335 Questions to Ask a Youth Leader

Interested in finding out what a youth leader really does? You’re in the right place. Knowing the right questions to ask can help you get to the heart of how they inspire young people, handle tough situations, and what they’re dreaming up for the future. 

Whether you’re a teen, a parent, or just someone who cares about the community, these questions are your golden ticket. Let’s dive in!

Questions About Youth Empowerment

1. How do you encourage young people to speak up and share their thoughts?
2. What programs or activities do you have to help build confidence?
3. How do you approach teaching leadership skills to the youth?
4. What’s your strategy for helping young people discover their strengths?
5. How do you address topics like mental health and well-being?
6. How do you include youth voices in decision-making processes?
7. What role does education play in your empowerment initiatives?
8. Do you focus on any social issues like inequality, racism, or gender issues?
9. How do you help young people become more socially responsible?
10. Do you have mentorship programs? If so, how do they work?
11. How do you help youth prepare for future careers or education?
12. What financial literacy programs do you offer, if any?
13. How do you encourage healthy relationships among the youth?
14. What’s your strategy for helping kids find their passion or interests?
15. How do you create a safe space for all youth, including LGBTQ+ individuals?
16. Do you have any activities that focus on building emotional intelligence?
17. How do you incorporate life skills training into your programs?
18. How do you motivate youth to get involved in their communities?
19. What arts and creative programs do you offer?
20. How do you educate young people about their rights?
21. How do you measure the impact of your empowerment efforts?
22. How do you adapt your empowerment strategies for different age groups?
23. What do you think is the most effective way to empower youth?
24. Do you have any programs that help youth deal with stress and anxiety?
25. How do you promote healthy living and physical activity?
26. How do you engage parents in the empowerment process?
27. Do you partner with any organizations for youth empowerment?
28. What books or resources do you recommend for self-empowerment?
29. How do you empower youth to deal with failure and setbacks?
30. What role do inspirational speakers or guest experts play in your programs?
31. Do you have any programs that empower young girls or other groups?
32. How do you teach young people to deal with peer pressure?
33. How do you promote civic engagement among the youth?
34. Do you involve young people in project planning and execution?
35. How do you help young people find positive role models?
36. Do you provide any training on digital literacy or online safety?
37. What’s your strategy for teaching young people about environmental responsibility?
38. How do you ensure that empowerment programs are fun and engaging?
39. Do you have a feedback mechanism where youth can evaluate the program?
40. How do you address different learning abilities in your empowerment programs?
41. How do you help young people transition to adulthood?
42. Do you focus on global issues, like poverty or human rights, in your empowerment activities?
43. What activities do you have to help young people understand the value of money and budgeting?
44. Do you have programs aimed at academic skills, like tutoring or study strategies?
45. How do you engage with alumni to contribute back to current programs or participants?

Questions About Team Building

1. How do you get to know new team members?
2. What team-building activities do you like the most?
3. How do you handle a team member who doesn’t participate much?
4. Do you have any rituals or traditions for your team?
5. How do you create a sense of community?
6. How do you deal with cliques within the team?
7. How do you promote teamwork?
8. How do you handle disagreements among team members?
9. What do you think makes a team strong?
10. How do you make sure everyone gets along?
11. How often do you have team meetings?
12. How do you keep the team engaged and focused?
13. What do you do when a team member is not performing well?
14. How do you acknowledge individual talents within the team?
15. How do you set team goals?
16. What role does fun play in your team-building?
17. How do you handle different skill levels within the team?
18. How do you manage a diverse team?
19. What’s your favorite team success story?
20. How do you encourage shy or quiet team members?
21. How do you handle a team member who tries to dominate the group?
22. Do you encourage competition within the team?
23. How do you help team members who are going through tough times?
24. What’s your strategy for assigning tasks?
25. How do you make sure everyone has a voice in the team?
26. Do you have any team rules or guidelines?
27. How do you keep track of everyone’s progress?
28. How do you build trust within the team?
29. What’s the most challenging part of team-building?
30. How do you maintain a positive team culture?
31. How do you help team members set their own individual goals?
32. What do you do to ensure clear communication within the team?
33. Do you use any tech tools to help with team-building or management?
34. What’s your go-to icebreaker activity for new teams?
35. How do you deal with different age groups in your team?
36. What do you think is the biggest challenge in keeping a team united?
37. What qualities do you look for when adding new members to the team?
38. How do you introduce change to the team without causing disruption?
39. How do you keep track of the team’s overall well-being?
40. How do you foster a culture of continuous improvement within the team?

