skilled than I was with our equipment. I felt uncertain that I would be able to be a good captain for my team, and nervous about the prospect of being responsible for their improvement. However, my director had confidence that I had the ability to motivate the team to be better, to organize them and their performance, and to unite us as a team. Sure enough, with a lot of help from my mother and my director, I was able to lead the team through the season, ending with us winning 1st place at championships. Through that experience I learned a lot about what it means to be a leader. …show more content…
I worried I wouldn't be able to control them or that they wouldn't respect me. What I learned as we went throughout the season together, is that the most important aspect of leadership isn't them respecting me, it is me respecting them. I learned to appreciate each team member for their contributions to our team, and because of this was more able to deal with problems involving each of them, and we all became closer because of it. In addition to being shy by nature, I am also not a very happy person. My favorite feeling is being content, which is hard to express. So, one of my biggest struggles in leading the team was showing my emotions in a way that encouraged all of us to improve. Through this experience I learned the importance of having a good attitude even when underneath you are frustrated. The power of positivity is something I still struggle with, but I have been able to more fully apply it to my life since realizing