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Tanner Fleming
Ms. Rebecca Agosta
English 1101
18 Sept 2013
Literacy Amongst Leadership
All throughout life people are tested in different ways from mental, physical, or emotion
standpoints. Some experiences come harder or seem easily based on the type of person you are.
Depending on the route you choose to take in life, these tests or opportunities, however you
may perceive them, there are always methods to build a stronger character and a stronger
foundation into the lifestyle you strive to live. For my case, athletics have presented many of
instances where I have been tested in a variety of ways. As clich as it may sound, sports have
molded me into the person I am today in customs I know I would not have reached through
another doorway. Leadership has become a strong suit in my personality through lessons and
impacts on my life and those around me. I believe that leadership is more than just a trait that
anybody can have, it is a way of communication and establishment through understanding. Now
regardless if you are into sports, theatre, music, academics, the list goes on, the concept of
leadership may or may not affect you in certain ways but I do believe we are exposed to it from
any of lifes perspective. The true sense of leadership comes from the ability to communicate
with others and prompt you into somebody who isnt forcing others to follow, but rather them
choosing to. Along the process you can learn through being wrong, or even right. But what Im
saying is leadership is more than just a concept; it is an influence upon literacy.
Ive always believed in hard work and doing the job right if you are even going to start it
from the beginning. Many of us share the same thoughts which might have to do with the fact
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you are where you are right now. In fifth grade, I started football during the fall. This soon
became something that I loved because I was good and I didnt even know it at the time. When
the season had ended I was surrounded in admiration from my coaches, teammates, and parents
of the team. I found my very first passion when I was 11 years old and I knew this was
something I could really get into. The following year my coaches, teammates, and parents
expected more from me. At such a young age I didnt really know what it meant to set an
example or become somebody worth following. All I knew was that I was out there playing a
game on Saturday mornings having a great time. When youre just a kid you dont really think
about the way others look at you or even what they truly expect. As I look back on it now, at 11
years of age I was becoming a leader by hitting people and chasing after a ball. I began to realize
that my emotions and my drive created somewhat of a ripple effect on those around me
throughout the team. A positive demeanor with every drill and every play seemed to influence
my teammates following me to do the same. Its almost as if I had the desire to set an
affirmative trend during my role as a younger leader. As I would set the example, I was
essentially communicating with others even though I wasnt speaking of verbal inspiration at the
time.
When I reached middle school, it seemed that all everybody could talk about were
football tryouts during the first week of school. The leadership characteristics I had shown in my
first two years of football prior had unintentionally transitioned into arrogance. Through my
arrogance I chose not to practice and prepare for tryouts which resulted in me not making the
team that year. As the most humbling experience in my life up until that point I wasnt exactly
sure how to take it. I lacked discipline simply due to the fact that I had always had it easy and
had never really run into a trial until these moments in my life. So as a new, humbled me had
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prepared for the following year I took on a challenge to read former NFL coach Tony Dungys
autobiography on leadership, Quiet Strength. His story taught me more of what I needed to know
in order to promote myself as a substantial leader on and off the field of play even at such a
young age, once again. I really took to heart that stubbornness could be a virtue when you are
right, but a character flaw when you are wrong. When the next season had come around I
was elected team captain and began to elevate my leadership into verbal communication rather
than just setting an example like I did in the previous years. I had knowledge of football because
it was something that I loved, and that I loved to study. When others didnt quite understand
what to do, I didnt hesitate to become another coach on the side. Although football may seem
simpler than it is, I can assure you there is more than meets the eye. Techniques, form,
alignment, plays, the list goes on, understanding the game is just as important as attempting to
play it.
During high school, I was blessed enough to have the opportunity to play on the varsity
team as a freshman. Even as the youngest player on the team, I was still called to make an impact
on those around me through leadership. Except now it was through more than football. I was
chosen to be a member of the D.R.E.A.M. Team which is an acronym for Daring to Role model
Excellence as an Athletic Mentor. As one of the twelve members in the school, we were given
the privilege to speak to younger children and even kids our own age about responsibility and
becoming a leader themselves. I know it may sound sort of impractical to influence everybody
we spoke to, but making a difference in one would mean we were still making an impact.
Leadership is not something that is necessarily genetic. It can be taught; and that was
something that we tried to do for people. In society, leadership is a distinctive trait that represents
structure in operation. So in my opinion, without leadership, there is no foundation.
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My experience last year at the United States Air Force Academy probably played the
biggest role in my experience as becoming and continuing leadership-based character. The
military atmosphere required us as airmen, and as students, to work together in stressful
environments and learn how to accomplish tasks optimally. Initiating action followed with
guidance and motivation is the key to successful leadership. Communication was always
organized and structured when we were given commands and when we were ordered to give
them. Before my attendance to the academy, as well as my classmates, we had little to no
understanding of military terminology. We were taught to communicate differently regardless if
we were talking to each other, a subordinate, or somebody appointed over ourselves. Not only
was this communication verbal, but technological and through body language.
Cover Letter
As I wrote this paper I contemplated on whether or not I had the correct understanding of
the assignment based on the work of my other classmates. My literacy seemed to be the only one
that wasnt tangible in my snapshot essay. I dont necessary think that it is wrong, just different. I
still believe that it meets the requirements of a how the literacy effected my life. However, it was
interesting to look back into how my character, as a leader, has developed since a young age.
Sometimes you need to look back on your past experiences to realize how blessed you are today
even if they werent exactly fun. My events took place in a chronological order which I felt
made it easier to show my development and evolution, if you will, of my character through the
role of leadership.