Questions About Challenges

1. What’s the hardest part about working with young people?
2. How do you deal with behavioral issues?
3. What challenges have you faced with team dynamics?
4. Have you ever had a project or initiative fail? How did you handle it?
5. What difficulties have you faced in securing funding or resources?
6. How do you tackle the challenge of keeping everyone engaged?
7. What obstacles have you encountered in dealing with parents or guardians?
8. How do you manage expectations from different stakeholders like schools or community leaders?
9. Have you faced any challenges in addressing sensitive or controversial topics?
10. How do you handle the varying learning styles and needs of your group?
11. What challenges do you face in recruiting and retaining volunteers?
12. How do you deal with internal conflicts within your leadership team?
13. How do you address the digital divide among the youth you work with?
14. What are the challenges of remote or hybrid program delivery?
15. How do you navigate political or religious differences within your group?
16. Have you faced any legal challenges or issues?
17. What’s the most unexpected challenge you’ve encountered?
18. How do you address language and cultural barriers?
19. Have you faced any criticism or backlash? How did you deal with it?
20. How do you handle burnout, either personally or within the team?
21. What challenges have you faced in measuring the impact of your work?
22. How do you deal with limited time and resources?
23. Have you ever had to let go of a team member? How did you handle it?
24. What obstacles have you encountered in adapting to new trends or technologies?
25. How do you manage ethical dilemmas?
26. What difficulties have you faced with logistics and planning?
27. Have you had challenges with communication or misunderstandings?
28. How do you deal with competing priorities or goals?
29. What are the challenges of collaborating with other organizations or partners?
30. How do you handle negative or difficult situations to turn them into learning opportunities?

Questions About Their Success Stories

1. Can you share a memorable success story from your time as a youth leader?
2. What’s the most impactful project you’ve been a part of?
3. Have you had any youth go on to achieve great things? What’s their story?
4. How did you turn around a challenging situation into a success?
5. Can you share a story where you saw significant growth in a young person?
6. What’s the most rewarding feedback you’ve received?
7. Can you share a success story involving community involvement?
8. Have any of your programs received awards or special recognition?
9. What’s a win you’ve had in building a great team culture?
10. Do you have a success story about overcoming a lack of resources?
11. Have you successfully partnered with any organizations or companies? What was achieved?
12. Can you share a story of how you helped someone overcome a personal challenge?
13. Have any of your initiatives led to policy changes or community improvement?
14. What’s the most innovative project you’ve successfully executed?
15. Can you share a success story that came out of a failure?
16. What’s the biggest impact you think you’ve made as a leader?
17. Have you ever turned a critic or skeptic into a supporter? How did that happen?
18. Do you have a successful mentorship story you can share?
19. Can you tell me about a time when you successfully engaged hard-to-reach youth?
20. How did you successfully manage a large-scale event or project?
21. Have you ever received media coverage for a project? What happened?
22. Can you share how your work has positively impacted a family?
23. What’s the most fulfilling part of your job, and do you have a story that illustrates it?
24. Do you have a success story that shows the importance of teamwork?
25. What’s a small win you had that meant a lot to you?
26. How have you successfully adapted a program to better fit the needs of your group?
27. Can you share a success story involving the arts or creative endeavors?
28. What’s the most successful fundraising event you’ve led?
29. Have you been part of any successful campaigns to raise awareness about an issue?
30. Can you share a story that made you feel like all the challenges are worth it?
31. Can you share a story where a simple idea turned into a big win?
32. Have you had any youth come back to thank you years later? What was their story?
33. Can you share a success story about bridging cultural or social gaps?
34. Have any of your team members gone on to become leaders themselves?
35. What’s a recent success that you’re particularly proud of?
36. Have you had success in connecting youth to local businesses or job opportunities?
37. What’s the most touching or heartwarming feedback you’ve received?
38. Can you share a story where you or your team had to go the extra mile to achieve success?
39. Have you had any youth participate in national or international events as a result of your programs?
40. Can you share how a team-building activity turned into a real-world success?

Questions About Their Personal Journey

1. How did you decide to become a youth leader?
2. What inspired you to work with young people?
3. Did you have a role model growing up?
4. How has being a youth leader changed you?
5. What was the toughest moment you’ve faced in this role?
6. What was your first job?
7. What did you learn from it?
8. Did you face any obstacles getting here? 
9. How did you overcome them?
10. What’s your biggest personal achievement?
11. Do you have any regrets in your journey so far?
12. What keeps you motivated?
13. Is there a moment that made you feel proud of what you do?
14. What’s something you wish you knew before starting this journey?
15. Have you always wanted to be in a leadership position?
16. What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
17. How do you balance your work life and personal life?
18. What are your hobbies outside of work?
19. Have you worked in any other fields before this?
20. How do you handle stress and pressure?
21. What’s your daily routine like?
22. Do you have a personal motto or saying that keeps you going?
23. Who are the people that have supported you the most?
24. How do you take care of yourself mentally and emotionally?
25. How do you keep learning and growing?
26. What’s your favorite book and why?
27. Have you ever doubted your decision to become a youth leader?
28. What was your educational path?
29. Are you involved in any volunteer work?
30. What’s the most interesting place you’ve been to?
31. How do you stay connected with friends and family?
32. What’s one thing about you that most people don’t know?

