It doesn't just happen over night.

"Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality."

-Warren G. Bennis 

I chose to start today's blog with this quote because, on the topic of leadership, this is one thing that I hope to strengthen from this whole STARS LEAD experience. I am a person with so many hopes, dreams, and ambitions, yet it is sometimes difficult for me to take my passions and dreams and turn them into everyday tasks and goals. I have a passion for so many things, it is difficult for me to just choose one. One of my passions is love and happiness. I know that sounds very cliche, but it's true. It is definitely one of the most important things in the world to me; to be happy, to love, and to be loved. And I also feel like it one of the hardest. I try to live my life with the love of others, making everyone happy with their own life. Some of my other passions can connect with this, my passion for animals and people. I believe that everyone deserved to be happy and cared for. As I stated in my previous blog, I hope to gain enough confidence and courage to be able to do this. With project we will be involved with in STARS LEAD, I hope to be able to turn these visions that I have developing in my mind into something great, something real, something where I am able to share the things that I am passionate about with others. 

During Friday's meeting, we attended an E-Portfolio presentation led by Ashley Kehoe, Loyola's ePortfolio Coordinator. It was definitely a well-needed, awesome presentation for all of us STARS Leaders. She taught us the basics of how to start our ePortfolios and what they actually are. The emphasis on the importance of these ePortfolios was huge, and I thought to myself,"Why is NOW the first time that I am hearing about these?!" After the presentation, I feel like there is no other successful way to present yourself to a future employer WITHOUT an ePortfolio. I'm definitely getting started on mine tonight. In it, I really want to highlight the importance of service to me. As a brother in Alpha Phi Omega (National Co-Ed Service Fraternity), I have been exposed to so many different service and leadership projects that I definitely want to include that in my portfolio. I feel like now, I will finally have something to do with my free time, or when I feel like I need a little break from homework and studying. This will give me the extra time to make my ePortfolio define who am I and what I have accomplished. 

I also touched base with this in my last blog. But to answer the question,"Why is it important for a leader to serve other?" some people lack that first boost to get them started. It's important for a leader to put others before themselves. There are people in this world that are missing the motivation to do something great with their lives, and leaders are here to help them make that step. I'm not saying that leaders have to do things they don't like, in order to help others, but if it is a passion of theirs to be of guidance to those around, it is important that they do so selflessly. 

As Martin Luther King Jr. said,

 "Every man must decide whether he will
 walkin the light of creative altruism or in
 the darkness of destructive selfishness." 

Peace and Love,
Angee

The Beginning

Hey everyone! 

I'm Angela Serwin, call me Angee. 

I would just like to start off with the fact that I am so grateful to have been chosen into the STARS LEAD program. Aannnd that this is my first time blogging. Ever.

 So bear with me. 

Being a part of STARS LEAD has given me the opportunity to grow. Obviously I have been growing for the past 18 years of my life, but I don't mean that kind of a grow. I mean to grow as a person, as an individual, as a leader.  I hope that, by the end of this program,  the skills that I  have will improved and the confidence that I have will be taken to the next level. And not only that, but I wish to gain so many valuable skills through my STARS LEAD experience. With these upgraded qualities, I hope to actually act on my dreams and put them into play. Walking out of our first meeting, I was pumped. I was ready for awesome friendships to be made. I was ready to get the program started. But most of all, I was ready to change the world. Maybe not the whole world right away, but eventually.. that will be the case. ;) 

To me, leadership is being able to instill hope and courage into others. With this, the leader is not only being a leader, but is creating leaders out of those around them. And I think that this type of a leader is one of the strongest ones. One shouldn't just show others their destination and the directions to get there. A leader should create a base of hope and strength for others to be able to figure out where they want to go as well as create their own journey to get there. Leadership is having a passion and changing the world with it. 

I'm ending tonight's blog entry with a very tranquil 

and calm state of mind..this song suites the mood well.

 Enjoy and sweet dreams. :)

"Imagine" by Jack Johnson