Leaders are able to bring about change by effectively being able to inspire others to take action.

One of our goals on this trip is to further develop our leadership skills. Not only are we partaking in leadership activities, but we’re also implementing them by leading activities for the children of Casa Victoria.

Our first leadership activity was a desert survival situation. We had 15 minutes collectively as a group to rank a list of essential items for our “survival.”  It was a boys versus girls task, so the competition was a little heated.  While we narrowing down our most crucial items for survival, some members of the group took on a leadership role while others kind of fell to the back. This activity taught us a lot about the good qualities that a leader demonstrates. We ended up coming up with 5 guidelines or rules that we believed we could improve upon in the future. The boys and girls both came up with similar rules, most of which followed along the lines of including everyone, understanding when to step up and step back, putting smart structures in place, being confident, and empowering others. After a similar activity the next day, there was a general consensus that we had a major improvement from our first activity. Everyone was a lot more conscious of the things they had to work on and intentional in trying to do the right thing. During our nightly debrief sessions, we also decided to acknowledge the small things that people did throughout the day that made them leaders. This helped us realize no matter how big or small an action may be, it can still demonstrate positive qualities of a leader.

Learning the qualities of great leaders provides the foundation for us to take initiative in whatever cause we believe in, which is why this opportunity to strengthen our skills is so significant. Our improved leadership skills will be enacted when we come back to Newburgh and become leaders for our community impact projects in which we will work to better our own community. With practice and experience, we can be the next great leaders of the world!