So I saw someone else pop into your inbox to ask for marching band advice and I kinda need some as well 😭😭
I’ll be a junior next year, and I’m kinda the unofficial sub-section leader since I’m the only one with experience on my instrument!!
I’m very nervous and I don’t know how to be a good leader and guide the freshmen to success—do you have any tips??
Our camp starts tomorrow and I’m stressing myself out 😔
yes yes yes!! absolutely I can help friend!! I was a section leader for three years (I just graduated and started as a sophomore) as well as band president for my junior and senior year so I definitely have experience in the leadership field :)
my biggest tip for you is to always lead with kindness. your section will not respect you or listen if you're the kind of leader who yells and screams and gets angry with them. obviously you have to be firm when it is called for--don't let yourself be walked all over--but even then, you have to be kind about it. it's definitely a delicate balance; and it takes a little while to build up that kind of trust and respect within your section, but it'll come with time. just take care of your section. treat them how you would want your section leader to be treated, and if you need, reach out to other maybe more experienced section leaders, or drum majors, or other leadership for help. my favorite part of section leading was that I had an awesome community of leadership to fall back on, especially my first year. I was the youngest section leader in the band, and getting help from the other section leaders that were juniors and seniors was crucial to making me a good leader. also, if you can, reach out to past section leaders! they tend to know the section pretty well especially if they just graduated and can give you some tips.
another thing that helps to gain that trust is to do some section bonding! obviously you don't have to be best friends with your sectionmates, but gaining that connection helps them to trust and respect your leadership easier. joke around in sectionals, come up with nicknames, make matching bracelets, etc. it was way easier to work with my freshmen after we already had that connection. these kids are going to look up to you, so be the section leader you would've wanted as a freshman. that could mean being a friend, a confidant, etc. entering high school is definitely scary, and we've all been there, so making friends with these kids before school even starts is going to make a big impact on them and will help them to trust your leadership more easily. think of yourself kind of like a cool older sibling who also helps teach them how to march and stuff. I don't really know how to explain that one, but at the end of the day my section became like my little siblings.
you're gonna do awesome as a section leader friend! remember, those leadership skills are going to come with time and practice and you will make mistakes, but that's all part of the learning process, right? it's totally okay and normal to not be the most amazing section leader at the beginning, but as you go you'll develop your own leadership style and your own way of section leading. lean on your community and lead with kindness and you'll do great!!
good luck!! feel free to reach out if you need more tips :)
