"If you don't back it up with performance and hard work, talking doesn't mean a thing."

If you are going to lead the team vocally, you will also have to lead the team with your example. Action always has a greater impact on your teammates.

They always say a picture carries a thousand words. You should paint a picture of hard work and discipline. If you are a leader, you can never let up. The minute you take it easy, so will your teammates. And why not? If you aren't willing to give your best effort, then how can you expect your teammates to give their best effort.

If you want to be a leader of a group of people, you will have to earn that responsibility. You are not going to be a leader just because your skills are better than someone else's skills. You are not going to be a leader just because you are smarter than someone else. You are not going to be a leader just because you are more popular than someone else. No one can really give you that title either.

You attain a leadership role when your actions have gained the respect of those coaches and players around you. You have to be consistent in your approach whether it is a volleyball practice, a classroom activity, or dealing with your classmates, teachers, and coaches.

People around you have to know what to expect from your behavior and attitude. They have to be confident that your performance will be the same from activity to activity, especially when a deadline is established. Your teammates have to be confident that you will be there for them. Your teammates have to be confident that your performance will be the same from game to game, especially during a pressure situation.

Ultimately, coaches or players can say anything they want. But if they don't back up what they say with performance and hard work, all that talk is meaningless. A leader can't make excesses. There must be quality in everything she does. On the court, off the court, in the classroom, at home, a leader transfers the skills of hard work and positive attitude to whatever environment she is in.

A leader must also be willing to sacrifice certain individual goals for the good of the team. A leader is also a person who has had past successes in certain situations and isn't afraid of taking the chance to lead others down that same road to success. A leader must have a vision, an ability to look ahead and anticipate what can happen.

A leader must also be willing to stand up for what she believes and keep to her convictions when everyone else doubts her. Leaders create their own vision and do not let anyone or anything distract them or break them down.

A Leader has a vision, sets the example and leads.