Education leaders hold themselves and the people around them to high expectations, both on a personal and professional level. So when its time to make hiring decisions, they work hard to employ people that have the skills, aptitude, and resilience to live up to their high standards. The end result is a team of education leaders and educators that get results and positively impact their student’s academic achievement.
Setting the standard
Education leaders understand that to achieve their expectations, they need to have stout values, hold themselves accountable for their actions, and never ever make excuses. By doing this, they set the standard, and everyone else on the team will work hard to carry on the tradition of excellence. Without saying a word, you become a mentor and role model to those around you. This creates a culture of excellence, and all of the education stakeholders in your community will buy into it
You are the sum of the people you spend the most time with. So make sure that you surrounded by go-getters with uncompromising standards and high expectations. Remember, iron sharpens iron. This even applies to your life outside of work. Your friends should be a close-knit group of high achievers who work hard to support and push each other towards success. If you don’t have this in your life, it will be hard for you to reach your potential as an education leader.
Concluding thoughts
A final note on high expectations. It is up to you to ensure that your employees have the tools, training, and resources that they need to be successful and meet the expectations that they have set for them. If you expect them to perform to your standards without the requisite capacity or resources, then you have failed them, not the other way around. Keep this in mind the next time an employee misses the mark. Before holding them accountable, you have to backtrack and figure out what went wrong. If you missed the mark as a leader, acknowledge it, and figure out a way to rectify the situation and ensure that it doesn’t happen in the future.
