What Is It Like Being A SQUAD LEADER For World Race GAP YEAR?

So you clicked on this blog because you want to know what it’s like or maybe even what it takes to be a World Race Gap Year Squad Leader??

…Well, you’ve come to the right place. Shall we begin or do you need to make a pot of coffee first? Maybe some tea? Yeah, that’s right, I want you on your A-game with this blog so do some stretches, wake up that brain, whatever you need cuz we’re diving in! 

My Story

My name is Connor and I’ve been traveling around with the World Race since October 2018. I’ve experienced a lot, but I am still hungry for more. Maybe that’s why I signed up to Squad Lead a Gap Year trip lol. Missions has also been my passion since I was about 13 years old so, I guess the hunger has been around for a while. It was during the 9th month of my personal World Race experience, that I heard God say, “I want you to follow Jenny (one of my teammates at the time) into Gap Year Squad Leading.” 

“Oh.” – I said. 

World Race Gap Year is a little different than the World Race 11n11 trip. For one, it is 9 months long. For another, its participants are between the ages of 18-21 – most of whom have never traveled internationally let alone traveling to 3 different countries over the course of 9 months! The crazy part for me, at the time, meant being home for 12 days after being out of the country for 11 months and then turning around to do it all over again. Yikes! At first, Squad Leading for Gap Year seemed like a cool idea, but really wasn’t a serious consideration of mine until God said those words. Meaning, my decision to become a Squad Leader began with trusting the Lord’s voice in my life in a way that was completely new for me. 

Initially, I had insecurities about being a Squad Leader. See, I got to be a Team Leader for the 1st 4 months of my 11n11 World Race and I didn’t do as good a job as I would have liked. It’s not that I failed, but I made many mistakes which created some hesitancy as I interviewed for the Gap Year Squad Leader position. I have to be honest though and tell you I did assume leading 18-21-year-olds would be easier because of the age gap haha. I was wrong.

The Cons 

Fast forward through the interview process, getting accepted, meeting my fellow leaders via Google hangouts, meeting my Squad (W Squad) of 47 young men and women, our first 3 months in Guatemala, and our 1st month in Ethiopia. With 4 months of Squad Leading experience, I know I can offer some valuable insights which can help anyone out there wondering what this experience is like. 

What’s Been Hard? 

The whole thing. This entire experience so far has pushed me in ways I didn’t anticipate. I thought I had become an expert at travel yet, the night before we flew to Guatemala I broke down in tears as the realization of being away again from those I love most in this world finally set in. Getting adjusted to life in Guatemala was easy enough, but the learning curve of all the Squad Leader responsibilities slapped me in the face like an algebra problem where you’re sitting there saying, “I literally have no clue how to do this.” Doubt immediately set in and insecurities welled up as I faked it until I made it. Sound familiar to anyone lol?

Thankfully, I have the BEST support system I could have hoped for! God has given me two other Squad Leaders (Kyndal & Brittany), we have an incredible Squad Mentor (Madie) along with two fantastic Coaches (Matt & Kendra). Our Squad was also equipped for the 1st 3 months with 5 Alumni Team Leaders who helped us out a ton. On top of that, the Adventures In Missions base in Guatemala has a Base Staff who also help shoulder the load of leading/discipling 40+ 18-21-year-old missionaries. 

Though the support is great, I still found myself missing my family and friends from back home and from my previous Squad with an intensity I had never known before. Traveling around the world doing mission work is what I love to do, however, I was not in the honeymoon phase anymore. To be honest, I lost the excitement being in a different country usually brings, and with that, I had to fight to not blame my new Squad for my unhappiness. 

When you’re tired, missing home, and longing to be with people you actually know, the day to day questions, issues, and situations that arise on Gap Year begin to wear you down… Big Time! I found myself trying to escape instead of engaging the way I thought a Squad Leader should. I began scrolling through my photos hoping time would speed up so that I could get back to the people I have known for more than a few weeks.

