I am involved in a registered student organization at my school called FORCE, which stands for Freshmen Outreach and Recruitment for College Extracurriculars. Recently, we had our retreat to welcome the freshmen who joined our organization. During the retreat, I got to make a speech about leadership. I wanted to share my speech online, because there is some great advice that can be drawn from it, no matter what age you are.

Here it is:

"So, before I really start this, I want to ask a few of you a question: What makes a good leader?"

~Asks a few people~

"As you can see, everyone answered the question differently, but none of you were wrong. A leader can be all of those things that you said and so much more. My point is, there is not only one way to be a leader, because there is not only one way to live life. We all have different aspirations, backgrounds, dreams and stories that shape who we are. If you ask me repeatedly what makes a good leader, I will probably give you a different answer each time. But, here is my answer for today: I believe a leader is someone who paves a way for themselves and for others, and does so with integrity, compassion and individuality.

Integrity is extremely important in separating good leaders from great ones. Strong leaders stick to their own morals while standing up for whatever they believe in. That being said, no one is perfect. It’s okay to make mistakes, it’s okay to own up to your weaknesses, and sometimes, it’s okay to do something just plain stupid. Don’t be too hard on yourselves. Trust me, I have made plenty of mistakes and have plenty of weaknesses. I have horrible time management, I am probably the worlds worst procrastinator, and sometimes, I don’t have a filter when it comes to what I say. Your weaknesses are a mark of your humanity. It’s okay to have them, as long as you are working on turning them into strengths. Just because someone may not have the same weaknesses that you do, doesn’t mean you aren’t just as capable as them.

In addition to integrity, having compassion for others is necessary. To be a leader you must listen to others, and give credit where credit is due. Watch out for your fellow human, and do all you can to make the world around you a better place. It can be one person, two people, or two thousand people, but as long as you have made a positive impact in someone’s life, you have succeeded.

And finally, individuality. A large portion of what leadership is, is honing in on your own skills, and broadcasting them so that they make a positive impact. Find something that you love, find something that you’re good at, and work from there. You all have different talents to offer to the world, so don’t let fear or discouragement keep those talents hidden away. Once you realize how truly capable you are, you become unstoppable.

So, have integrity, know your morals, be compassionate, and show off your individuality. Take chances, put yourself out of your comfort zone, and keep learning. That is how you realize more about yourself and what makes you happy. Everyone has the capability to be a leader. Maybe you are the quiet one in the back of class who doesn’t say much but consistently gets the highest test scores. Maybe you continually lead the class discussions with your insightful comments. Or maybe you ran for an office and didn’t get the position, but took the initiative and tried anyway. You all are leaders, you all are individuals, and you are also one more thing. Bellarmine Knights!

Thank you guys!"