Education Leadership

Great education leaders know that time is their most valuable possession. Contrary to popular belief, it is not money, material possessions, etc. Time is one of those things that you can get back, no matter how hard you try. It’s just impossible. Unfortunately, most professionals do a poor job of managing their time, and it affects their lives in a myriad of ways. As leaders, they find it difficult to properly manage their teams and organizations, and outside of work, it makes it difficult to nurture and develop relationships.

How to maximize your time

Education leaders need to know how to schedule their time by knowing when and where to spend it; on yourself, your colleagues, and family/friends. They prioritize things that are important and table things that can wait for later. This doesn’t mean that they are not proactive, it just means that they are not burning themselves out by trying to be superhuman. They realize that the work will never be done, and when you finish one task, another one jumps into the queue.

So do yourself a favor and use your time wisely, and hold it in reverence. It truly is your most valuable possession, as many people would hand over all of their possessions for more of it. As an education leader, you can use your time to help serve others, but don’t forget to take a little to relax.

Concluding thoughts

Here is a pro-tip, when making decisions concerning time management, if applicable, always consider the opportunity cost of each possible alternative. What is the definition of opportunity cost? An opportunity cost is the consequence of a missed opportunity. This is usually explained in terms of money, but it may also be conveyed in terms of time, or any other resource. Using the concept of opportunity cost has helped me to be more productive and efficient, which allows me to make more money and have more free time for family and friends.

Discipline in leadership is more about having self-control, inner calm, and outer resolve than punishing and rewarding. It is about managing your emotions, working hard, and following through on commitments. It is about being responsible and accountable for your actions. It is about being a rock amid life’s inevitable storms.

A high level of resilience plays a significant part in your ability to be self-disciplined. You have to be resolute in your actions and understand that setbacks will happen. You have to be focused enough to understand that failure is just a part of success, not a destination.

Education leaders who are disciplined, have leadership teams and employees who also exhibit poise. The school culture becomes an environment where discipline is the norm. Unfortunately, many people have the wrong perception of discipline. They believe that to be disciplined, you have to maintain a rigorous standard, and punish those that do not meet the mark. It is about having high standards, but punishment is not a central focus. Those who do not meet the standard are given the supports and resources that they need to improve.

Why discipline is so important

The road to success to filled with people who will find lots of reasons as to why something will not work. You need a healthy level of discipline that gives you a real sense of confidence and will allow you to move forward without excuses, obstacles, or negativity holding you back. No matter the situation, you need to be able to look on the bright side and be optimistic about a situation’s potential outcome, regardless of the circumstances.

Great leaders are not blind to the possibility that some situations will end in failure. However, they are confident that they and their team have tried their absolute best, so there will be no regrets. They don’t look at a glass as being half full, they look at it always being 100% full. How can a glass that is half full of liquid be completely full? Sometimes you have to think of the top half of the glass as being filled with air.

Concluding thoughts

By being disciplined, you are ready for the outcome, good or bad. If the outcome is positive, you are happy. And if the outcome is negative, you are also happy, because you and your team went above and beyond the call of duty. Failure happens, but you have to be ready to turn that failure into success. The next time a similar situation happens, you will have the benefit of experience on your side, and use your prior knowledge to handle things with the benefit of historical perspective.

Opposite to what most people believe, age is not a measure of maturity. I have worked with young education leaders who act like older men and older men who act like teenagers. Maturity comes from knowing how to communicate like an adult and knowing how to manage your emotions in stressful situations. It is not so much about acting your age as it is acting with wisdom.

The power of maturity

Also, your confidence in yourself and your capacity to follow through without excuses are steadfast gauges of how mature a person you are. As an education leader, maturity will either make or break your tenure. Even though immature people make being mature seem so difficult, it really is not. Immaturity comes from a place of selfishness, and the immature people desire to have things there way. On the other end of the spectrum, maturity comes for a space of selflessness and a desire to serve and help others.

