If you ask any adviser in college what one of the most important things is for students to do during their collegiate careers, you'll likely get a resounding "get involved!" Future employers like to see actual skills that a student can apply, grad schools admire students going beyond the requirements of the course track and scholarship foundations want to support students who contribute to their communities. Joining various organizations and clubs on campus is also an effective way to meet new people and potentially build connections that can last a lifetime. While getting involved is fun and not too taxing (unless you spread yourself thin), taking on leadership positions within organizations makes for an entirely different experience.

For starters, taking the reigns of an organization also means inheriting a great deal of responsibility. Being a member of an organization only leaves me responsible for one person, myself. As a club president, peer mentor and writing consultant, however, I am now responsible for many more people, typically around my own age. There is also a lot of paper work involved in every position I hold. For instance, as the president of my university's Taekwondo Club, I have to fill out travel request forms, detailed rosters with every member's emergency contact information, and oversee my fellow officers to make sure they have what they need to fulfill their duties. All of this, on top of my course work, can feel like a lot to handle at times.

Another challenge of being a leader comes from the image I paint for myself. As a peer mentor for the LEAD Scholars program at UCF, I am seen as a representation for the program itself. The peer mentor role is somewhat similar to that of a teaching assistant, but with the added responsibility of being a resource for the students to answer their questions and help them get acclimated to the college experience.

In the same vein, my position as a writing consultant for the university's writing center makes me seem as though I should be some sort of expert in writing. This, however, could not be further from the truth. In fact, we are taught, even if we know an answer, to refer back to resources provided at the center to create learning opportunities. This brings me to a point that I think everyone should realize about leaders: we are not experts! Even in a professional setting, your boss is not an all-knowing being who doesn't make a singe mistake. We are all humans still in the process of learning ourselves.

Taking on these positions has opened my eyes to how crucial team work is and how I look at others in similar positions. Nobody can do everything. If there were no other officers or members that I could work with, then I would be screwed. I also realize that I have had some expectations for other leaders that I would now deem unrealistic.

While change and improvement is essential to leading a successful organization, nothing can go through a metamorphism over night. Gradual change is the key to improvement. I appreciate the opportunities that I have been presented with and look forward to all of the possibilities for growth that they will provide me with in the future.