You may already have the makings of a leader and not know it.

Did you share your pens with a classmate who lost theirs? Did you give your seat on the bus to an elderly person? With your joke, did you bring a smile to your little sister’s face? Chances are, you already have some very important qualities of a leader: thinking about others’ needs and helping them.

A leader is not just someone who stands up at a podium and makes speeches or creates the rules that others must follow. A leader is anyone who recognizes others’ needs, plans for how to help them, and actually help them.

You can increase your leadership skills by considering a person or a group of people in longer, more consistent terms, such as on a weekly basis. Figure out what else they may need. You can plan to help them in additional, different ways. For example, if your little sister is lonely, you can also find a game to play with her, or teach her how to make friends. If you are concerned about people in your community who are hungry, you can volunteer, for example, at a food bank.