What are my greatest leadership strengths? How can I apply those to my vision?

I believe my greatest leadership strengths include: holding a clear vision, listening to other people while maintaining the overall vision of the group, good communication skills, dedication to my vision, hard-working, and creative. Because of have a vivid picture of where to go, I will be able to define the steps I must take to reach my goal. I want to be a motivator and inspiration in my community. I think one of the most important qualities a leader can have is the ability to be open to other people's thoughts and suggestions. I admit that even though I have a clear vision, I might not know the best way to get there, or the best steps to take. I need to surround myself with people who can be useful, i.e. Blueprints family, my mentor, and community leaders. Good leaders are able to hold back their personal judgment while listening to others’ ideas and accept new ways of doing things. I believe that I dedicate all of my energy to whatever I am interested in. Right now I dedicate all of my energy to my friends, my schoolwork, and Campus Video; I literally do not have much time to myself. Even though I am the furthest from an artistic person, I have a very creative and active mind. When someone is bouncing ideas off of me, I can easily point out new and innovative ideas to help them with their project. This will help me think outside of the box, so to speak, and inhibit constraints.

^{To me, being an inclusive leader, above all, is trying to persuade others around him/her to make a change while emphasizing his/her respect for those who are helping his/her reach that change. An inclusive leader will put most of his/her energy into making sure the enterprise is defined by the relationships within it, rather than by profit or prestige. I believe that human relationships are the most important thing in an enterprise. If you do not give respect to your subordinates, they will not give respect back to you and thus you are lost to try to make change by yourself. This is again another example and support for my view that in order to be a good leader, you have to be a good follower. You have to listen and put yourself on the same level as everyone else, and then, in certain circumstances, soar above the rest.}

How will I change the world with my vision?

I do believe I can change the world with my vision. So many young students are left to be too independent over the summer time when classes are not in session because their parents work. And especially in lower socioeconomic conditions, most likely both parents work and are unable to afford child care.
I believe that a leader has to balance between aiming high and biting off more than he/she can chew. I need to start small but then always have in the back of my mind strategies to reach my vision's potential. My plan is to start at one elementary school around the Detroit Metropolitan area and try and focus on getting the name of the program and my vision out to the public.
If I am successful at getting my program's name out to the public, I will most likely be able to get more elementary schools and school districts on board with my vision. From there it is a snowball effect if it is successful. More elementary schools, more school districts, more counties, more states, etc.

"The very essence of leadership is that you have a vision. It's got to be a vision you articulate clearly and forcefully on every occasion. You can'

"The very essence of leadership is that you
have a vision. It's got to be a vision you articulate clearly and forcefully on every
occasion. You can't blow and uncertain trumpet."

This quote contains two statements that I wholeheartedly agree on and one which I am not too sure about. "The very essence of leadership is that you have a vision" - There are countless factors that go into leadership, but one of the few that leadership cannot be without is vision. Without a vision, a leader can just be assumed to be a motivational speaker or a charismatic boss. A vision is needed for change, which is the primary goal of a leader, to lead his subordinates.
"It's got to be a vision you articulate clearly and forcefully on every occasion" - I do not believe that you need to either forcefully articulate your vision, or do it on every occasion. This sounds more like you are making your vision into a vocabulary test for second grade students to pass.
"You can't blow an uncertain trumpet" - This speaks volume to me. As a leader, you MUST brainstorm and plan out (blueprint, if you will) your vision to the full extent of what it can be. When you do start to articulate your vision, you know the ins and outs of your vision to establish confidence in it so your subordinates do not take you and your vision for granted.

I am an architect of change

I believe I am an apprentice architect of change because I do have a lot of experience in designing and planning activities on campus or in the workplace that develop change. I try to think creatively about a multitude of ways that can make my student organization better by introducing innovative ways for exposure or video ideas. I also try to motivate others to volunteer and become a student leader of campus, to reach their full potential, which I think is the best kind of change you can make. Not within yourself, but if you have the ability to change someone else for the better is by far the best quality someone can have.
I say I am an apprentice architect of change because I still have a lot to learn about leadership and how to become more efficient in my planning stage of change. Hopefully when I brainstorm and plan my vision I can gain some insight on how to become a better "architect."

How will you discover your passions? What is your story?

I truly stumbled upon my true calling in life. In the summer of 2007, I applied for a job at a fitness center that I was already working out at, but didn't get the job. In turn, the man that I had the interview with offered an opportunity two weeks later to help him out with an innovative children's fitness program he was working on. It sounded interesting and I needed a job, so without thinking, I jumped on the opportunity.
Rec-Pac is a non-profit summer camp program based at elementary schools in Fairfax County in Northern Virginia. Most people that work for Rec-Pac take care of kids ranging from rising first to rising seventh graders. However, my special position asked me to stay in the gym all day to teach fundamental movements to the children while playing their favorite games. I would take them through a dynamic warm-up, stretch session, and organize innovative games. This was by far the hardest job I ever had. I really had to be on top of my game every single day because if I wasn't, the kids would eat me alive. At the end of the six weeks I was exhausted, but then I realized I learned so much from the experience and knew if I did it again I would be infinitely better at it. And that I did. In the Summer of 2008, I decided to come back to Rec-Pac at my same position (with a pay increase :)) I gained the children's respect by the first couple of days and they knew that whenever it was "gym" time they were going to learn, laugh, have fun, and run around!
Through my experience with Rec-Pac, I found what my 'talent' is, working with children.