Discover evidence-based approaches to developing leadership skills in youth. Learn essential competencies, practical methods, and proven frameworks for nurturing young leaders.
Written by Laura Bouttell • Thu 20th November 2025
What leadership skills do youth need? Youth require communication, emotional intelligence, decision-making, and collaboration skills, combined with self-awareness and adaptability to navigate an increasingly complex world and prepare for future leadership roles.
Leadership development is no longer a luxury reserved for executive training programmes—it has become an essential investment in our collective future. Research demonstrates that adolescent leaders are more likely to secure managerial positions as adults, with early leadership experiences correlating directly with increased future earnings and professional success. Yet despite this evidence, only 35% of youth worldwide feel prepared to assume leadership responsibilities.
The landscape of leadership itself is transforming. Today's young people—particularly Generation Z—are redefining what effective leadership looks like, prioritising authenticity, inclusivity, and purpose over traditional hierarchical control. This shift demands that we fundamentally rethink how we cultivate leadership capabilities in youth, moving beyond outdated models towards frameworks that honour both timeless principles and contemporary realities.
This comprehensive guide explores the essential competencies young leaders must develop, evidence-based strategies for nurturing these skills, and practical approaches for overcoming the barriers that too often prevent talented youth from realising their leadership potential.
Youth leadership development encompasses far more than simply teaching teenagers to give speeches or organise events. At its core, it involves supporting young people in developing the ability to analyse their strengths and weaknesses, set meaningful goals, and cultivate the self-esteem, confidence, and capabilities to achieve them.
The most effective youth leadership frameworks comprise three critical, interconnected components:
This tripartite structure recognises that leadership isn't merely an intellectual exercise—it demands practical application and thoughtful consideration of experiences.
Youth leadership differs fundamentally from its adult counterpart in both approach and emphasis. Whilst adult leadership is typically "learned in the context of practicing leadership," youth leadership "focuses on the methods by which leadership can be explored, taught or experienced by young people."
This distinction matters profoundly. Research indicates that personality—a strong predictor of leadership capacity in adults—shows minimal correlation with self-leadership skills in youth. Conversely, emotional intelligence emerges as a powerful predictor for young leaders, matching its significance in adult studies.
Young leaders often demonstrate particular strength in navigating change, adapting swiftly to new technologies, social trends, and global challenges. This adaptability brings invaluable resilience to communities and organisations, though it may initially manifest differently than traditional leadership models suggest.
A comprehensive meta-analysis examining leadership competencies across four professional preparation frameworks, three research-based youth leadership studies, and objectives from four major national youth leadership organisations identified several competencies that appeared consistently across contexts.
Four competencies—analysis, evaluation, verbal communication, and writing—appeared in every framework studied, whilst collaboration emerged in 75% of frameworks. This convergence suggests these skills form the bedrock upon which effective youth leadership develops.
Consider how these competencies manifest practically: a young community organiser analysing local food insecurity, evaluating potential solutions, communicating findings to stakeholders, documenting recommendations in writing, and collaborating with diverse partners to implement change. These aren't abstract skills—they're the tools of tangible impact.
Effective communication consistently ranks amongst the most crucial leadership capabilities for youth. This extends far beyond public speaking to encompass active listening, adapting communication styles to different audiences, providing and receiving feedback constructively, and conveying ideas both verbally and in writing.
Research confirms that 80% of managers and executives believe fusing proficiency in core content areas with the ability to think critically, solve problems, collaborate, communicate effectively, and think creatively—the "4 Cs"—better prepares students for workforce entry.
Interestingly, Generation Z workers frequently report less comfort with telephone conversations and face-to-face interactions, having developed professionally in predominantly remote environments. This highlights the importance of creating deliberate opportunities for youth to practise interpersonal communication in varied settings.
At the heart of effective leadership lies self-awareness—understanding who you are, what you value, and where your strengths and limitations reside. For youth, this involves developing the capacity to recognise and manage their own emotions, understand how emotions influence moods and behaviours, and respond effectively to others' emotional states.
Youth leadership programmes should consistently provide opportunities for skill building in self-awareness, motivation, self-regulation, empathy, and social skills. These social-emotional competencies serve as the foundation upon which all other leadership capabilities rest.
The Greeks knew this well. The Delphic maxim "know thyself" wasn't merely philosophical musing—it was practical wisdom recognising that self-knowledge precedes effective action in the world.
