A Teacher or a Leader

I have never thought myself as a leader.

I was always passionate about teaching and learning but never ever dreamt about going beyond the role of a class teacher. I actually thought that I have no leadership capacity within me. But to my surprise, my friends and colleagues always tell me that I am a good leader. In the meantime I got an opportunity to face an interview which opened me the first gate way to my leadership
journey. I have decided to walk along that path and discover what I am capable of.

Then I gave a serious thought to it. Am I truly a leader? Do I possess any characteristics or qualities of a leader?
I realised that yes, I am excell at giving positive feedback to those who are around me. This should be true because according to what I got to know from my students, my words had made a huge positive impact on their lives. They set me as an inspiration when they set their future goals. I have helped them to identify their talents and set targets to suit them, so that they can be successful in their lives. It was benificial for me that I meet my students everyday which makes us understand each other perfectly well. This understanding paved way for better interaction and provided benefit for both of us. But it was not successful all the time. There were instances where I could not provide any inspiration to some students. No matter how hard I try, they were not willing to change in any circumstances. After doing some research I realized that these qualities that I possess reflect a coaching leader.

The studies show that there are different leadership styles in people and one may have one leadership style or one may be

a combination of many leadership styles which changes based on the situation. 

Thus, I analysed myself a little deeper and realised that at times I have been a democratic leader too. For instance, when I had been appointed as the teacher-in-charge of a " House" in the school sports meet, I never wanted to lose. I was determined, sometimes
beyond the children, that we should be champions. Thus, I divided the duties and responsibilities among the house captains, and the senior students in the house, appointed a teacher for each group, and let them handle. I was always behind them, guiding them taking the full responsibility but it was them who took the lead.

Just like a democratic leader do, I took decisions but allowed others to occasionally take the lead and motivate them by providing feedback. This leadership style was very useful during sports meet season where everyone's knowledge and experience were needed to move ahead and win. But still there's a possibility to fail; I failed two times, when the team has no knowledge or experience regarding the matter. When the team you have has no prior experience or knowledge they are not capable of fulfilling the responsibilities given to them. Thus the task fails due to lack of team work. But with a well experienced group, we can always embrace the winning moments.

Ultimately I have realised that I am a leader and I have the capacity to change my style to suit the task and people. I have been acting as a leader throughout my life without even knowing about it.

You may also be the same as me, thinking that leadership is not for you. But remember that there is a leader living within all of us. Knowingly or unknowingly we become leaders at our work place or at our home. We must believe in ourselves and discover our unique leadership style. Just like me realizing that I can be a guiding light or a shepherd to suit the task and lead my team to success you will understand your potential and the capacity to lead. So are you ready to embrace those winning moments....