We caught up with Chris Baker (working in Human Capital HR Applications and relationship manager for London Consulting’s charity partner, The Prince's Trust) after attending the One Young World summit in Bogota.

He shares his experience to date and his top tips for being a young leader. Check out his account below:

I recently attended the One Young World summit in Bogota and it was inspirational on many levels. The stories and achievements revealed by young speakers at the event were amazing, emotional, and humbling. And the one thing every individual had in common was their attitude to getting things done.

Whether through ambition, compassion or horrific adversity, none of these delegate speakers waited for an older, more experienced individual to call the shots, but took action themselves to solve the problems they saw around them. They were all leaders, regardless of their age.

In my daily work and in my voluntary role managing our charity partnership with the Prince’s Trust, I find leadership is something that you do, not what you are.

I may only be a junior grade and 25 years old, but I know that real leadership doesn’t come purely from experience. It’s your ability to persuade and encourage people to act in a certain way or reach a certain goal – ultimately, successfully and in a way that helps develop them and their organisation, team or community.

This is something the delegate speakers at One Young World all had in abundance. I don’t want to compare myself to these phenomenal young people. However, if you are starting out on a project or interest, and need somewhere to start, here are my tips for being a successful young leader:

Believe in your cause 

This is a given. Wherever you want to lead, you need to be inspired by a genuine interest in your argument, idea or project. This does not always have to be your mission in life – as long as you can articulate your inspiration, and your drivers, then others will buy into your vision. Young people are often described as ‘passionate’, ‘energetic’ or ‘enthusiastic’ – this is a positive, so use it to your advantage.

Be confident  

Easier said than done, some of us are born with mounds of confidence while others find it hard to suggest a dinner spot to a group. Ultimately, however good an idea is, you won’t gain momentum unless you have the confidence to let the world know its importance, and place it at the centre of other people’s thoughts. Use your idea or project to drive your confidence, and don’t worry about who you are selling it to – a great concept delivered with enthusiasm and belief will grab attention.

Stay naïve

Hear me out! One of the most intriguing things I heard at OYW was that the perceived naivety of young people, often a deemed a negative trait, is actually one of the reasons young people have success; if you are naïve enough to take your idea somewhere that no one thinks will work, then ultimately you’ll have no competition, and who knows – it just might be the next best thing! So take ownership of your interests, bring your enthusiasm to a project or a role, and tell the world you’re ready to lead. More people will listen than you might think.

You can read more of our Deloitte One Young World experiences on LinkedIn.

Sawood Pearce Manager, Deloitte Digital	Sheree Atcheson Consultant, Consulting
Victor Garcia-Nicolaou Manager, Audit & Assurance	Kenny Yeo Analyst, Consulting