Leadership fundamentally involves making decisions amidst uncertainty and solving problems without perfect information. For youth, developing these capabilities requires creating safe environments to practise choices and experience natural consequences.
Begin with age-appropriate decisions: allowing younger children to select their clothing or choose between snacks builds early decision-making muscles. As youth mature, gradually increase complexity—coordinating student teams, leading projects, determining resource allocation, and resolving conflicts.
Worryingly, only 48% of youth feel confident in their problem-solving abilities, with this figure plummeting to 30% amongst those with only compulsory education. This skills deficit demands urgent attention, as problem-solving capacity directly correlates with leadership effectiveness.
No leader achieves impact in isolation. Youth must develop the ability to work effectively with diverse groups, understand different perspectives, build consensus, and navigate interpersonal dynamics constructively.
Team-based extracurricular activities accelerate mastery of communication, social, problem-solving, and cooperation skills. Whether through sports teams, musical ensembles, debate clubs, or community service projects, collaborative activities provide essential leadership laboratories.
The Natural Helpers programme in New Mexico exemplifies this approach brilliantly. Training students in listening skills, problem-solving, resource awareness, and self-care enables them to provide peer support—building collaboration skills whilst addressing genuine community needs.
Understanding which skills matter is merely the starting point. The crucial question becomes: how do we actually cultivate these competencies in young people?
Leadership isn't learned from textbooks—it develops through action. Youth need genuine opportunities to assume responsibility, make decisions, and experience both success and failure.
This might involve:
The key lies in authenticity. Token participation where adults retain actual control teaches learned helplessness, not leadership. Young people possess remarkable capacity to distinguish genuine empowerment from performative inclusion.
Whilst experiential learning proves essential, structured training programmes provide frameworks and skills that accelerate development. Effective programmes prepare youth to manage time, work in team settings, set goals, initiate conversations, facilitate meetings, and deliver presentations—all transferable skills they'll carry into adulthood.
The Michigan High School Athletic Association Captain's Leadership Training Programme demonstrates this approach. Partnering with the Institute for the Study of Youth Sports, they created formal education specifically for sports captains, recognising that athletic leadership requires deliberate skill development, not merely natural talent.
Quality programmes should include:
Youth who receive mentoring are 75% more likely to have held leadership positions in clubs or sports teams. Mentorship provides personalised guidance, relevant advice, and practical tools that equip young people to navigate challenges, establish goals, and develop their leadership potential.
Effective mentorship extends beyond simply pairing an adult with a youth. Consider the Hollaback! model, which trained over 550 young leaders to become site leaders in their communities. Participants received nine months of free training through monthly webinars covering strategic planning, community outreach, technology, intersectionality, media engagement, volunteerism, and public speaking.
This structure combines individual mentorship with peer learning and skill-building curricula—a powerful combination that addresses multiple developmental needs simultaneously.
Simulations act as rehearsal stages for leadership, allowing students to tackle realistic scenarios without real-world stakes. This low-risk environment builds confidence whilst developing practical capabilities.
Consider creating scenarios involving:
After each simulation, facilitate reflection: What worked? What would you do differently? How did emotions influence decisions? What did you learn about yourself and others?
British naval tradition offers an instructive parallel. Before commanding ships, officers spent countless hours in tactical simulations, rehearsing responses to storms, battles, and equipment failures. This preparation proved invaluable when actual crises emerged. Today's youth deserve similar opportunities to develop leadership capabilities before high-stakes situations demand them.
Emotional intelligence doesn't develop through occasional workshops—it requires consistent practice woven into daily life. Families and classrooms can implement emotional check-ins where youth identify their feelings, building vocabulary and awareness.
Once emotions are recognised, develop coping skills to manage stress and other intense feelings. This might involve breathing techniques, physical movement, creative expression, or talking with trusted individuals.
Leadership programmes should model emotional intelligence. Adults working with youth must demonstrate self-awareness, empathy, and effective emotional regulation—teaching as much through example as through explicit instruction.
Volunteering provides exceptional contexts for leadership development. By assuming leadership roles in community service projects, youth learn to organise and lead teams whilst contributing to causes they care about.