Every day, mature leaders are constantly looking for ways to serve others and help them win. Whether it’s mentoring a new leader or making sure the current leadership team has the supports and resources that they need to launch a new initiative. When something goes wrong under their watch, they may hold others accountable, but ultimately they take responsibility for the failure. On the other hand, when the team experiences success, they step out of the spotlight and let others shine. This is what separates mature leaders from immature ones.

If you are an immature education leader, just know that you are working against your own interests. You want to climb the leadership ranks in your district, but your higher-ups don’t want to promote leaders who are not mature and disciplined enough to put the needs of the team before their own. They are looking for selfless individuals whose sole aim is to help everyone around them get better. They are looking for people who work to make a difference in the lives of children.

Concluding thoughts

If you an immature leader, you don’t meet the qualification for a promotion. Its good that you are finding this out now because this gives you time to work on your leadership character. If you do, you can learn to be compassionate, selfless, and trustworthy, which will help you become the mature leader that your district needs.

The modern public education system in the United States is behind the curve in so many areas, eschewing innovation and the cultivation of tomorrow’s leaders (and their untapped emotional and intellectual potentials) in favor of an outdated system which places the onus on assignments and grades. For a school to really give tomorrow’s leaders a fair shake in becoming fitting to the roles they will assume as they grow older, it has to look at its practices and agendas and how one-size-fits-all education and bureaucracy is stifling growth in our student populace.

A culture of following blanket directives in fear of discipline isn’t one which promotes the individuality necessary for a student to take their own initiative and become a leader. Sacrificing creativity for rigor, innovation for the grades necessary to make the next level, our students are placed into stifling educational environments which punish deviation and reward groupthink. 

What fear does to tomorrow’s leaders

One high school in Washington D.C., known to be one of the hardest schools in all of the United States, has built such a culture of fear that students skip class to hide in the library in hopes of acing the next big test on the docket. It’s a grading culture which tells students that their entire futures are predicated upon the approval of the system. Top-achievers live in constant fear of slipping up, watching their potential careers vanish as others race ahead of them who are much more adept at playing the game.

While testing and its consequences have their place, such a culture of fear turns students into anxious followers rather than potential leaders. The best entrepreneurs aren’t afraid of failure. In fact, they embrace the potential of failure in hopes of the next successful venture. Students who are afraid of their own shadows in school aren’t given the opportunity to embrace such an entrepreneurial spirit. They’re taught that their fears are always valid and worth fearing. That’s no way to build a future leader.

The Mark Cuban effect

Schools aren’t changing their didactic ways anytime soon, or not fast enough to really cultivate a culture of budding leadership in their student populace. So, it behooves students (and concerned parents) to look at sources outside of the educational system which reflect how success can be achieved without playing the follow-the-leader games of public education. Billionaire entrepreneur and media personality Mark Cuban was once suspended from high school for wearing a shirt with the word “bullshit” on it. He constantly got into trouble, unable to reconcile his own desire to lead with the bureaucratic structures of the educational system.

“It doesn’t matter how many times you fail. You only have to be right once and then everyone can tell you that you are an overnight success,” Cuban once said. If students can find a way to experience and learn different modes of grading success and failure, especially with their own ethics and wants and needs into account, they can break from the backward nature of the public education system and build themselves internally as confident leaders unafraid of a bad grade or a bad decision.

Deeds speak louder than words. The educators you work with can tell if you are dedicated and working hard to make your school the best it can be. However, if you are lethargic and do not care, your team will note and mirror your effort. Sooner than later, you will have a culture of lazy educators that see themselves as glorified baby sitters. In the end, your students will not grow academically, and your district’s central office will come through and purge your school of its lethargic leaders and educators and start over. What a sad turn of events.

How to lead by example

Great education leaders always lead by example. They put their nose to the grindstone, and they get things done. In the end, others follow this positive example, and things get done. Unfortunately, many leaders practice what I call death by delegation. Don’t get me wrong, delegation is a good thing, but only if you are doing your fair share of the work. I have listened to a lot of teachers who complain that their principals stay in their offices all day and delegate the heavy lifting to assistant principals, and other members of their leadership team. It doesn’t matter if they are wrong or right, if the optics are bad, the perception will become a reality.

