Leadership- Advise from a Follower

It's the beginning of August and the staff converges on the library eager to see what kind of year it is going to be.  Some of the school leaders will be standing in front of the crowd trying to motivate and inspire.  Others will be sitting in the crowd listening and deciding whether to be motivated and inspired.  Regardless of your "official" role or title in school, all educators can take up the mantle of leadership and use it for good or evil.  

I've done jobs where I had a title of leader, I've taken on leadership roles because I was inspired to, and I've also watched the ship crash and burn because of poor leadership abilities.  I can say without hesitation that good teachers are the most important asset of a school, but good leadership is a close second.  Even great teachers need good leaders to define the vision, paint the big picture, and inspire all to a growth mindset.  

If you are aspiring to be influential to others in education, here are some strategies from a hopeful follower.  

1.  Have a vision.  Vision is the spider web that is going to help me stay connected to others and the big ideas.  I'm going to see it in all of my work and feel connected to the work of the school.  I'm going to understand your job better and have more respect for you when you talk within the vision.  The vision is going to help me step out of my classroom and see the bigger picture.  Once you have a vision, use it constantly, re-spinning it to help me stay on track and involved.  

2. Care about me.  All those books that tell you leadership is about relationships are right!  You have to know who I am and care about me in order to inspire me to grow.  But it isn't just about caring about my feelings.  It is about caring about me as a professional.  What am I interested in professionally?  How can you use that?  What is going on in my classroom?  How could I get better?  Who would be a good fit for me to partner with in the school?  How can you make that happen?  Care about me enough to be the person gently (or not gently) pushing me forward from behind.  

3. Stay involved.  Look, I know your job is important.  I know you are busy from sunup to sun down.  I know you have paperwork on your desk.  Someday soon, we are going to have a party and bring our work to compare.  But until then, as a leader, you need to put the organization in front of that work.  Be in my classroom, be in my meetings, listen to my voice and add jewels of ideas to the end of mine.  Find a way to rise above the minutia of your work to stay involved in my daily practice.  Because minutia tends to try and escape the cage, I would schedule me into your calendar.

4.  Know more than me.  I love my job.  I live my job.  I put instructional books on my Christmas list and shop for office supplies on Saturday.  To inspire me, you need to know something I don't.  So use Twitter and Facebook to connect with others and find out about new ideas.  Know what you  want to see and be explicit about how I can make that happen.  And if, as might happen, you find yourself in a position where you don't know, ask me to be your partner.  I'll be flattered and impressed and then I'll go out and run miles for you.

5. Encourage me to make mistakes.  I'm going to make mistakes.  In fact, I'm probably going to make three before I get to school.  Trust me, I am focusing more on them than you.  If all you see of me is my mistakes, than you will belittle me and push me into the nearest closet.  Instead, be happy I am making mistakes.  Mistakes are the path to learning and changing.  I can do the stuff you told me to do two years ago...making mistakes is a sign I'm trying the stuff you told me to do last month.  Mistakes are like rainbows because they are going to lead me to success.  Congratulate me for making a mistake and help me see what my next step is.  

Being a leader is hard.  You have to be ready to be the stage crew for the performance and then clean up all the equipment later.  But you'll also know that you are a part of every successful performance I give.  Be the leader I need, because I do need you.