The FFA civic engagement case study illustrates this beautifully. Youth created and executed civic engagement projects in their local communities, with researchers finding that FFA members viewed the initiative as tremendously successful. Leadership development occurred at individual, chapter, and community levels—demonstrating how service amplifies learning beyond individual participants.
Moreover, research conducted by Deloitte reveals that 82% of hiring managers prefer candidates with volunteer experience. Community service simultaneously develops leadership skills and enhances future employability.
Individual activities matter, but sustainable impact requires comprehensive frameworks that integrate skills development, opportunities for action, and reflection processes.
Effective frameworks address leadership development at three interconnected levels:
1. Self-leadership involves developing self-awareness, acknowledging unique experiences, recognising emotions, clarifying personal values, and pursuing emotional wellness. Youth must lead themselves before they can effectively lead others.
2. Leadership with others encompasses understanding different perspectives, communicating effectively, encouraging collaboration within and between teams, and building trust across differences.
3. Community leadership extends influence beyond immediate relationships to effect broader change, engage with systems and institutions, and contribute to collective wellbeing.
This progression honours developmental realities whilst maintaining aspirational vision. Young people can simultaneously work on all three levels, with skills in each domain reinforcing capabilities in others.
The most powerful leadership development occurs when skills training, action opportunities, and reflection processes interconnect seamlessly.
For example, a youth might:
This cycle spirals upward, with each iteration building greater mastery and confidence. Throughout programme activities, create consistent evidence of opportunity for skill building in self-awareness, motivation, self-regulation, empathy, social skills, collaboration, and communication.
How do we know whether leadership development efforts succeed? Effective frameworks incorporate assessment tools that measure growth across key competencies.
The Youth Leadership Potential Scale, developed for students in grades 7-9, identified five factors: leadership information, leadership attitude, communication skills, decision-making skills, and stress management skills. The Youth Leadership Life Skills Development Scale assesses perceptions across seven subscales: communication, decision-making, getting along with others, learning, management, understanding yourself, and working with groups.
These instruments provide valuable data whilst also helping youth recognise their own growth—itself a powerful motivator for continued development.
Despite compelling evidence supporting youth leadership development, significant barriers prevent many young people from accessing these opportunities.
Financial barriers prove particularly challenging for underprivileged youth who cannot afford costs associated with leadership programmes. This creates troubling lack of diversity in youth leadership, as only the most privileged can participate consistently.
Approximately 33% of youth report having no guidance on building professional networks, whilst nearly half lack access to mentorship programmes. This absence of social capital, financial support, and intellectual resources fundamentally constrains leadership potential.
Solutions require:
The democratisation of leadership development isn't merely ethical—it's pragmatic. We cannot afford to waste talent simply because it emerges in communities lacking resources.
Biases such as "youngism" portray youth as inexperienced, diminishing potential impact and silencing valuable insights, even when young leaders bring fresh approaches to persistent challenges.
Adults may prove reluctant to provide genuine leadership opportunities due to negative associations with teenagers, lack of trust, or viewing youth as incapable of assuming leadership responsibilities. Yet research consistently demonstrates that young people rise to expectations set for them.
The proper adult role involves empowerment: ensuring youth understand their responsibilities, providing necessary support, and then trusting them to deliver. This requires adults to examine their own assumptions and biases, recognising that effective youth leadership threatens no one—it strengthens communities and organisations.
Education systems often fail to prepare young people for leadership complexities and decision-making demands. Only 48% of youth feel confident in problem-solving abilities, with this dropping to 30% amongst those with only compulsory education.
Schools must move beyond content transmission to deliberately cultivate leadership competencies. This doesn't require abandoning academic standards—it means recognising that analysis, evaluation, communication, and collaboration aren't supplementary to education; they're central to it.
Integrate leadership development across curricula:
When leadership development permeates educational culture rather than existing as an isolated add-on, all students benefit.
Youth leaders often transition to new opportunities as they enter adulthood and the workforce, potentially causing programme instability if sustainability and succession planning strategies aren't well-developed.
Address this through:
The British monarchy—whatever one's views on hereditary privilege—offers instructive lessons in succession planning. Clear processes for leadership transition, deliberate preparation of successors, and institutional memory preservation ensure continuity despite individual changes. Youth leadership programmes would benefit from similar intentionality.
As Generation Z enters the workforce in increasing numbers, understanding how youth leadership translates to professional contexts becomes essential.