Questions About Their Leadership Style

1. How would you describe your leadership style?
2. What are your main goals as a leader?
3. How do you handle conflicts within the group?
4. How do you make tough decisions?
5. How do you motivate the kids you work with?
6. Do you have a mentor in your leadership role?
7. How do you get feedback from your team?
8. What qualities do you think a good leader should have?
9. How do you inspire creativity in your team?
10. Do you think it’s important to be friends with the people you lead?
11. What’s your approach to discipline?
12. How do you handle criticism?
13. What’s the best way to communicate with you?
14. How do you handle different personalities in a team?
15. How do you adapt your leadership style to different situations?
16. How do you create an inclusive environment?
17. What role does trust play in your leadership?
18. How do you stay organized?
19. Do you set personal goals for your leadership role?
20. How do you encourage team members to grow?
21. How do you introduce new ideas or changes?
22. What’s your backup plan when things don’t go as expected?
23. How do you make sure everyone feels heard?
24. Do you like to lead by example or delegate tasks?
25. How do you keep up with new leadership trends?
26. How do you involve parents or guardians in your work?
27. What’s your approach to handling sensitive issues?
28. Do you prefer a structured or flexible working environment?
29. How do you celebrate team successes?
30. How do you stay true to your values as a leader?
31. How do you approach problem-solving in your role?
32. How do you make new team members feel welcome?
33. How do you balance being a leader and a friend to your team?
34. What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned about leadership?
35. How do you handle failures or setbacks?
36. What role does empathy play in your leadership?
37. Do you use any specific tools or methods to plan and manage activities?
38. How do you ensure you’re approachable to your team?
39. Do you have a strategy for time management?
40. How do you prioritize tasks and responsibilities?
41. How do you keep the team’s spirits high during challenging times?
42. Do you believe in “leading from the front,” or do you have a different philosophy?
43. How do you evaluate your own performance as a leader?
44. How do you keep yourself accountable to your team?
45. Do you encourage open dialogue about leadership within the team?
46. How do you encourage responsibility among team members?
47. How do you keep updated with each member’s needs and aspirations?
48. How do you ensure that you are fair and unbiased in your leadership?
49. What role does humor play in your leadership style?
50. How do you manage your own expectations and those of your team?

Questions About Inclusivity And Diversity

1. How do you make sure your programs are inclusive for everyone?
2. What steps have you taken to address issues of racial and ethnic diversity?
3. How do you make your space welcoming for kids with different abilities or needs?
4. Do you have any gender-specific programs?
5. How do you ensure they are inclusive?
6. How do you handle discussions around sensitive topics like religion or politics?
7. Do you offer any resources or programs in multiple languages?
8. How do you ensure you’re sensitive to cultural norms and traditions?
9. Do you have any LGBTQ+ inclusive programs or resources?
10. How do you encourage diversity within your leadership and volunteer teams?
11. How do you address unconscious bias within your team or among youth?
12. What kind of training do your leaders undergo for inclusivity and diversity?
13. How do you make sure diverse voices are heard in decision-making processes?
14. Have you faced challenges in making your programs more inclusive? How did you overcome them?
15. How do you adapt activities to be accessible for everyone?
16. Do you engage with parents to ensure inclusivity and diversity?
17. What scholarships or financial aid are available to make your programs accessible?
18. How do you make sure everyone feels safe, both physically and emotionally?
19. Do you have policies in place to deal with discrimination or harassment?
20. How do you incorporate diverse perspectives into your curriculum or activities?
21. Do you have any partnerships with organizations focused on diversity and inclusion?
22. How do you ensure the representation of guest speakers or external contributors?
23. Do you have special events focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion?
24. Are you open to feedback from participants about how to improve inclusivity?
25. How do you celebrate different cultures and histories in your programs?
26. How do you measure the success of your inclusivity efforts?
27. How do you create a sense of belonging for everyone?
28. Do you have stories where your efforts in inclusivity made a significant impact?
29. How do you handle conflicts arising from diversity within the group?
30. What role does inclusive language play in your programs?
31. How do you build awareness among youth about the importance of inclusivity and diversity?

