Athlete Leadership Program
65 Overlea Blvd M4H 1P1 Toronto, ON, Canada

Leaders actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more. Leaders inspire others when they don’t believe in themselves to learn something new. A leader helps others to become more then they thought they couldn’t by themselves. When were you a leader and inspired another person to learn more?

A leaders Attitude is caught by his or her followers more quickly than his or her actions. A leader who has a positive attitude will have more followers and who will want to follow them. A leader actions are important but not as important as their attitude first. When were you a leader and had a positive attitude and your followers noticed?

As Athletes Leaders continue doing what we do best, it can feel awkward representing Special Olympics through socially distanced methods like Zoom and FaceTime. As we get into the spirit of virtual calls for now, here is some advice on how to appear more friendly, lively and interesting when talking to people in a formal video call, check out this video by body language expert Mark Bowden. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFyhquVlMmg

Leaders don’t see failure they see unfinished success. Leaders see someone needing extra help with a task and help that person by lending a hand. A leader sees unfinished success and try to figure out ways to make it sucessful. When were you a leader and saw unfinished success? How did you help that person make it a success?

Leadership is about having people look at you and gain confidence and seeing how you react. Leadership is about being confident in yourself when you are a leader. When people see how you react as a leader they learn and grow to improve their own confidence. When were you as a leader and people were looking at you to gain confidence and seeing how you would react?

We have a great story for you for a #FeelGoodFriday moment. It's about Special Olympics Ontario athlete, Michael Jacques. Reading and writing can often be challenging for people with Intellectual Disabilities, but that didn’t stop Special Olympics Ontario athlete Michael Jacques from publishing his own book, Here’s my Book. Wanting to spread the word on Inclusion, Jacques used his own difficulty with reading to create something that is easy to understand and fun to read. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3B2upYt9m5g

As he ran across Canada to raise money for cancer research, Terry Fox reminded us that being a role model is not about fame, but it's about inspiring others to make a difference. We want to know about someone in your life who is a role model for you. Is a parent, a friend, a coworker? Let us know in the comments below who you look to as a role model in your life.

**South West District Leadership Workshop(s) Notice**- 12 Spots Available for each workshop SOO is committed to offering as many opportunities for our athletes as we can during these times. One of our key education and leadership training pieces is ALPs (Athlete Leadership Program). As you all know, these are usually offered in person in various locations throughout the Province. We are excited to be offering online workshops that offer a great opportunity to catch up with ot...her athletes and learn something new! Next week, there will be 2 courses you can attend to develop your leadership skills! Sign up below: Social Media Training Thursday, December 3, 2020 6:30-8:00pm Photo and Video Training Saturday, December 5, 2020 6:30-8:00pm If you are interested in attending, please click here to register: https://us02web.zoom.us//tZEude6vrjkvGNZfZxgZDvSyqrc9e_o6E Special Olympics Ontario Brantford Chatham-Kent Ontario Special Olympics Windsor Special Olympics Special Olympics Ontario London Special Olympics Sarnia Special Olympics Simcoe Special Olympics St. Thomas Special Olympics Ontario-Tillsonburg Woodstock Special Olympics

Leaders inspire others to dream more and learn more and become more. Leaders take the time to listen to others dreams. Leaders learn ways to help others achieve their dreams that others thought couldn’t happen. When did your actions inspire others to dream more, learn or do more in their life?

We have a #FeelGoodFriday post to share with you. Cambridge athletes Amber and Barry along with other members of the Cambridge community got together to do a "drive/walk by" Christmas parade for a 5-year old battling cancer. Barry dressed at the Stay Puff Man and Amber dressed as Skye from Paw Patrol. Way to go Amber and Barry on bringing bright spirits to a young man!

**South Central District Leadership Workshop(s) Notice**- 8 Spots Available SOO is committed to offering as many opportunities for our athletes as we can during these times. One of our key education and leadership training pieces is ALPs (Athlete Leadership Program). As you all know, these are usually offered in person in various locations throughout the Province. We are excited to be offering online workshops that offer a great opportunity to catch up with other athletes an...d learn something new! Next week, there will be 2 courses you can attend to develop your leadership skills! Sign up below: Social Media Training Thursday, November 26, 2020 6:30-8:00pm Photo and Video Training Saturday, November 28, 2020 6:30-8:00pm If you are interested in attending, please click here to register: https://us02web.zoom.us//tZEldO2qpj8uHdSIpgUFyCTyiaZfrSwY9 Special Olympics Burlington Special Olympics Ontario Cambridge Fergus Falls Special Olympics Junior Team Special Olympics Ontario Fort Erie Georgetown Special Olympics Special Olympics Guelph Special Olympics Hamilton Special Olympics Ontario - Kitchener Waterloo Milton Special Olympics Special Olympics - Niagara on the Lake Special Olympics Ontario - North Wellington Special Olympics Oakville Special Olympics Port Colborne St. Catharines Special Olympics Special Olympics Welland Pelham Ontario

Do you know someone who you think has the traits of a good Athlete Leader? If you do, ask them if they would want to take an Athlete Leadership course. We have 3 courses active right now and you can sign up for. To get more info on an upcoming workshop, stay tuned here or email our Athlete Leadership Coordinator, Ryan at [email protected]