Dreaming Bigger: Jewish Leadership for Teens

Teens are changing the world.

Teen leaders are dreaming, planning, and raising the social consciousness of those around them. They are questioning the status quo, using technology to do good, and pushing others to do so as well. They know that they don't have to wait for adults to make the world a kinder, better place.

 Do you look at problems others ignore?

• Do you find joy in helping others?
• Do you want to do something big in the world?

There are many ways to be a leader, and we each have unique strengths. Jewish values such as tzedakah (charity, or justice), and tikun olam (healing the world) can help show us the way. And Jewish heroes throughout history and in the present offer us leadership lessons and personal examples.

While we may never finish the work, we can't wait another minute to begin. Now's the time to find your voice and your cause, to think about your influence, mission, courage, and purpose, and to bring others along with you to do good in the world.

You are leading. You are dreaming bigger.

Dreaming Bigger is a call to action.

It's a workbook, an inspiration, a guide for teens who want to make a difference in the world, supported by their Jewish heritage. It can be read alone or with a friend, in a group, or in a class.

Topics include managing stress, making better decisions, deepening empathy, using technology, speaking in public, ending bullying, fighting antisemitism, advocating for racial justice, and more.

Packed with leadership advice for teens from teens and from experts around the world, insights from Jewish texts, thought exercises, and discussion prompts, it invites readers to grapple with the classic call to action from the sage Hillel:

     If I am not for myself, who will be for me?

     And if I am only for myself, what am I?

     And if not now, when?

Table of Contents

Introduction: Dreaming Bigger

How to Use This Book

PART I  LEADING YOURSELF: "If I Am Not for Myself, Who Will Be for Me?"

1. Defining Leadership

2. Who Am I?

3. Saying No and Saying Yes

4. Why Me? Quieting Your Inner Critic

5. Growing and Changing as a Leader

6. Leading and Role Modeling

7. Imagining Your Future

8. Your Moral Compas

9. Leadership By Design: Writing Your Personal Vision Statement 

10. Leadership and Time Management

11. Leading as an Iintrovert, Extrovert, or Ambivert

12. What is Stress?

13. Grit and Resilience

14. Making Better Decisions

15. Limiting Choices

PART II  LEADING OTHERS: "If I Am Only for Myself, What Am I?"

16. Leading the Flock

17. The Power of Empathy

18. The Lost Art of Listening

19. Leading Outside Your Comfort Zone

20. Stop the Trash Talk

21. Say What You Mean, Mean What You Say

22. Write It Better

23. Control Your Need to Control

24. Thanks for the Feedback

25. Working with Adults

26. Creating Sacred Communities

27. How to Have That Difficult Conversation

28. Fundraising and Friend-Raising

29. Eight Fundraising Hacks

30. An Attitude of Gratitude

PART III  LEADING IN COMMUNITY: "If Not Now, When?"

31. It's Now

32. Changing the World through Tikkun Olam

33. Stepping Up and Standing Up

34. Prioritizing Leadership

35. Turning Problems into Possibilities

36. Embrace Your Mistakes

37. Innovation Nation

38. The Tech Trap

39. End Bullying

40. Taking the Lead Against Antisemitism

41. Your I.Q. (Israel Quotient)

42. Judaism and Racial Justice

43. Inclusion and Diversity

44. Getting Inspired and Staying Inspired

45. Telling Your Jewish Leadership Story

Closing Thoughts

Appendix: Ten Leadership Superpowers

Bibliography

Jewish Youth Pledge