Life-Ready SocietyEst. 2026
Camps · Leadership Camp · Day 5 of 5 · 3 hours

Day 5: Leading a Real Project

Leadership becomes real when you take what you have learned and make something better for other people.

Today's goal

By the end of today you have planned and pitched a real school or community initiative, received feedback and finished your personal leadership manifesto.

Agenda

Finishes at 12:00.
  1. Warm-upFour days in four words10 min
  2. LearnDesign thinking for real projects15 min
  3. CapstoneCapstone part 1: empathise and define30 min
  4. CapstoneCapstone part 2: the action plan30 min
  5. BreakBreak15 min
  6. CapstoneCapstone part 3: prepare the pitch25 min
  7. CapstoneCapstone part 4: pitch and feedback25 min
  8. ActivityMy leadership manifesto15 min
  9. ReflectClosing circle10 min
  10. QuizDay 5 quiz5 min

The session

Warm-up · 10 min

Four days in four words

Warm up by gathering what you have learned so far.

  1. Write one word for each of Days 1 to 4 that captures what you learned.
  2. Choose the one word that matters most to you and say why in one sentence.

Solo

Write your four words and your sentence at the top of today's page.

Group

Quick round: each person says their most important word. The facilitator writes them up as a word cloud.

Learn · 15 min

Design thinking for real projects

Design thinking, a human-centred approach popularised by Stanford's d.school, helps you solve the right problem for real people rather than the problem you assume exists.

  1. Empathise: understand people's experience by observing and talking with them.
  2. Define: turn what you learned into a clear point of view: who needs what, and why.
  3. Ideate: generate many ideas, including ones beyond the obvious.
  4. Prototype: make a quick, cheap version people can try.
  5. Test: try it, gather feedback and improve.
  6. Start small: a four-week trial that works is better than a grand plan that never starts. Remember the marshmallow: test early.

Related lessons: Thinking like an entrepreneur: spotting problems worth solving, Testing an idea cheaply: customer conversations and simple experiments, Giving back and building community

Capstone · 30 min

Capstone part 1: empathise and define

Choose a real problem and hear from the people who live with it.

  1. List three problems you have noticed at school, in your club or in your community (for example: new students feel lonely, food is wasted at lunch, younger students need maths help).
  2. Choose one that you care about and could realistically improve in eight weeks.
  3. Talk to at least two people affected (a classmate, a younger student, a teacher, a neighbour). Ask: What is hard about this? What have you tried? What would make the biggest difference?
  4. Write a problem statement: '[Group of people] need a way to [need] because [insight from your conversations].'
  5. List who must give permission (head of year, parents, charity coordinator, building management).

Solo

Make two short calls or messages to people affected, with a parent's knowledge if they are outside your family or school. Write down their words.

Group

Teams of three to five choose one problem. Interview members of other teams and the supervising adults as stand-in users, then write the problem statement together.

Related lessons: Thinking like an entrepreneur: spotting problems worth solving, Asking for help and favours

Capstone · 30 min

Capstone part 2: the action plan

Turn your idea into a one-page plan a decision-maker could say yes to.

  1. Goal: what will be different in eight weeks, and how will you measure it (number of students helped, kilograms of food saved, sessions run)?
  2. Roles: who does what, using your Belbin map. Name a supervising adult.
  3. Timeline: weekly milestones, with a first action this week.
  4. Budget: list every cost, even small ones, and where the money or donations will come from. Keep it honest and simple.
  5. Risks: three things that could go wrong, and what you will do about each. Include safety, privacy (no photos of people without consent) and fairness.
  6. Ethics check: run the plan through two Markkula lenses. Who might be left out?
  7. Where relevant, check official routes, for example registered charities and recognised volunteering platforms in the UAE.

Solo

Fill in a one-page plan on A3 paper or a document. Ask a parent to read it as if they were the decision-maker and give you one question.

Group

Each team writes its plan on A3. Every member must own at least one line of the plan.

Related lessons: The numbers on one page: price, costs, margin and break-even, Volunteering and service in the UAE, Time management, reliability and managing your manager

Break · 15 min

Break

Rest before the pitch. Drink water and walk around.

