Leadership is a very different concept to me now than it was in middle school. I think it took a lot of trial and error, reflection, and of course, making mistakes to figure out the key tenets of a leadership that I knew I could portray. I don’t think I’m naturally the most charismatic, commanding, or organized person, and it took a long time before I felt comfortable asking people to share in a particular vision of action with me.

In college, I’ve mainly been part of two organizations: Chinatown Afterschool (CHAP), which is a service organization, and Datamatch, a pre-professional organization. I was an executive director of CHAP as a sophomore and remember feeling incredibly regretful about not doing as much as I could have with that position. In fact, I cried on my last day -- wondering if I had wasted this wonderful opportunity to give back and transform a community that meant so much to me. This year, as a junior and co-President of Datamatch, I realized that so many of the lessons I learned from my experience in CHAP were incredibly applicable and transferable to an organization that seemed so different. I realized that my leadership style can be unique, and if I take the time to decide what and how I can contribute, I can not only improve this organization, but develop the leadership capabilities of others as well.

This project has meant so much to me to explore what it means to be a leader, how to empower others to be leaders, and how to make sure a group can maintain itself and grow even after you’re gone. I hope that it can serve as a guide for future leaders to continue asking and answering these questions.