This is not what leadership is all about. Leaders don’t sit in their office all day while others do all the work. Real leaders spend as little time in their office as they can. They spend their hours walking the halls, going from classroom to classroom where the action is. They see themselves as instructional leaders first and take the lead on boosting student achievement. Along the way, they set the tone for classroom conduct, and ensure that students can learn in classrooms that are conducive to learning.

The differences between high-performing schools and low-performing schools within the public education system are stark and varied, yet it’s the culture of leadership which is either cultivated or not by school leaders which serve as a catalyst for either growth or utter, inefficient chaos. With that truth in mind, here are 5 effective ways school leaders can build a culture of leadership within their institutions.

Do not be afraid to embrace the duality 

The best leaders in any business field understand both their own duality and the duality necessary to lead. Equal parts modesty and will, humility and fearlessness, a true school leader must never be afraid to take control but must also never be afraid to concede control and learn when the situation requires such. A true leader’s example must be one of flexibility, malleability, but a singular resolve that will take on any problem with appropriate force and fire.

Be professional, not a savior

Education is a hard field because there is an inherent structure of altruism within it which can cause some school leaders to misappropriate themselves as saviors rather than business leaders. To try and save every student and/or try to maximize the talents of every teacher is a Herculean task which will end up crushing a school leader under its weight. To build a culture of leadership, school leaders must be able to delegate and organize in such a way that other leaders are built up and their own reserves of energy aren’t depleted.

Understand your importance

Studies show that one transcendent classroom lecture or interaction with a member of the school leadership can change a young student’s life trajectory completely! School leaders must remind their entire staffs of the importance they have in shaping children’s lives. A true culture of leadership in the public education system embraces the power of simple moments of genuine connection, cultivating compassionate leadership who keeps the best interests of the student populace at the forefront of their everyday efforts. 

Leave your ego at the door

School leaders who wield their positions of leadership as weapons in hopes of boosting and placating their own egos create cultures of distrust and resentment which can permeate all levels of an institution.  Confidence is key. Ego is not. A school leader must remain confident as to maintain the respect and trustworthiness necessary to make the tough decisions, but drop the ego in favor of the betterment of the school. A culture of leadership is built upon confident actions removed from personal ego and gain.

Walk how you talk 

In business, brand respectability and loyalty are cultivated through being genuine and transparent with your customer base. That same transparency and genuine nature must serve as the backbone of school leadership. If you are humble, people will view you as such. If you are fair, people will view you as such. School leaders must stress to all faculty and members of leadership that it’s their actions which carry the weight, not the words they use to describe such actions. This pushes other school leaders to act with equal parts thoughtfulness and clarity, building a culture of leadership immune to the toxicity which can bring institutions down in short order.

Concluding Thoughts

While building a culture of leadership may not be the top priority amongst many educators, it should be. It can make a team easier to run, which will help students feel more comfortable and perform better. This leadership can help develop the school into the education system that a district is proud of. 

“Its all about who you know.” Smart leaders know that there is much truth to that saying. Education leaders understand the value of building rapport with people in their field and make a point to pursue partnerships whenever they can. As we observe in children, the ability to build relationships is not a hard skill to master.

Relationships matter

All it takes is the ability to form a mutual bond and rapport with another person. A successful relationship has been established on truth, honesty, and a genuine desire to give selfishly to the development of the friendship. From there on out, the rest takes care of itself. Sure, at times, your friendships will be tested, but if they have the right foundation, things will always work out.

Establishing a network of key people is critical for your long-term success as an education leader, and in your personal life. When you first start out as an assistant principal, literacy coach, etc. your circle may be relatively small, but that will change fairly quickly.

Since you have likely come up through the teaching ranks of your district, there are new education leaders that you know that have done the same or are on the precipice of doing the same. Maybe you taught together years ago or met at a district-wide professional development session. Right off of the bat, you have relationships that you can cultivate.