  1. Step away from the plan for a few minutes.
  2. Have a snack.
Capstone · 25 min

Capstone part 3: prepare the pitch

Use 'Inspire a Shared Vision' from Day 1: help your audience see a better future and want to be part of it.

  1. Hook (20 seconds): one real story or quote from your interviews.
  2. Problem (30 seconds): your problem statement and why it matters.
  3. Solution (60 seconds): what you will do, who is involved and how it will run.
  4. Proof and plan (40 seconds): timeline, budget, risks handled, how you will measure success.
  5. Ask (30 seconds): exactly what you need from the listener, such as a room, a signature or a date.
  6. Rehearse twice with a timer. Cut anything that does not help.

Solo

Rehearse in front of a mirror, then record a final version on your phone.

Group

Every team member speaks at least once. Rehearse twice in a quiet corner, with one member timing.

Related lessons: Public speaking and presentations

Capstone · 25 min

Capstone part 4: pitch and feedback

Present to a real audience and listen to feedback like a leader.

  1. Deliver your three-minute pitch.
  2. Listeners score it against the capstone rubric (each criterion: not yet, getting there, strong).
  3. Each listener gives one SBI comment on something that worked and one on something to improve.
  4. The presenting team paraphrases the feedback and asks one question. No defending.
  5. Write down the one change you will make before pitching to the real decision-maker.

Solo

Pitch to at least one adult, live or by sending your recording, and ask them to score you with the rubric. Then score your own recording honestly against it.

Group

Each team pitches to a panel of the supervising adult and one student from every other team. Keep strict time: three minutes to pitch, three for feedback. Invite a real decision-maker if possible.

Related lessons: Feedback: giving and receiving it well, Public speaking and presentations

Activity · 15 min

My leadership manifesto

Bring together your values, strengths, and the lines you drafted each day into one page you can keep and live by.

  1. Title it: 'How I Lead'.
  2. Write your top five values and one sentence on what each looks like in action.
  3. Add your top strengths and how you will use them for others.
  4. Add the lines you drafted on Days 1 to 4, edited so they sound like you.
  5. Finish with one commitment for the next 30 days and the date you will review it.
  6. Keep it to one page. Sign and date it.

Solo

Write it neatly or type it up, and put it somewhere you will see it. Share it with one person you trust.

Group

Write individually. Volunteers read one line aloud. Students keep their manifestos; nothing is collected or marked.

Related lessons: Meaningful goals and a personal mission statement, What values are and finding your own

Reflect · 10 min

Closing circle

Teams need a proper ending: MIT HR suggests acknowledging the transition, sharing lessons learned and celebrating contributions.

  1. Name one thing you are proud of from this camp.
  2. Thank one person for something specific they did, using SBI praise.
  3. Say your first capstone action and its date out loud.

Solo

Write a short thank-you message to someone who helped you during the camp, and send it.

Group

Stand or sit in a circle. Everyone speaks once. The facilitator closes by recognising each team's contribution.

Go to your journal

Quiz · 5 min

Day 5 quiz

Five final questions.

  1. Answer on your own.
  2. Read every explanation, then celebrate finishing the camp.

Go to the day quiz

Your journal

Private, saved on this device only. Your answers stay in this browser. They are never sent to us, even when you are signed in.

Leadership Camp · Day 5: Leading a Real Project · My journal

Day 5 quiz

Score 80% or more to complete Day 5.

1. Which stage of design thinking comes first?

2. In design thinking, what is the purpose of the Define stage?

3. Which of the Five Practices fits a pitch that paints a picture of a better future?

4. What does MIT HR advise leaders to do when a team comes to an end?

5. When receiving feedback on your pitch, what is the best first response?

Overnight challenge

Take the first action on your capstone plan within seven days, and put your manifesto review date in your calendar.

Sources

  1. Stanford University ME 113: A Design Thinking Process
  2. The Leadership Challenge: The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership
  3. MIT Human Resources: Using the Stages of Team Development
  4. Program on Negotiation, Harvard Law School: Negotiation Skills for Win-Win Negotiations (active listening)
  5. Center for Creative Leadership: Use SBI (Situation-Behavior-Impact) to Inquire About Intent
  6. Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University: A Framework for Ethical Decision Making
← Day 4: Decisions, Problem-Solving and Ethics Under PressureBack to the camp overview