It is said that leadership experience is a must on your resume. Without it, many people fear they'd have little to talk about during a job interview. However, not just any leadership experience will do. Given the myriad of extracurricular activities on most college campuses across the US, many students assume that leadership experience in any organization will satisfy recruiters. While you may have done a lot to advance the cause of your school's martial arts club or film club, many recruiters ask specifically about involvement in honors societies, professional organizations, and other exhibitions of academic interest. Having lead a large number of your peers in professional and academic pursuits speaks loudly of your ability to take a stand, collaborate, and propel ideas. In an interview, frame your experience in terms of what was accomplished under your leadership. Even though you've got to promote yourself, it's always important to highlight how you were able to include the opinions and talents of others to reach a compromise and accomplish tangible goals on behalf of your organization or cause.
Many people fear the executive role, opting for a committee chair or secretary position rather than president. Don't be afraid of the lime light, assuming that as president, you will be expected to carry the heaviest work load on behalf of the group. An effective executive is one who is able to recognize the strengths and ideas of others and delegate accordingly. While you may be the first point of contact for the organization as president, you do not have to do everything yourself. Potential employers love to hear about how you as a leader mobilized others to accomplish a goal. That is a much more impressive accomplishment than boasting about how you single handedly organized a banquet, decorated the banquet hall, hand-wrote all of the invitations, and prepared the meal for dozens of attendees. The first thought in an interviewer's mind after such a boast is "why couldn't you get anyone else to help?"
Leadership experience is more than just a resume filler. It is a life lesson that, if properly learned, will give you deep insight into what it takes to succeed in the business world. Having attained this insight will enable you to shine in any interview, breathing life into a mere bullet point on your resume.
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