Leaders of Change - Leadership skills for Chevening scholarship

Chevening is looking for individuals who will be future leaders or influencers in their home countries.

Explain how you meet this requirement, using clear examples of your own leadership and influencing skills to support your answer. (100-500 word)

I always uphold the rule that people will award me what I gave them. A great leader can take others' hands to become agents of positive change. During university, I was chosen to be the leader of the Health Education Team. Aimed to prevent musculoskeletal injuries and avoid sedentary life style by holding many seminars. Targeting various society groups such as: teachers, administrators, students, and housewives. I led a group of 15 member, dividing them into groups to teach one target group with their style and ideas. Some of my team-mates were lazy but it wasn't an obstacle for me. I devised a strategy to take advantage of them, whereby joining one of them in each team to be engaged and encouraged by the energetic ones. I came up with reaching to each target group in their workplace after their authorities' permission. Then, I propose the project into some people in charge to provide us some required tools like ergonomic tools and location equipment. We held seminars in some schools, universities, offices and some places where housewives gather, such as mosques. I supported my friends to make these seminars enjoyable, by engaging the audience in doing exercises together. Therefore, we got a lot of positive feedbacks and interactions. Some of them got rid of their pain when they started following correct postures and simple exercises. Furthermore, many other workers requested similar seminars related to their job environment including: dentists, engineers, nurses, and pharmacists. My personal confidence and abilities have been improved greatly through this experience.

From that moment, I dedicated myself to spread awareness because prevention is better than treatment. Later, when I was working for The Palestinian Society for Cancer Care. I realized a lack of awareness about the role of Physiotherapy (PT) for cancer and chronic diseases. Especially, when I saw the surgeries complications resulting from ignoring the physiotherapy follow up. I launched an awareness-raising campaign about it. Initially, I contacted the Physiotherapy Syndicate to host some senior specialists to share their experience. We collaborated to hold two lectures including training on how to change false beliefs and presenting most evidence studies. I shaped an outline to be followed and assigned physiotherapists who had passion for improving patients' life quality. We made a patient map in rural areas according to whom most urgently needed for physiotherapy. We provided them with instructions, interventions, methods, and guidance to prevent some related complications. Notably, we did all that voluntarily without funding to serve our community and invest our enthusiasm. Consequently, not only many of the targeted group began to follow physiotherapy programs, but also others consulted for such services. This was the cornerstone of position for 6 months at XO in UNRWA, which provides health services throughout UNRWA clinics and spread awareness among marginalized populations. Changing thoughts, behavior, and energize abilities, particularly for desperate patients, is not an easy work. However, leaders never quit promoting themselves, leaving behind a great influence.

You show a potential as a leader, but you do not portray the skills of a leader strongly. The leadership undertakings you have are good, but lack the representation of your leadership potential, your leadership style. You have to explain how you handle conflict, in-fighting, obstacles to your projects, among others. Do not make the leadership experiences you have appear to be so light. You have to be more detailed. In fact, you can present one leadership experience if you want, just make sure that you highlight your leadership abilities within that situation. Make sure you represent your leadership traits and communication skills, as a true leader would. Some of the aspects you have to consider are:

- Patience
- Reliability
- Dependability
- Creativity
- Positivity
- Timely communication
- Team building
- Flexibility
- Risk-taking

You do not need to represent all of these characteristics in your essay. You need to pick one from leadership and one from communication. It will be impossible for you to represent all of these traits within a 500 word essay. Merely pick your strongest traits from the list and use that in a convincing manner in the leadership essay. Also, remember that when it comes to leadership, you should refer to I instead of we because "we" are not applying for the scholarship, "I" am. Therefore refer only to the leadership aspects that you were directly and successfully in charge of.

Hi, I think you have displayed a great example of being a leader.

However, you might want to separate your essay into different paragraphs instead of 2 large ones.

The purpose is to make it easier to read and to get your message received in each paragraph that you make

Good luck!

Hi, Your Essay is great and you have good leadership ability. My comment would be that you should separate your essay using the generic Introduction, Body and Conclusion format. Additionally, you should give weight to the effects of your Leadership. Show more of the positive impact you had in your community or society.

Cheers!!