Leadership
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Simple Ways to Balance Work, Life and DECA
Balance does not mean doing everything perfectly. It means finding a routine that helps you stay organized, communicate clearly and take care of yourself.

DECA Seniors: The Home Stretch of High School
As college decisions hit inboxes, the temptation to take a step away from academics and extracurriculars is real. But for a DECA senior, these few weeks can serve as a launchpad for your future success.

Women’s History Month: Empowering Future Female Leaders Through DECA
Through exposure to Career and Technical Education, the next generation of impactful women is equipped with the knowledge, experience and confidence to make a positive impact in our community.

You’re an Association Officer! Now What?
Whether you’re stepping into your role as an association officer right away or preparing to begin soon, you are about to embark on a journey that will shape your leadership skills, how you see yourself and your potential.

Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Why Women in Business Must Keep Going
Through organizations like DECA, young women gain the confidence, skills and resilience needed to pursue leadership and continue the work of creating more equal opportunities in business.

5 Tips to Help You Stay Productive
Balancing schoolwork, DECA and other extracurriculars is challenging. There are so many distractions around you that prevent you from focusing on your work. Here are 5 tips that will help you stay on track!

From Vision to Verity: How to Stay Consistent with Your 2026 Goals
As we begin February, many New Year’s Resolutions fade into wistful aspirations instead of life-changing habits. Here are some of my favorite tips for keeping consistent when the New Year’s sparkle wears off.

5 Things I Learned as an Association Officer Outside the Classroom
Beyond the metrics and milestones, my greatest takeaways have been the lessons I learned along the way. Here are the five things that I definitely learned in DECA outside of the classroom.

Resolutions to Results: How to Set and Achieve Goals
Resolutions are long-term goals that require planning, habits, positive and realistic thinking. In this article, you will learn how to set and achieve your personal goals to become your ideal version of yourself SMARTly!

Soft Skills: The Skills that Set You Apart
Every successful DECA member has one thing in common: strong soft skills. You may not see them listed on a role-play feedback sheet, but they are what truly separate good competitors from great ones.

New Year, New Me: Crafting Your 2026 Personal Brand
The start of the new year is a great opportunity to shape your personal brand. Here are a few tips on how to start the year off on a strong note.

Where Commitment Meets Leadership: Inside Association Office
Association officers play a huge role in shaping the DECA experience for members by supporting initiatives and representing DECA with professionalism and heart. Let’s take a closer look at what being in association office is really like!

Video Call Tips and Tricks
Practically overnight, video calls have become a new societal norm. This guide will provide you with a few tips and useful tricks to help improve your online learning or telecommuting experience.

A Quick Guide to Understanding Servant Leadership
The concept of leadership has been around since the days of Aristotle and Plato and has evolved countless times throughout the centuries. But in 1970, a new theory emerged. Developed by Robert Greenleaf, servant leadership is the idea that empowered leaders serve their followers and to enable them to live and work to their full potential.

The Ethics of Leadership
Ethical leaders exist in all walks of life. They are the individuals who step forward when crises occur, come to the rescue of others and generally do what's right—no matter what. Anyone can talk the talk, but can they walk the walk? In today's high-visibility, social world, more people are taking note of leaders’ behavior and holding them accountable.

DECA Direct Magazine: Next Level Leadership
A new school year brings new chances to elevate your leadership to the next level. Discover fresh ideas to enhance your chapter and become a leader worth following in your school, community and beyond.

The Next Level is Inclusion
It has never been more important for emerging leaders to be characterized by teamwork, innovation, competency and integrity. Fortunately, those are the valued characteristics of DECA’s student leaders. What if this moment needs you and the unique values that drive your leadership?

Influence with Informal Leadership
While you may not have an official leadership title, you still have the ability to help take your chapter to the #NextLevel with your informal leadership influence. Read on to learn more about informal leadership and how you can use it to make this year a success for you and your chapter.

Watch Now: Leadership Lessons from Geekdom
Learn about the quirky subcultures and communities born out of the fixation of various interests, uncover the powerful success behaviors geeks exhibit, and find practical guidance as an emerging leader and how to tap into strengths in your teams. Watch now.

7 Ways to Perfect your Instagram
Social media is a huge part of forming a brand. Whether it be a product or personal branding, an effective social media account can draw much-needed attention to what you promote. Follow the tips below to create an amazing Instagram page!

Giving and Receiving Feedback
Perhaps one of the hardest professional skills to develop is giving and receiving feedback. However, once you begin to give and receive feedback in a positive matter, you will become a leader worth following.

5 Brainstorming Techniques to Produce Your Next Winning Idea
Whether you’re writing a paper, creating a project or preparing for a role-play, generating ideas is often the toughest part. Read below for different techniques you can adapt to come up with your next great idea!

3 Books to Boost Your Leadership
Many correlations have been drawn between those who read and those who lead. Here are three of my favorite leadership-oriented books to help occupy your time.

Creating Goals: Strategies to Get Where You Want to Go
Let’s talk goals! Often times, at the start of a project or the start of a new year, you may create goals for yourself. As time passes, you realize you have not completed hardly any of the goals you set out to accomplish. It’s safe to say we have all probably been here.


