What is personal leadership development?

What is “personal leadership development”? That is what Reaching Higher is all about, but what does it really mean?

Personal leadership development means taking stock of your own life and asking yourself what is working well and what isn’t. It is realizing that within each of us is the potential to do and be anything we set our minds to, and to achieve anything for which we are willing to work relentlessly. Personal leadership means you stop waiting for other people to change, you stop waiting for your circumstances to change, and YOU make the changes you need to make for your life to be happy and successful — you even define what success personally means to you.

As a teacher, a principal, and a Reaching Higher instructor I have seen over and over again the power of personal leadership. I have seen students re-awaken with the knowledge that they have the power to write their own life stories, and that no matter their current circumstances, they have the ability to change and move forward. I don’t think anything is more powerful.

I have also seen the power of personal leadership development in my personal life.

Years ago I was angry and resentful, I was waiting for those around me to change. I would think, “if _________ would only do this, I would be happy; if _________ would only do that, then I would be happy.” Through Reaching Higher I came to realize that NO ONE ELSE IS GOING TO CHANGE UNLESS HE/SHE DECIDES TO. The fact is that I cannot make anyone else change, but the good news is I can change myself! Even more good news — when I made some positive changes, the people around me often responded more positively. By changing myself, I was achieving what I wanted after all.

Think of the wasted energy we put into trying to change OTHER people, when the reality is there is only one person out of eight billion that we have the power to change — ourselves. When we put the time and energy we are wasting trying to change others into taking a look at our own choices, our own habits, our own goals, we now have the power to move forward, to get closer to the lives of our dreams. This is the power of personal leadership development – showing students the potential already there within themselves to be who they want to be.

Is personal leadership easy? It can be difficult to be honest with yourself when looking at your school or work life, relationships, and goals, and ask: “Am I doing what I need to do? Am I trying my hardest?  Do I need to make any changes?” It seems easier to blame your teacher, your parents, your boss, your spouse, anyone else but yourself — but it is so powerful when you accept that it really is up to you and it has been all along.