On Tuesday, I had the privilege of launching the first cohort of the ASLEAD Emerging Leaders Youth Program in Mashuru, Kajiado East — and one question changed the room.
Thirty-one young people between the ages of 16 and 21 gathered for the inaugural session, out of thirty-four who had registered for the program. Over the next six to seven weeks, they’ll journey together through a leadership experience that blends physical and virtual learning, practical discussion, personal reflection, and shared experience.
It will culminate in a graduation ceremony, followed by a team-building activity or community service project — because leadership, we believe, is only complete when it serves others.
But as I reflect on that day, I realize it was never simply about launching another program. It was about asking one question — a question many adults have lived with for years without ever truly answering.
“Who am I?”
— The question put to the class
When I put it to the class, one young person looked at me and said, “That is a very difficult question.” I smiled, because they were right. It’s one of the hardest questions we’ll ever face, and yet it’s the foundation every meaningful life and effective leader is built on.
Leadership Begins with Self-Leadership
At ASLEAD Institute, we believe leadership begins long before someone earns a title or leads a team. It begins with learning to lead yourself. Before you can influence others, you must understand yourself. Before you discover your purpose, you must discover your identity. Before you build a career, you must build your character.
Today’s young people are growing up in a world that constantly tells them who they should be. Social media, peer pressure, culture, even well-meaning adults — all of it defines success for them before they’ve had the chance to define it themselves. The result is a generation full of talent, creativity, and potential, still searching for identity, direction, and purpose.
Why the Emerging Leaders Youth Program Exists
That’s why the Emerging Leaders Youth Program exists: to create space for young people to ask life’s hardest questions early enough to shape the rest of their lives. Through conversations on personal growth, emotional intelligence, servant leadership, communication, resilience, stewardship, relationships, and purpose, we’re helping them build a foundation that will carry them for years to come.
Our desire is simple — that they’ll no longer be defined by others’ expectations, but by the values, convictions, and purpose they choose for themselves.
“Leadership development can’t wait until someone enters the workplace, becomes a manager, a pastor, a teacher, or a parent. By then, many habits and beliefs have already taken root.”
— ASLEAD Institute
Watching these young men and women engage in honest conversation, ask real questions, and begin reflecting on who they’re becoming reminded me why this work matters. If we want different leaders tomorrow, we have to invest differently today.
Young people who learn to lead themselves grow into adults who lead others with wisdom, humility, and integrity — better students, employees, entrepreneurs, spouses, parents, citizens, and ultimately, better servant leaders.
A Vision Beyond Mashuru
The Mashuru cohort is only the beginning. Our vision is for this program to reach universities, colleges, churches, schools, and communities across Kenya, equipping the next generation with the mindset, character, and leadership skills they need to lead with purpose. But that vision can’t be achieved by ASLEAD alone.
If you’re a university administrator, college leader, church or youth pastor, school, corporate organization, development partner, or simply someone who believes in investing in young people, we invite you to partner with us — to help create environments where young people are challenged to think differently, discover their identity, develop their character, and serve their communities with excellence.
The future of leadership isn’t built in boardrooms. It’s built in classrooms, churches, homes, and communities — wherever young people are given the chance to discover who they are before the world tells them who they should become.
And perhaps it all begins with one simple, life-changing question:
“Who am I?”
— The question that changes everything
