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Say your answer out loud first, then jot down the key points you made. Writing it helps you spot gaps — and it's what the AI feedback reads.
0 words
Understanding that leadership is about enabling others, not being in charge — and awareness that all doctors lead, formally or informally.
A structure to build your own answer on — not a script.
STAR example
Choose an example where you enabled others, made a decision or took responsibility.
Your leadership style
What you did to involve, motivate or support people.
Why leadership matters for doctors
Leading ward rounds, handing over, teaching, raising concerns, improving services; leadership at every level.
Followership
Good leaders also follow — respecting others' expertise.
A strong but not perfect answer. Read the notes to see why it works — then make your own version with your experiences.
As captain of my school's netball team, I noticed our younger players rarely spoke in team talks and seemed to lose confidence after mistakes. After a heavy defeat, rather than going over what went wrong1, I asked each player to name one thing that went well and one thing they wanted to work on, and I paired the younger players with older ones for our warm-ups.
Over the season, the younger players started contributing ideas, and one suggested a defensive change that won us two close matches. I learned that leadership is often less about giving instructions and more about creating a space where people feel able to speak up2.
I think that matters in medicine because every doctor leads3 — a foundation doctor coordinates care on a night shift, a registrar runs a resuscitation, a consultant sets the culture of a team. The Mid Staffordshire inquiry showed how dangerous it is when staff don't feel able to raise concerns, and much of that comes down to how leaders behave.
But I also think good leaders know when to follow4. On a ward, a nurse or pharmacist may know far more about a specific issue, and the best leaders I saw on placement asked for their views before deciding.
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