Questions About Networking And Partnerships

1. How do you build relationships with other organizations?
2. Do you collaborate with local businesses? If so, how?
3. How do you engage with schools and educational institutions?
4. Are there any ongoing partnerships that have been particularly successful?
5. What are the challenges you face in building new partnerships?
6. Do you engage with alumni for networking opportunities?
7. How do you decide which organizations or businesses align with your mission?
8. How do you maintain long-term relationships with partners?
9. Are there partnerships that provide resources like books, tech, or venues?
10. Do you collaborate with healthcare institutions for wellness programs?
11. How do you approach fundraising partnerships?
12. Do you have any partnerships focused on job placement or career building for youth?
13. Are there any international organizations you partner with?
14. How do you integrate partners into your program activities?
15. What value do you offer to your partners?
16. How do partnerships enhance the experiences you provide to youth?
17. Are there any legal considerations you keep in mind when entering into partnerships?
18. Do you have any government partnerships or grants?
19. How do you ensure mutual benefits in your partnerships?
20. Do you work with influencers or local celebrities as part of your networking efforts?
21. How do you handle disagreements or conflicts with partners?
22. Do you have case studies that showcase successful partnerships?
23. What role do partnerships play in your sustainability plans?
24. How do you promote your partners?
25. Do you collaborate with other youth organizations for bigger projects?
26. How do you keep your partners engaged and informed?
27. Are there volunteer opportunities through your partnerships?
28. How do you ensure the partnerships align with the needs of the youth you serve?
29. Do you seek feedback from your youth about the effectiveness of partnerships?
30. How do you nurture networking skills among your youth through these partnerships?

Questions About Future Goals

1. What’s the next big project or initiative you’re excited about?
2. How do you plan to expand or scale your programs?
3. Do you have plans to offer new types of activities or resources?
4. Are there any gaps you want to fill in your current programming?
5. How are you working towards long-term sustainability?
6. What’s your strategy for reaching more young people?
7. Do you have plans for getting involved in policy-making or advocacy?
8. How do you see your organization evolving over the next five years?
9. Are you looking to introduce any technological advancements in your programs?
10. What kind of impact do you aim to achieve in the future?
11. Do you have goals for community outreach and engagement?
12. Are there academic or career paths you want to build stronger connections with?
13. How do you aim to improve your metrics for success?
14. Do you plan to enter any competitions or apply for awards?
15. What is your dream project or initiative?
16. How do you plan to diversify your funding sources?
17. Are you considering any international projects or exchanges?
18. Do you plan to involve more parents or adults in your initiatives?
19. What kind of legacy do you want to leave?
20. How do you plan to keep yourself and your team motivated?
21. Are there skills or qualifications you aim to develop within your team?
22. Do you have any plans for public speaking or thought leadership?
23. How do you intend to improve your approach to inclusivity and diversity?
24. What are your environmental sustainability goals?
25. Do you plan to invest in infrastructure like a new building or equipment?
26. Are there social issues you plan to address more strongly in the future?
27. How do you plan to document and share your success stories?
28. Are you considering publishing resources like books, courses, or guides?
29. What steps are you taking for professional development and training?
30. How do you plan to measure the long-term impact of your programs?
31. How do you plan to update your curriculum or activity list?
32. Are you looking to bring in more guest speakers or mentors?
33. How do you intend to make your programs more accessible to remote or underserved areas?
34. Are you planning to launch any virtual programs or online courses?
35. What is your backup plan in case your primary goals don’t work out?
36. Do you plan to get any certifications or accreditations for your organization?
37. How do you stay updated with trends that could impact your programs?

Frequently Asked Questions

How should I prepare for the conversation?

• Do your homework: Get some background info on the youth leader and the group they’re a part of.
• Be respectful: Make sure you’re not interrupting their work or private time. Schedule a meeting if possible.
• Have a list: It’s a good idea to jot down the questions you want to ask. This keeps the conversation focused.

What’s the most important thing to remember while questioning a youth leader?

The essential thing to remember is that your purpose should be to foster understanding and build a supportive environment. Your line of questioning should stimulate constructive conversation, promote cooperation, and encourage concept sharing.

What should I look for in a youth leader?

When looking for a youth leader, you’ll want to consider several qualities to ensure they’re the right fit for your group. Here are some key traits to look for:

• Experienced: Previous experience in youth leadership provides valuable skills and understanding.
• Approachable: Being easy to talk to ensures that everyone in the group feels comfortable sharing their ideas or concerns.
• Passionate: Genuine enthusiasm for helping young people is crucial for keeping the group engaged and motivated.
• Good communicator: The ability to both speak clearly and listen well is essential for effective leadership.
• Trustworthy: Trust forms the basis of any good relationship and is vital in a leadership role.
• Conflict resolver: Knowing how to manage disagreements and create a harmonious environment is key.
• Organized: Being well-organized helps execute activities smoothly and keep everyone on the same page.
• Safety-conscious: A good leader prioritizes safety, Whether physical activities or emotional well-being.

Conclusion

Asking the right questions opens doors, not just for you but also for the young people benefiting from these programs. So don’t be shy—reach out to a youth leader and start that conversation. Who knows, you might walk away inspired and excited about what’s coming next for our young leaders of tomorrow.