Making lifelong connections

Also, as a leader, you will attend meetings all over your district, at state and national conferences, and also in your city or county. You will meet leaders from various industries and professions, and in the process, build professional and personal relationships that may last a lifetime.

So when your school needs donations for the renovation of its football field, you can call up the business leaders that you know and ask for help. They all have charitable giving departments that give away financial and in-kind donations to deserving causes. If we want to be successful in our field, take my advice, and focus on relationships.

While there are a host of legitimate concerns regarding the potentially negative effects of hiring school resource officers in our nation’s schools, the benefits of having such staff members in place could be a tangible increase in lives saved. Back on March 20th of 2018, school resource officers Blaine Gaskill rushed straight towards a shooter who had opened fire in a common area of Great Mills High School in Maryland. The shooter had already wounded two students.

Gaskill’s act of instinct and heroism effectively kept the incident from becoming a tragedy akin to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida back in February 2018. Video footage of that shooting shows school deputy Scot Peterson inactive and standing outside of the school as a mass shooting was underway. 17 people, most of them students, were killed. While it is unfair to place blame on Peterson for the tragedy itself, it is indicative of a divide between those school resource officers who are well trained for such situations and those who fail to act.

The need for universal training standards

There are no national standards in place for how student resource officers are trained for their jobs. Incredibly, there are is litany of states who also do not have standards in place. With a lack of regulation and coherent oversight, there is a massive lack of consistency when it comes to how student resource officers are prepared for situations such as the two aforementioned shootings. 

Furthermore, a student resource officer is crucial not only for how they respond in such situations but for their adeptness and awareness when it comes to their prevention. The current SRO training which does exist throughout our nation’s schools tends to focus on legal issues and security. A more comprehensive and nuanced take on training is necessary for these officers to spot warning signs such as symptoms of trauma, along with learning de-escalation techniques, issues surrounding bullying and cyberbullying, key factors of child development, and the care needed to work with special needs students.

A lack of training, or proper training

While there is a concerted call by researchers and criminal justice experts for extended and specialized training for our nation’s school resource officers, the fact remains that very few of the 19,000 or so school resource officers in our schools are trained. This alone could explain the difference in the responses by the officers of the Maryland and Florida shootings. Universal specialized training could spell the difference between life and death, near-death, and actual tragedy.

Furthermore, additional training in the use of and access to specialized equipment used to gain forcible entry to locked buildings and classrooms would help our school resource officers to be action-oriented as the moment happens, rather than having to wait for help and it potentially being too late. But, the key remains in prevention. If we can build an adequate training system for our school resource officers which helps them identify students at risk and act accordingly, tragic shootings like the one in Parkland can potentially be avoided altogether.

More often than not, education leaders are charismatic, outgoing, friendly, and approachable. They can speak with anyone in a calm, respectful, and engaging way. Educators want to work with people they like; you need to develop social skills to be the type of person that people want to be around.

How to build or sharpen your social skills

If you are an introvert like me, becoming a social butterfly may be a bit of stretch, but you don’t have to be. You just need to develop a decent set of social skills to be successful. Start off by thinking of people that seem to thrive socially. What common traits do they have? More than likely, they are the type of person that has never met a stranger and has natural charisma and, as a byproduct, comes off as bring approachable.

Now that we know the observable traits of people with good social skills, how can we develop them in ourselves? Start off by practicing a social skill that is easy to master. For instance, tomorrow, speak to everyone that you meet and ask how they are doing. Although this may not come naturally, notice the responses that you get.

Most people will speak back and ask you how you are doing in return. Many of these exchanges will be the starting points for a reciprocal conversation and a chance to learn something new about the person. Even if their next remark is about the weather, it can be used as a conversation starter.

Continue to do this for about a month, and it will begin to feel like second nature. You will gradually start to feel more outgoing and approachable, and others will see you in this way as well. As far as charisma goes, most of us have it, but we just don’t show it. As you continue your journey, you will notice that your natural personality will begin to shine through, and this is all the charisma that you will ever need.