Looking over all the choices for the third essay, I was drawn to the question about leadership.

Exploring my thoughts on what I thought leadership entailed, I asked myself, What were the most important events in my educational/professional career where I was asked to lead, and what did I learn from said experiences? Each time I was invited to practice my leadership skills, I had learned a new managerial skill. The two major experiences were: leading a committee responsible for the interior policy of The Youth of Justice and Development Association and leading the financial department of a political campaign.

Years ago, I was nominated to lead a committee which was responsible for the interior policy of The Youth of Justice and Development Association. My goal was to verify the list of members in the group and provide the executive office with the exact number of affiliates, as well as solidifying the rules and regulations for the whole organization and present them to the executive office for a vote. During this time of deliberation, I found it tough to concede totally to the executive offices suggestions. But, I was able to motivate my team to compromise some of our ideas without losing the integrity of the whole project. After a period of time, we succeeded in creating a solid list of rules and regulations. I learned from this experience that a leader should try to motivate his team members, because in order to achieve a common goal, you need the entire team on board.

Another relevant experience was when I was asked to lead the financial department, as well as the political department of a political campaign. I was invited to control the budget and oversee all transactions made by the campaign. I was given the task to lead a team of four people to lead the campaign in a small district. I successfully completed these missions along with my team. The key to the success of those missions was the close relationship I had with all the members of my team. The closer you are to your team members, the more successful the mission will be. By applying a democratic style of management, I could realize my goals. I learned from this experience that leaders should close the gap between them and their team members in order to facilitate communication and consensus to reach success.

Surely, leadership is a vital skill for a graduate student in business school. Beside the theoretical side of study, business students must practice their leadership skills in a real world experience. After completing school, the newly hired graduate will be asked to lead a team to success. The newly hired graduate should have capable management skills and be able to motivate their team.