As an avid tennis player and a long-standing member of the Belfast tennis club, I was privileged to be elected to the role of captain of 12 and under tennis. A girl and boy were both selected for every age group to lead and be a role model for the other junior tennis players. We attended a monthly meeting to present our ideas and make the club a better place for members.

This role challenged me in many ways. I had to quickly develop my communication and mediation skills as there was significant friction and a clear divide between the senior and junior members of the club. I convinced the other junior committee members that we needed to address this problem and find a resolution rather than letting resentment fester. I explained to the other committee members that I felt we need to build relationships and we should think about what we had in common with the older members. After many ideas and suggestions had been considered the solution was actually very simple; we all loved tennis! We arranged a seniors versus juniors tennis day to allow the two groups to mingle and bond over their favourite activity. The event was a tremendous success and diffused much of the tension that had been building between the two groups.

I used persuasive skills to convince my peers of the need to address a problematic situation and then found an innovative solution that brought two disparate groups together. This experience taught me a great deal about resolving difficult relationship problems through effective communication, mediation and engagement. I was also able to use my creative and organisational skills to think of an idea and then put it into practice.