Sunshine Band Leadership

I am also the president of my church's Sunshine Band which is a subset of the youth
department geared toward children who are two to twelve years of age. As the Sunshine Band
president, I try to relate to the children so that I can effectively minister to them. In efforts to
relate, I seek first to understand them before attempting to have them understand me. Similar to
adults, children wish to be respected. By taking the time to genuinely listen to their concerns, I
have successfully presided over the ministry for ten years. Moreover, the children have the
utmost respect for me as their leader.
Think Win-Win
The respect that the Sunshine Band members have for me can also be attributed to the
fact that I think win-win. I truly care about the

success of each child, and I reward them when
they excel in the church, at school, and in extracurricular activities. Additionally, when solving
conflicts, I strive to find solutions that best benefit everyone. For example, I coordinate the
Moment in Black History presented by the members of the Sunshine Band each Sunday in
February. In prior years, only one member of the Sunshine Band would make the presentation
each Sunday. Consequently, parents began to complain that their children did not have a chance
to participate. To resolve this issue, I started organizing group presentations in the form of skits
and game shows to maximize participation per Sunday. This solution benefited the children,
parents, and the church as it increased audience engagement.
Emotional Bank Account
My lowest score of 13 was in the "Emotional Bank Account" category. The relatively
low score coupled with my self-awareness concerning this fundamental habit, motivates me to
strive to increase my effectiveness in this area.