I teach many young professionals who aspire to leadership positions in their organizations. While some of the content I convey surely will be helpful to their pursuit, the best advice I can give them is to act like a leader before they have the title to go with it.
Leadership is a way of being, not a specific role, and the sooner you exhibit the traits of a leader, the more likely it is that you will be bestowed with the position to align with it. I think of specific people who demonstrated critical thinking, initiative, made insightful contributions to discussions, and were leaders in my class, even though the roster did not distinguish them that way. In work or volunteer settings, some people stand out in entry-level or more mundane roles, and I can predict that they will achieve a position of leadership during their career because they act as leaders already.
If you want to be a leader, nothing is stopping you. You may need someone else to give you an official position, but the true gifts and rewards of leadership come from the intrinsic rewards of the behavior, not from the title.
