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Student Leaders

Leading a colorguard by yourself or with others can be very overwhelming. But here are a few tips that'll help you be the best leader you can be for your team!

Steps to being the best leader 

One of the most important things, don't let it get to your head.

You have been designated as someone who will be a shining example of the standards the team is held to, and you are responsible for helping to organize and lead a group of people. You have NOT been deemed almighty monarch with infinite power. 

The fastest way to lose a groups trust and respect is to treat them as inferiors, and make them feel like peasants compared to you. 

1. Be humble
 

2. Do not demand, earn it

You do NOT automatically deserve the trust and respect from your team right off the bat. 
 
While yes everyone deserves common politeness and respectfulness, not everyone deserves the respect and trust of a great leader.  

You must earn this respect and trust over time by proving you leadership abilities.

If you are a bad leader who is high on a pedestal and treats everyone like pure garbage,  you are not a good leader and don't deserve to be respected as such. 

Gain the respect of your team and in turn they will treat you well. 

3. How to gain trust

Treat everyone with kindness and care. It is as simple as that. 

You are all going through different things in life, and all deserve some slack. Get to know your team on a personal level (yes, all of them) and make them feel cared for and seen. 

NEVER give in to petty drama talk sessions. This can hurt your peers and as a leader you HAVE to be above this. 

As a leader you are likely proficient at spinning and understand the inner workings of colorguard to some degree. Use your knowledge to help others.  A great leader is able to share their talents with others, a bad leader hoards it all to themselves so no-one is as good as them. 

Your team is only as strong as your weakest member. 

4. If nothing else, be an example

Set the example for your team. If you talk back to a coach that becomes the standard across the team. If you laugh at people for their insecurities and talk behind their backs, you've set the new bar. 

As a leader you are a role model, what you do, people will follow because you have been given this leadership title. 

Only YOU can decide what you can do with this power. But to be the best  leader, you have to use this power for good to help you team grow, not be torn down. 

Being a leader is hard work, but you are going to do amazingly! Good luck!

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