The research project that I had the opportunity to participate in was an amazing experience. There were so many challenges and setbacks that we had to get past. These trials taught me a great deal about being a leader and pushing through the hard times. 

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I have never been part of a team that undertook such a feat. There were three of us to begin. It was all up to us to come up with the ideas, methods, and execution of our ideas. As the summer progressed I spent a lot of time with my team and we grew closer as we struggled to find something that worked. Many teams begin to fight and/or break apart, but our team was always united. We often had disagreements but we came up with a solution every time.

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The challenges we had to surpass were insurmountable at times. The biggest setback we had was when our $2,000 DNA Methylation kit was sent too early and was not received by the staff so they returned it without a refund. We were devastated and didn't know where to go. That was the main point of our project. But after many hours of discussion we decided to pivot directions and take a slightly different approach. The other challenges that we faced included a batch of flies that completely died, this set us back weeks. But through it all we never gave up hope that we could do it. 

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The challenges that we faced cultivated in me specific leadership characteristics. Innovation is a big one. As I mentioned, it seemed like there was setback after setback for the team. But as we hurdled over these challenges we had to humble ourselves and be willing to find another way to reach our goal. Some of my best ideas had to be trashed because it just wasn't going to work. I learned that a leader must be humble. He or she must be willing to analyze what they did wrong and be okay with changing to a direction that might not be their choice.

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I learned to persevere when it gets tough. There never was certainty that we were on the right path or that we would even finish this project. Sometimes the lighthouse in the darkness is very dim. But I learned that if you take your direction and keep moving forward that the light will become clearer and the goal will be close.