Gen Z leaders employ collaborative, flexible leadership styles committed to authenticity, acceptance, and inclusivity. Servant leadership and "leading by example" emerge as powerful themes amongst Gen Z talent—a marked departure from command-and-control models that dominated previous generations.
Remarkably, 76% of Gen Z professionals aspire to leadership roles, though they define leadership quite differently than their predecessors. They value purpose and community impact, with 75% of Gen Z and Millennials considering an organisation's social involvement and community impact key factors when evaluating potential employers.
This cohort demonstrates particular aptitude for navigating technological change and social complexity. Having grown up amidst unprecedented information access and global connectivity, they bring valuable perspectives on innovation, inclusivity, and authentic engagement.
Despite these strengths, some Gen Z workers lack training in crucial soft skills including communication, collaboration, adaptability, and conflict resolution. Having spent considerable portions of their careers in remote environments, many young professionals report discomfort with telephone conversations and face-to-face interactions.
This skills gap demands targeted attention. Organisations investing in Gen Z leadership development should prioritise:
Experiential learning—simulations, real-time feedback, purpose-driven projects—significantly improves leadership readiness. Research indicates that VR-based leadership training increases confidence by 275% compared to traditional methods, suggesting innovative approaches merit serious consideration.
Gen Z thrives under coaching leadership styles that focus on developing skills through mentorship, reflecting their constant drive to learn and improve. Organisations must recognise that 74% of Millennial and Gen Z workers are likely to resign within twelve months if they lack access to skill-building opportunities.
This isn't entitlement—it's a generation recognising that continuous learning constitutes the only viable strategy in a rapidly evolving economy. Organisations that view professional development as optional will struggle to retain talented young leaders.
Effective pathways include:
A question frequently emerges: at what age should we begin cultivating leadership capabilities in young people?
Research suggests starting remarkably early. Experts indicate that nurturing leadership skills can begin from as early as 2 years of age, with children capable of learning leadership fundamentals during preschool years. Some aspects of leadership—particularly responsibility—can develop from ages 3 to 4.
However, there's no age "too early" to begin working on leadership. Like all meaningful development, it constitutes a lifelong pursuit of continuous improvement.
The key lies in matching leadership development to developmental readiness:
Early childhood (2-4 years): Work core values of ethics and goodwill into children's daily experiences. Create simple choices that build decision-making capacity. Foster empathy through discussing emotions and considering others' perspectives.
Primary school (5-11 years): Assign age-appropriate responsibilities that children can "own." Encourage participation in group activities. Develop communication skills through presentations and discussions. Build problem-solving capabilities through challenges that require creative thinking.
Middle school (12-14 years): Develop self-management skills including goal-setting and self-evaluation. Coordinate student teams through leadership tasks and roles. Build public speaking confidence. Introduce more complex decision-making scenarios.
Secondary school (15-19 years): Coordinate and lead complex projects. Learn to motivate others effectively. Delegate and monitor others' work. Engage with community leadership opportunities. Develop sophisticated analytical and strategic thinking capabilities.
This progression honours developmental realities whilst maintaining appropriately high expectations. Teaching children leadership skills at young ages helps them navigate peer pressure during adolescence, instils confidence, and develops problem-solving creativity.
Theory matters little without practical demonstration. Examining successful programmes reveals common elements and effective approaches.
Operating across 20 sites in New Mexico, Natural Helpers has trained thousands of students to become leaders and advocates in their communities over two decades. This statewide peer-to-peer education programme trains Natural Helpers in listening skills, problem-solving, resource awareness, and self-care, enabling students to support both peers and adults.
The programme's longevity and scale demonstrate sustainability whilst its peer-to-peer model maximises impact—each trained Helper influences countless others through their networks.
The Institute for the Study of Youth Sports partnered with the Michigan High School Athletic Association to create formal leadership education for sports captains. This programme recognises that athletic leadership requires deliberate skill development, not merely natural talent or sporting prowess.
By targeting team captains—youth already in leadership positions—the initiative builds capabilities where they'll immediately apply, creating powerful learning cycles of theory, practice, and reflection.
Research studying FFA members who created and executed civic engagement projects in their local communities found that participants viewed initiatives as tremendously successful. Leadership development occurred at individual, chapter, and community levels, demonstrating how well-designed programmes create ripples extending far beyond direct participants.
