When most people think about the word “leadership” they may think of the leader of a political party or the leader of a Country or President. For me growing up playing sports most of my life, the role of leader was typically given to the Captain of the team or someone who communicated well with teammates. When I played sports I was usually that person, I was either Captain or Assistant Captain of most of the teams I played for and that position usually had more responsibility than other players. You were expected to be at practice and games earlier, working harder, and if something was going wrong within the team you were the first person the coach would talk to. As I got older and my addiction got worse, I became more selfish, cared less about my team and how we did and eventually stopped playing sports all together. I forgot how important it was to be a leader and to have a leader around you to help guide you to success. When I first entered rehab and the program of AA I was new to everything. I knew nothing about AA and what it took to get and stay sober and at first did not have any intention of learning or growing. Once I went to some AA meetings and people told me I needed to get a sponsor to help guide and lead me through the steps and help me get sober I was resistant to that at first. My pride got in the way and I was not able to see that I was not the leader that I once was and that I needed someone to help me get through this hard time so that I could lead and guide people through the steps and helping them get sober.

When I came to South Orange County Detox & Treatment and started helping people get clean, I felt that sense of leadership starting with Salina the Program Director. Being at South Orange County Detox & Treatment , seeing Salina’s vision and knowledge, and seeing so many peoples lives transform has given me that confidence back to be a leader and to be able to help people get and stay sober. To me, a leader does not have to be powerful or better than anyone else, a leader just needs to be open and honest, willing to help people, compassionate, loving, and caring and that is what a true leader is to me.