1. Leadership Reflection 3: events that changed my life
Sneha Bhavanasi

2. One of the biggest moments in my life is when my brother was born
One of the biggest moments in my life is when my brother was born. Being an older sister was and still is one of my most challenging leadership positions. When we were younger, we were best friends. As we became older though, the distinction between older and younger became more apparent. Not only did I have to be his friend, but I had to help guide him. It was difficult for me when he went through his “hate my sister” phase and I had to learn how to keep a relationship with him while still trying to lead him in the right direction. For me, it’s the struggle between being transformational, helping him become a better person versus a transactional, or even a directive leader, how he sees me, as someone who just speaks at him and tells him to do things.

3. For the Longest time, this was my life
For the Longest time, this was my life. This is me with my younger brother and my cousin. I was 9, he was 7, she was 5. We lived five minutes away from each other and life was fun. We’d spend all of our time together and play and get into fights sometimes I guess, but it was fine. In 2007, I was still a kid and I still had that mindset.

4. In 2008, this little guy was born and my whole dynamic changed
In 2008, this little guy was born and my whole dynamic changed. This is my youngest cousin. While the rest of us had a two year age gap, there was 6 in between him and his sister. This made me 10 years older than him. I was always the big sister but when he was born, I became more caring. I was more nurturing and loving. IT became clear that I was more than their friend, but even a mom figure. This stuck as I started driving and ended up driving them around or taking them places. MY aunt and uncle would come to me for advice on how to help their kids or what classes they should take.

5. In 2013, my family and I moved. Granted, it was five minutes away from my old house, but my life flipped here. I had started high school a year earlier so I had already transitioned schools a year earlier. That was really hard for me because it was only during eighth grade that I became close to my friends. Leaving them seemed terrible. What made it worse was that none of them kept up with me. I felt really alone and unwanted. Even the friends I thought I had weren’t. Eventually, I ended up making my best friends in high school and my relationship with my family changed too. During that transition time, I was “rebellious” and never listened to my parents. We were constantly fighting and I was so unappreciative. After freshman year, I started to et anxiety and I had this rare OCD-like disorder called trichotillomania. I didn’t tell anyone for the longest time and I was losing hair like crazy. Through high school, I grew and I grew to appreciate my parents and family as well.

6. The summer after my sophomore year, I did an extership at USC with my cousin. I stayed with her family too. She’s 18 years older than me and had two baby twin boys. Being alone for six weeks normally wouldn’t have been hard for me but I didn’t know how to stand up for myself at work and I didn’t have a good experience. My anxiety was the worst at this point. I was crying everyday because I hated work and when I would come home, my cousin would talk to me and tell me all these stories about life and our family and other things that I had no idea about. I’d say this was the summer I truly lost my innocence and became a young adult. I learned not to look at anything too superficially and that nothing is ever as it seems.

7. In my later years of high school, I found solace in a few constants: academics, leadership and success. I became one of the best students in my school, getting awards locally and nationally. I was very involved in my school, having leadership positions in Student Council, DECA, NHS, and many others. Having these positions taught me more about others and myself. I learned how better to sympathize with people and get farther toward goals. I found a passion for knowledge and academics and I found people with the same values as me. I became such a model student, my parents were so proud of me and my outlook turned positive. I had a wonderful and understanding relationship with my family, my friends and myself.

8. On the other hand, one of the constants in my life was dance
On the other hand, one of the constants in my life was dance. I’ve been doing classical Indian dance for over 10 years and it’s a huge part of my life. It’s taught me about human emotions and dedication and hard work. In August 2015, I had my arangetram which was like a graduation-type of deal. I’ve been dancing with some of my best friends for years and being able to showcase this passion I had was an incredible experience.

9. One of the most influential people in my life is my best friend, Swetha. Though we’ve only become close for the past two years, she has made me such a better person. She is the most dedicated, caring person I know and living thousands of miles from her has been one of the hardest things I’ve had to do. Everyone says we’re the same person which is true in many ways. We think the same and often say the exact same thing at the exact same time. I’ve never been closer to anyone or had such an understanding relationship with anyone. Being friends with her has given me confidence and helped me grow into my passions and goals. She is one of the most special people in my life that I will never let go. She cares for me more than I care for myself and I can tell her anything. She’s always the person I go to first and even though we’re far away, we’re still a team.

10. The last and most recent big change for me was college and Baylor
The last and most recent big change for me was college and Baylor. To start off, since I was so good in school, my goal has always been to attend an Ivy League school. I cried for days when I got rejected from everywhere I wanted to go. I wasn’t even going to apply to Baylor but my dad made me because they let me come here close to free but I vowed never to come here. When this was one of my last options, my parents urged that it was a blessing in disguise. It was a really hard transition for me being raised Hindhu and going to public school my whole life for Christianity to be such a big and open part of my schooling. It’s made me be more introspective and take a look into my core beliefs. I struggled really hard for the first 7 weeks but I think I’m in a good place now. Hopefully, I’ll continue to grow into an all around more understanding and better person.