Whether it be creating one’s own club or competing for existing roles, gaining a leadership position is often seen as the ultimate goal when starting something new in high school. While leadership is undoubtedly an important skill to develop, I’ve found that taking on as much as possible is not always what is most valuable. Rather, it’s more important to participate in meaningful activities that you care about and actually enjoy.
Firstly, taking on too many responsibilities can make it difficult to complete everything to the best of one’s ability. Leadership roles require dedication, time and effort, and overcommitting can lead to burnout. According to Common Sense Media, 53% of teens feel pressure to be “exceptional and impressive through their achievements.” For example, if I were the head of three different clubs, I would have to constantly divide my attention between them. Not only would this create unnecessary stress, but it would not allow me to fully invest in each of my activities.
Something I commonly hear is that leadership positions look very good on college applications. I’ve known people who took on roles they either didn’t want or couldn’t do just to have something else for their transcript. I have struggled to find the balance between taking on enough responsibilities while not overloading myself.
While it’s true that leadership positions play a role in the admissions process, I don’t believe it is worth taking on more than you can handle just for the sake of looking good to colleges. Rather, it’s important to hold one or two meaningful leadership positions and do them well instead of spreading oneself thin by accumulating as many leadership positions as possible.
Due to the pressure to take on as much as you can, sometimes students believe that they are never involved in or leading enough activities. No matter how many extracurriculars someone leads or participates in, there is a feeling for many, including myself, that one could be doing more. This can lead to people over-committing themselves or taking on too many leadership roles, and burning out.
I don’t mean to say that students shouldn’t try out many different things. In fact, high school is a time when it is important to try out different activities. However, as students progress, I believe they should find out what is of genuine interest to them, and then focus and commit to those things. Rather than merely focusing on appearing committed to colleges, students should focus on finding what they’re genuinely passionate about. Try things out, and then commit to the things that are most important to you, rather than trying to do everything everywhere.
Despite the importance of extracurriculars and clubs for students, schoolwork should ultimately be the top priority. When stacking multiple commitments, it can be difficult to manage one’s time. Sometimes, the benefits that come from leading extracurricular activities are not worth the commitment they would take away from doing schoolwork.
It’s also important to note that personal growth and building new skills can happen in many ways beyond holding a leadership position. Learning how to be a team player, mastering a certain skill or just taking leadership in smaller capacities is also valuable in high school and beyond. In the long run, it’s better to build a passion or skill for something than have a temporary title.
Ultimately, leadership is valuable, but it shouldn’t be the primary focus of anyone participating in extracurriculars. Leadership is just one way to grow and have an impact, but it is not the only one. Instead of aiming for titles, I believe students should focus on activities that genuinely interest them.