Thankfully, I came out of what we call the B Zone (the season where the honeymoon ends and hard reality sets in) and began facing other challenges that have been shaping me into the man I am today. Mentoring and discipling 40+ men and women has required so much patience, time, hard conversations, intentional listening, heartache, and prayer. The cost is significant. I am learning what it looks like to be a parent in some aspects. Not in every aspect obviously, but one of my realities in this season is sacrificing my personal freedom to develop the young men and women around me. I have given up a lot in order to see them grow. To be honest, there are times when it just plain sucks. 

Would I trade it though? …No way!

The Pros

You’ve heard it said that where there is high cost or risk, there is often high reward. This holds true (in my opinion) for Gap Year Squad Leading. When I accepted this position, I didn’t know how hard it would be, but I did know I would grow more than I ever have previously in my life. The truth I have discovered is that the most genuine and powerful growth comes through hardship. Therefore, I am so thankful for everything hard because it has produced so much I will be able to take with me into the rest of my life. 

I am more confident than I have ever been before, and that includes when I was bench pressing 350 (tmi? yeah probably haha). Confident not in myself, but in the Lord and in who He has created me to be. Stepping into true identity (the person God sees in us as well as the person God calls us) has been a big theme in our Squad and this idea has transformed me as much as anyone. I have learned the valuable qualities I bring to a team dynamic. I have grown a ton in weak areas, and I have developed characteristics I never thought I would have time to develop. In the past 4 months, I have had so many opportunities to exercise spiritual gifts, try my strengths, see my words challenge and build individuals, make mistakes, and include Holy Spirit in day to day decisions. I have developed more patience,boundaries, confidence in confrontation, decision making, and dealing with stressful situations. 

One of the HUGE lessons I’ve learned is that God LOVES His people! I know this because God has given me so much grace, strength, energy, love, and wisdom in order to best love and serve His people. Before I ever even met W Squad I loved them with a deep love. There’ s no explanation for this other than God’s love flowing through me. In fact, I believe that very fact is the amazing aspect of leadership. A leader gets caught in the middle of the force of God’s love and favor directed towards His people. I can’t tell you the number of times when I “felt” weak, unworthy, or unseen where God gave me EXACTLY what I needed to excel throughout my day. Why? Because He takes care of those who serve His beloved. 

A few days ago I left Ethiopia to attend my brother’s wedding. I was nervous about returning to the U.S. because of the challenges and old habits that creep back when immersed in a culture of comfort, entitlement, and comparison. What I found though, is that I am a new man… through and through! World Race 11n11 began my process of transformation, but Squad Leading has solidified it. The man God calls me is the man I am. God has 100% used this season of Gap Year Squad Leading to take me from cacoon to flying in full freedom. 

Final Thoughts

I cannot imagine trying to Squad Lead apart from God’s leading. There are too many factors that could go wrong. I am SO blessed in that W Squad is made up of amazing men and women who love people, give their best, and choose into the things God puts on their hearts. I am blessed because I work well with, and am friends with my fellow leaders. I am blessed because Gap W needs my influence on their lives, and I need theirs on mine. If not for God’s specific leading, I’d be toast haha! 

Like I said before, it’s not easy. We still have 4 and a half months on the field and trust me, I haven’t mastered all the lessons God intends to teach me. But I know I am more prepared than ever before to continue going further up and further into the intense lessons/experiences God has for me. 

If you think Gap Year Squad Leading is in your future, please do not step into it lightly. The young men and women deserve a leader who is ALL IN. They don’t need a perfect leader, they don’t need someone who has their crap together, nor do they need someone who is there to build their resume. They need someone Spirit-led, someone honest, and someone hungry for growth in their own life. The cost is high, but then so is the reward. 

I hope you found these insights helpful and beneficial. Stay tethered to Holy Spirit and your path forward will be clear. Godspeed, my friend. 

The End