Leadership Toolbox
10/16/14 
Joshua Kim
Studies at United States Military Academy (West Point, NY), Junior
Leadership. If you were to say that word in front of me five years ago, my gut would have tightened up and I would be trembling with fear. Often times, an organization or group depends on the competence of its leaders to be successful. Leaders make decisions that directly affect a multitude of people. Despite the importance of good leaders, not everyone is born a leader, a fact that proves the beauty of leadership. With the willingness to learn and a little bit of humility, leadership is not so daunting. As a third year student at the United States Military Academy, more commonly known as West Point, I have learned a lot about leadership in the past few years and will continue to grow as a leader for many years to come.
My English name is Joshua and my Korean name is Soo Min. Joshua means 'The Lord is my Salvation' and Soo Min means 'swift and sharp'. My parents named me Joshua and Soo Min hoping that I would become one of God's great leaders like Joshua in the bible. Joshua was Moses' Military commander and was with Moses when he received The Ten Commandments.
Joshua was Moses' successor. Before Moses died Joshua was named leader of the Israelites. Moses sent twelve men to explore the land and Joshua was among them. However, out of twelve men, only Joshua and Caleb gave positive and encouraging report. Joshua led the Israelites into battle and took over Jericho. After conquering Canaan, the Promised Land, he destroyed all idols and showed commendable leadership as God's servant. As I study Joshua and his life journey, I encounter many similarities between his world and the one we are currently living in. The world is still full of sin and idols. I pray that I will be able to contribute to this world as a good leader to make this world a better place.
I believe God led me to attend The United States Military Academy because he has a special purpose and plan for me. I want to learn from the obstacles and successes of Joshua's good and holy fight for God in the bible. God has bestowed different responsibilities to each individual in this world. Moses' job was to lead the Israelites from Egypt towards the Promised Land, Canaan. On the other hand, Joshua held the responsibility to conquer. He had to be a powerful leader to conquer the land of sins.
Leading the Israelites and conquering the land of Canaan was no easy task. God provided many promising words to Joshua to encourage him and to make him a strong leader. In particular, God gave a promise in the book of Joshua Chapter 1:3, 'I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses' (New International Version). God gave a promise and Joshua trusted God and His promise. Though all Joshua did was to obey God's will and follow his instructions, his faith and bravery allowed him to conquer the land. If Joshua did not trust God's promise and was afraid to act, perhaps nothing great would have happened.
Therefore, when you are scared, you cannot accomplish great feats. Completing Boot Camp at West Point requires overcoming many fears. It requires jumping from high places, sleeping in the field with animals, and running for endless hours with heavy loads on your back. Sometimes, the burden of success was so much to bear that I considered dropping everything and giving up. It was God and my parents who gave me the strength to endure. I prayed to God to give me strength and thought about my loving and encouraging parents.
God's children need to overcome their fears and worries because there will come a time when they will have to go to war and fight. Responsibilities do not come with ease, but I trust in God as Joshua in the bible trusted God. I know God will never leave my side and will depend on me to be strong and brave.
God's promises to Joshua did not end. In Joshua chapter 1:5, God promised Joshua, 'No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you' (New International Version). The United States Military Academy trains its cadets to become strong leaders. As I study and train, I want to be ready when it is my time to show leadership. I know that the more I prepare, the better I will be able to serving our country and our people.
With that being said, becoming a good leader takes time and development. You cannot just jump into a leadership role from the get-go. The reality is that one must be a good follower in order to transform into a good leader. A good leader understands how to lead and sets achievements. The best way to develop your own leader- ship philosophy is to take a step back and observe - not only the good leaders, but the bad leaders as well.
Even at West Point, a renowned leadership institution, both good and bad leaders are found. For the most part, the United States Military Academy institutes a cadet-run system. This means that upperclassmen lead and set an example for underclassmen. In theory, by the time every cadet becomes an upperclassmen, he or she should have learned enough to be a competent leader. However, leadership is not an easy role to take on. No matter how much you know, or think you know, mistakes are inevitably made. This is why one must have an open mind and always be willing to learn and adapt. An example from my experience at West Point comes from when I was a yearling (sophomore). In charge of discipline and control in my company, my first sergeant initially performed very poorly as a leader. At first, he made rules without giving his subordinates reasoning and intent behind his decisions. He ordered people to carry out duties without explaining the mission, goal, or purpose of the assignment. Nobody wants to carry out a task without a purpose, a lesson I learned as a follower. Without knowing the reasoning behind the orders given to me, I was left feeling bitter and angry towards my first sergeant. I took this negative experience with my first sergeant and used it to help develop myself as a leader. One thing I always include when giving an order is the intent and purpose behind the order. I have found that if your subordinates know why they are doing what they are doing, then the task will be accomplished with much more enthusiasm. This is one thing I've learned by observing the leadership of another person. I have found that taking a step back and observing the leaders around me proves to be a very effective way to improve myself as a person and a leader.
Whether it be the CEO of a multi-billion-dollar industry or an average Joe checking up on his friend, people in all level of leadership should imagine that they are carrying around a 'leadership toolbox' on a daily basis. You need to add to your leadership toolbox when you observe someone doing something that makes you think to yourself, 'That's such a good idea. I want to do that when I'm a leader.' Likewise, you need to remember bad leadership instances in order to prevent committing that same mistake yourself. Essentially, you need to continuously learn from the successes and mistakes of the leaders around you.
Maintaining the mentality that I am always carrying around my leadership toolbox, I am able to share my personal development as a leader. I naturally have a very reserved personality. Most leaders you see are outspoken, assertive, and seem to exemplify the definition of a leader. With this skewed image in my head, I convinced myself that I just was not meant to hold a leadership role. However, my perspective changed when I witnessed arguably one of the greatest leaders in the history of mankind: Jesus. My entire ideology and approach on leadership changed when I read Mark 10:45, which reads, 'For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.' This bible verse made me realize that one of the greatest leaders known to human being came down not to force his ideals on others, but to step back, observe, and serve his followers with a servant like heart. People look up to you, and when they see a servant-like heart, they feel comforted and, thus, willingly follow you to the ends of the universe. I have learned that humility and love for those you are leading are the greatest tools in my leadership toolbox.
As I strive to be a leader with a clear vision and goal, I sometimes dream about God's Kingdom. Though I still have a long way to go to become a great servant of God who glorifies His name, I know that as long as I keep faith in God's great promises, God will give me many tools to put in my leadership toolbox.
The most important thing to understand as a leader is that there is always something to improve on. You need to continuously be on the lookout for new tools to add to your toolbox. You need to take in the good, and learn from the bad. Without a continuous desire to improve, a leader eventually burns out. Keep your fire burning!