Leadership comes in many forms…

To me, a leader is always the person willing to scream for everyone's attention in a room filled with people. Because I am not that comfortable addressing large groups, I always assumed that automatically meant I was and would never be a leader.

Lately, during our OT PDEs (Professional Development Evaluations), I discovered that most of my criteria fit into the “Leader Change Agent” section. I was very surprised. And lately a lot of people have talked about me being a natural leader. Again, I don't really “get” it, but I've been thinking about the different ways a person can be a leader. I have realized that you don't have to be the loudest or most determined person in the room – you can be quiet and confident and lead by example, or you can have qualities that allow you to motivate people down a certain path. There are many ways to lead, and I always try to remember that followers should not be dependent on a leader. Rather the leader should give “followers” the skills that will allow them the ability to become leaders themselves. This kind of ties into the Centennial Vision – I will never be that loud leader, but I can lead through example and exposure, via online sources. And thereby close the circle of life, koom bah yay mah lord.