John Fuhrman said in Leading Leaders to Leadership that “most people have some leadership qualities and the potential to develop even more. They just need to be nurtured by someone…” He felt that “Leadership is influencing others by example.” Parents and teachers can encourage children to become leaders by setting an example.

Infants: Tell Children What to Do Instead Of What Not To Do - Adults can give infants a safe climate where they can experiment with behaviors without judgments about being right or wrong. They can do this by not saying “NO” constantly to them. Adults should try to tell children what to do instead of always telling them what not to. An example might be “Feet belong on the floor.” Instead of saying, “Don’t climb on the furniture.” You may have to say it a number of times before it sinks in, but if you are consistent and set a good example that they can follow, you can help them understand rules of life.

Toddlers: Developing Critical Thinking Skills - Adults can help toddlers develop a feeling of leadership in their relationships with others by providing experiences of having others listen to their feelings, thoughts and ideas and take them seriously. Adults should ask toddlers for feedback about what they are doing and their opinion about what is going on around them. By doing this, adults can help toddlers develop critical thinking skills. Especially by asking them prediction questions, first when reading stories and then in their everyday life. “What do you think is going to happen if you do this?” This can help develop leadership skills by talking about the consequences of their choices.

Preschoolers: Using Family/Class Meetings - Adults can help preschoolers develop leadership by talking about the power and influence they already have over their own lives and that of their friends. This can be done with an environment that emphasizes accountability and encouragement. Using family and/or class meetings will help children have a safe place to take responsibility for their mistakes and learn from them because they will not be judged. It can provide an excellent opportunity for the development of intrapersonal skill because they can listen and help others, and it also provides an environment to develop interpersonal skills by talking through problems, sharing ideas, listening and empathizing, and conflict resolutions through peer problem solving by using cooperation, negotiation,. Helping others in these meeting children will begin to feel empowered and they will also begin to develop more leadership skills.

Jane Nelsen, Lynn Lott and Stephen Glenn say in their book Positive Discipline In The Classroom that many teachers (and parents) are accustomed to directing students (children), and many students (children) are used to being directed by teachers (parents). They go on to state that “We cannot sufficiently stress the importance of student (children) participation in the problem-solving process to create cooperation, collaboration, positive motivation, and healthy self-esteem.” and in my experience, leadership skills.

Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.
- Winston Churchill