You Are a Leader

You are a leader. Do you realize that?

You are definitely a leader. You have followers. You might not see them walking right behind you, or staring at you waiting for you to give them orders, but they are listening and they are watching. They may be your friends, classmates, roommates, or co-workers.

You are a leader because you have influence. Leadership IS influence. What does a politician do? He influences people. What does a pastor do? He influences people. What does a pro athlete do? He influences people. What does a teacher do? He influences people. They are all leaders, and you are a leader too, because you influence people ever day whether you realize it or not.

The level of influence you have will be different than everyone else, but you still have influence. When you said, “Let’s . . . . .” you were being a leader. When your friend said, “What do you think?” and you gave your opinion, you influenced your friend. Every group of friends generally has one to three “ringleaders” that have the most influence, but everyone in the group has influence at one time or another, and therefore everyone in the group is a leader at some point. Not only do you have influence by saying what you are thinking or giving your opinion, you have influence by not saying what you are thinking and neglecting to give your opinion. Someone in your group may feel the same way you do, but they will only speak up if someone else says what they are thinking first, and when you don’t voice your opinion you may inadvertently lead in the wrong direction. Remember, silence implies consent.

Your influence and subsequent leadership extends beyond your group of friends as well. No matter who you are, someone younger than you has looked up to you and thought about being like you at some point. Remember when you were twelve and thought about how you wanted to be just like that sixteen year old that had his driver’s license? Now sixteen year olds look up to you and think about how they want to be like “that college student.” For example, Temple Academy students are watching all of us, and it goes right up the chain. Brand new college students watch all the upper classmen, sophomores watch the juniors, and so on.

What are you influencing people do you? Is your influence positive or negative?

You have influence. You are a leader. Use it for good.

Keep that in mind today.