This community-centred approach addresses a crucial reality: youth leadership development shouldn't merely prepare individuals for future roles—it should enable meaningful contribution to communities now.
This programme empowers middle and high school students to create healthy communities through research, advocacy, and action. By positioning youth as change agents rather than passive recipients of adult wisdom, it cultivates genuine leadership whilst addressing real community challenges.
Evaluation evidence suggests youth leadership programmes increase self-efficacy amongst middle and high school students, improve interpersonal and social skills, enhance problem-solving and critical thinking, and increase both interest and ability to engage in community change.
Beyond moral imperatives and educational benefits, compelling business and economic arguments support investment in youth leadership development.
Greater attachment to school—often resulting from leadership involvement—leads to less risky behaviour, more developmental assets, better academic performance, and improved long-term outcomes including higher graduation rates, increased incomes, lower arrest rates, and fewer pregnancies.
Youth civic engagement associates with greater educational achievement, increased life satisfaction, enhanced civic participation, and fewer problem behaviours extending into adulthood. These outcomes directly benefit businesses by producing more capable, engaged, and resilient employees.
Research by Deloitte highlights that 82% of hiring managers prefer candidates with volunteer experience. Youth leadership programmes that incorporate community service simultaneously develop capabilities and enhance employability.
Adolescent leaders demonstrate higher likelihood of assuming managerial positions as adults, with leadership skills developed early correlating with positive impacts on future wages. This isn't merely correlation—leadership development appears to causally influence career trajectories.
Youth leadership development creates benefits extending beyond individual participants. Organisations and communities gain stronger connections to young people, enhanced capacity to solve community problems, increased civic participation, and fresh perspectives on persistent challenges.
Young leaders often identify innovative approaches that elude those embedded in existing systems. Their questions—sometimes seemingly naive—frequently expose assumptions worth examining. Their idealism, whilst occasionally requiring tempering with pragmatism, provides essential counterweight to cynical resignation.
The most effective leadership development initiatives intentionally address inclusion, recognising that leadership potential distributes equally across all demographic groups even as leadership opportunities decidedly do not.
From inception, design programmes to welcome and support youth from varied backgrounds:
True inclusion extends beyond token representation. It requires examining whose voices shape programme design, whose experiences inform curricula, and whose definitions of leadership prevail.
Research confirms that skill-building opportunities and equitable climate correlate with higher civic engagement scores amongst youth participants. An equitable climate involves:
Creating equitable climate isn't simply kind—it's pragmatic. Youth who feel valued contribute more fully, persist through challenges, and develop stronger leadership capabilities.
Individual programmes, however well-designed, cannot fully compensate for systemic barriers including under-resourced schools, community disinvestment, discriminatory practices, and limited social capital access.
Effective youth leadership development must therefore combine direct programming with advocacy addressing these structural challenges. Partner with organisations working on education equity, economic justice, and community development. Use youth leadership development itself as a strategy for systemic change.
The most crucial leadership skills for youth include communication (both verbal and written), emotional intelligence and self-awareness, decision-making and problem-solving, collaboration and teamwork, and adaptability. Research across multiple frameworks consistently identifies analysis, evaluation, communication, and collaboration as foundational competencies. These skills prove essential not only for formal leadership roles but for navigating life successfully, building relationships, and contributing meaningfully to communities.
Parents can cultivate leadership capabilities by creating age-appropriate opportunities for decision-making, assigning responsibilities that children can "own" and complete independently, practising daily emotional check-ins to build self-awareness, encouraging participation in team activities and group projects, modelling effective communication and problem-solving, discussing ethical dilemmas and values regularly, and allowing children to experience natural consequences of their choices. The key lies in balancing support with autonomy—providing guidance whilst allowing sufficient independence for genuine skill development.
Whilst traditional education primarily focuses on content mastery and academic skills, youth leadership programmes emphasise experiential learning, practical application of knowledge, development of social-emotional competencies, opportunities for authentic decision-making and responsibility, and structured reflection on experiences and growth. Youth leadership development involves learning leadership "in the context of practicing leadership" rather than merely studying it theoretically. The most effective approaches integrate both, recognising that leadership capabilities complement rather than compete with academic achievement.
