Leading up to Success

Over the course of my high school career, I have played at least one sport each year. I have been the freshman who looks up to the older senior players as well as the senior who leads the younger players. Within each sport there are obviously differences in the role the leaders of the team play, but the concept is the same. Recognizing that the idea of a good leader is subjective, in my opinion, team leaders, whether they be captains or older players, should exhibit the following qualities:

1. They lead by example
2. They know the game
3. They treat everyone as equals

These three aspects are the qualities that I feel are the most important in a great team leader. The biggest problem I have seen in high school sports is the lacking in 1 and 3. The leaders of the team are obviously good at what they do, otherwise they wouldn't be playing at such a high level or with the time they are getting. When I played varsity volleyball junior year, the two captains were the two best players on the team, but because they knew they were better than everyone else at the sport, they acted like it and used it as an excuse to look down on people. Instead of giving friendly advice, they would yell at their teammates and criticize them for their mistakes.

When I played on varsity badminton last year, the two captains had the worst attitudes I had ever seen. They refused to run, do the more physically challenging drills, and come to practice on time. They felt that because they were the oldest on the team that they could do whatever they wanted. Because of their lack of leadership skills, the rest of the team and even badminton program itself suffered. The bar wasn't set very high, so the team was not nearly as successful as they could have been.

But seeing these awful leaders in my sports experiences has taught me what not to do. As a senior on the varsity badminton team, I recognize that younger players are going to look up to me not only because I am ranked high, but because I am older and automatically a leader. As cliche as it may sound, being a leader is a huge responsibility and affects more people than one would expect. Being "led" by my previous captains has shown me what influence leaders can have. I quit volleyball this year partially because of my disappointing experience last season. I don't want to be the person to make someone quit something they love to do.