A Teen's View

Leadership

Kat Dart

(Feb, 2010) Peter Drucker, a writer and a management consultant, once said, "Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things."

Leadership is a very powerful word and noun. What is a leader? Some think it is a person who keeps everything under control, while others believe it is a person with power and money. Some think a leader is a person with respect. Perhaps a leader is a person like that.

To me, there are two types of leaders - a real leader, and a leader. The difference? A real leader is the person willing to give up everything, and will help anyone. A leader has people willing to follow him or her, and has little trouble convincing people to do the 'right' thing. However, while saying 'real leader' may seem to a make a 'leader' inferior, it is not like that. The major difference is that a leader is more common - and generally is not recognized as a leader. They are our everyday people. A 'real' leader, to me, just means that he is not always there, but when he is, we all know. For that we should all be grateful. Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, and George Washington are all example of real leaders.

Real leaders need qualities that make people willing to follow them. They look out for the greater good, and peoples' individual good, too. They are willing to self sacrifice for someone. They can give a clear reason for why they do the things they do. They are strong, have powerful friends and are respectful of others. To a real leader, everyone is equal.

However, a leader can be anyone. Maybe it is the little boy who convinces all of his friends that they should clean up. Perhaps it is the girl who gives out valuable advice to her friends. Maybe it is the guidance counselor who will take any questions at any time and give out ideas for future classes. Maybe it is the person who is trying to lead us out of a war.

We do not always see a leader for who he or she is. Children tend to not see their parents as leaders. But they are, and we should appreciate them now before we regret it in the future. Parents show us what they believe to be correct. They push us now to get good grades so we can accomplish anything later. They tell us to clean up our appearance so a first impression is always done well. They sometimes may punish us to get us to understand the difference between right and wrong. Do we, as teens and children, really understand why parents do the things they do? Not always - but do we bother to ask why?

Teachers are real leaders because they are willing to give up time and resources to teach students. They are willing to tutor, give advice and re-teach a subject when they need to in order to help their students. They work with individual students, as well as the whole class, and are willing to adjust their classroom schedule so everyone can be on the same page.

I could probably name almost any occupation and tell why someone in that occupation may be a leader or a real leader; however I get the feeling that it would take too long.

February has a lot of leader's birthdays- on February twelfth, it is Abraham Lincoln's birthday. On the fifteenth, it is Susan B. Anthony's. On the twenty second, it is George Washington's.

Also in February is Valentine's Day - is anyone doing anything special? I might be going down to Emmitsburg with my sisters. I'll probably also be going shopping for those cutesy Valentine's Day cards with my younger sisters for their whole class very soon. On the thirteenth, I may be attending the 'Hauser After Hours, Valentine-Style' in Biglerville - I heard that it plays good music and is always fun to attend.

Also - in school we have started up our new classes. I suppose I am somewhat nervous to start them; however I don't think anything can be worse than Honors Geometry! I think it will be difficult adjusting to new ways to get around school, and new classes. And to think, I had just gotten used to all of my old ones! Oh well.

Good luck to anyone who is planning something special for their loved ones, happy Valentine's Day, and happy birthday to everyone who has a birthday in February. See you next month!