Leaders can be observed everywhere. One might take charge in the classroom, workplace, on the sports pitch and even at home. But being a leader isn’t necessarily an inherent gift or chance in a heredity lottery – there can be a leader in all of us, and we just have to learn the fundamentals of leadership in order to act like one.
This is what Hashim (Hash) Syed, BSN Class of 2015 Alumnus, and now TEDxYouth@BSN speaker wants to share with our audience on 9 November.
Since his graduation, Hash has been studying at The University of York, where he is majoring in philosophy, politics and economics. He has also taken on as the lead of a non-profit social impact group, York Community Consulting. It comes as no surprise why he might be drawn to leadership, but Hash explains that, actually, his awareness of the effects of leadership stem from much earlier in his life. Through his strong ties to his Pakistani roots and from his time growing up in London and The Hague, he says that he has seen the power leaders have on change and he hopes to use this understanding to affect positive change in all of his leadership roles.
We asked how he might define his idea worth spreading, and he explained: “Unlocking your inner leader – I believe that everyone has the capacity to be a leader within their own right. Leadership does not come with titles, but with influence and gaining the trust and faith of others. Leadership is a responsibility, it’s about empowering others, going above & beyond, and creating a circle of trust”. This idea came to him while applying to university, when he was posed with the question “Are leaders born or made?” Which got him thinking if he had “the ‘magical’ qualities associated with strong leaders, or are they something that you develop?”
Using his knowledge gained from answering this question, Hash’s talk will explore what it takes to be a good leader and how we can train ourselves to be better leaders within our own lives; to take more accountability, to self-reflect, to make others feel valued and ultimately to feel fulfilled.
So, what’s his biggest hope for our Big Bold World? “It’s a bold world, it’s a messy world, but it’s also an exciting world! In times of crisis, we look to our leaders as they have the power to bring positive change. To become a leader for the outside world, we need to unlock our inner leader.”
We are so pleased that one of our graduates will be onstage during this milestone event, and we know that he will motivate many to find the key to this lock.
In the meantime, we asked Hash to share his favourite TED Talk and hope you are just as inspired.