Organisations employ various assessment tools including the Youth Leadership Potential Scale (measuring leadership information, attitude, communication skills, decision-making skills, and stress management), the Youth Leadership Life Skills Development Scale (assessing communication, decision-making, interpersonal skills, learning capabilities, management skills, self-understanding, and group work skills), participant self-assessments tracking growth in specific competencies, behavioural observations documenting leadership actions and impacts, and longitudinal tracking examining educational attainment, career progression, and civic engagement over time. The most comprehensive approaches combine multiple methods, recognising that leadership development manifests across cognitive, behavioural, and affective domains.
Adults in youth leadership contexts should serve as facilitators and coaches rather than directors or controllers. This involves creating safe environments for youth to practise leadership, providing guidance and mentorship without micromanaging, offering resources and connections that expand opportunities, modelling effective leadership through their own behaviour, asking questions that prompt reflection and deeper thinking, trusting youth to make decisions and learn from consequences, and addressing their own biases about young people's capabilities. The proper adult role empowers youth whilst providing appropriate support—a delicate balance requiring self-awareness and intentionality.
Schools can embed leadership development through project-based learning requiring teamwork and decision-making, student governance opportunities providing authentic leadership practice, service-learning connecting academic content to community needs, presentations and debates building communication confidence, peer mentoring and tutoring programmes, collaborative assignments requiring group coordination, and explicit instruction in social-emotional competencies. Leadership development needn't exist as a separate programme—it can permeate educational culture when educators recognise that analysis, communication, collaboration, and problem-solving constitute core academic skills, not supplementary add-ons.
Young leaders encounter unique challenges including ageism and biases that dismiss their capabilities due to youth, limited access to professional networks and social capital, balancing leadership responsibilities with academic and personal demands, navigating authority dynamics where adults retain ultimate control, financial barriers preventing programme participation, shorter tenures in roles leading to sustainability challenges, and limited professional experience that older stakeholders may question. Additionally, Generation Z leaders report particular discomfort with in-person and telephone communication, having developed professionally in predominantly remote environments. Recognising these challenges enables adults to provide targeted support rather than assuming youth face identical obstacles to adult leaders.
We stand at a peculiar historical juncture. The challenges confronting humanity—climate disruption, technological transformation, social fragmentation, economic inequality—demand leadership of exceptional quality, creativity, and courage. Yet confidence in traditional institutions and established leaders continues its decline.
Into this vacuum steps a generation of young people who've known nothing but disruption, who've developed amidst unprecedented global connectivity, who've witnessed both the promise and peril of technology, and who refuse to accept that "this is how we've always done it" constitutes adequate justification for perpetuating dysfunctional systems.
The question isn't whether youth will lead—they inevitably will, through simple demographic reality. The question is whether they'll have developed the capabilities, confidence, and character to lead effectively.
This places profound responsibility upon those of us currently in positions of influence. We must create genuine opportunities for youth to practise leadership now, not merely prepare for some distant future. We must examine our own biases and assumptions, recognising that effective youth leadership threatens nothing except our comfort with familiar patterns. We must invest resources ensuring that leadership development opportunities reach all young people, not merely the already privileged.
The evidence is unambiguous: youth leadership development works. It enhances educational outcomes, improves life satisfaction, increases civic engagement, develops transferable skills, and positively impacts future career trajectories. Young people who participate in leadership programmes demonstrate increased self-efficacy, stronger interpersonal capabilities, enhanced problem-solving skills, and greater motivation to contribute to their communities.
Perhaps most importantly, youth leadership development benefits not only individual participants but entire communities and organisations. Fresh perspectives, idealistic energy, technological facility, and willingness to question assumptions prove invaluable for institutions too often trapped in self-perpetuating orthodoxies.
The poet T.S. Eliot wrote that "Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." Youth leadership development, at its finest, creates safe spaces for young people to test their limits, experience both success and failure, and discover capabilities they didn't know they possessed.
Begin today. Create one new opportunity for a young person to assume genuine responsibility. Challenge one assumption about youth capabilities. Advocate for one programme expanding leadership access. Mentor one emerging leader. These small actions, multiplied across thousands of adults and millions of young people, constitute nothing less than investment in humanity's collective future.
The leaders we need won't emerge fully formed. They're being shaped right now—by the opportunities we create, the trust we extend, the skills we help them develop, and the examples we model. That shaping constitutes perhaps the most important work any of us will do.