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Reflecting on recent challenges, I’ve been contemplating my career choice and outcomes over the past two decades. While this introspection can sometimes be unproductive, it's a necessary process. One key takeaway is that greater achievements might have been possible with a stronger emphasis on team spirit and leadership.

 

But then, how can you play with team spirit, when everyone’s not in on the strategy/ game plan? I’m writing this as footies are approaching the UEFA Champions League final and I think there are a few things we can take from ‘the beautiful game’ and the clubs that have made it thus far. What makes them leaders in the game…more to my point, what comprises good leadership?

 

As we approach our inaugural conference in July, the expert school leaders will weigh in on what works and what doesn’t. But I’m going to share my thoughts as a soldier in the trenches:

 

Proactive Measures School Leaders take:

 

• As a leader, you make yourself available/ visible: Do coaches/ managers hide in offices away from the spotlight? Or do they face the press conferences after victories AND losses? Point is, everyone knows Carlos Ancelotti (I’m a madridista and make no apology), Pep Guardiola (sorry Man City fans) etc. and they face the thunder or the applause . The general public begins to associate you with your institution/ school when they SEE and HEAR you. You don’t hide behind email and written correspondence.  A name needs to be associated with a face…a person.

 

• As a leader, you are approachable: How many of us try to slip off the compound without having to tell the Principal/ Vice Principal that we’re headed to the bank or out for lunch? I am in NO WAY condoning this behavior, because you’re responsible for your own professional integrity, not your school leader.  Still, there are leaders who can be offsetting, closing doors and shutting louvers to their rooms, sending an indirect (but very clear) message that they are not to be spoken to or, if approached, you must have the fear of God in you, a level of high anxiety and much trepidation. Is it so hard to imagine that  employees will faster send a WhatsApp message, to avoid the discomfort of interacting with you face-to-face when this is your conduct?

 

• As a leader, you meet with your staff regularly: So back to my football analogy, do managers/ coaches just appear on the field on the day of a match? Or do they try to keep their ear to the ground with what’s happening with their team? How often do some school leaders call staff meetings? Who minutes these meetings and follows up with issues/ queries made? Now understand that a staff meeting is not a staff briefing. Effective school leaders don’t call meetings to just ‘inform’ employees of what’s going to happen/ not happen. They don’t need to necessarily even chair the meeting. How many times have we gone into staff meetings and then come out with the phrase: “Well that could have been an email.” The staff gets no time to talk or raise other issues they’re facing. When the sticky issues come up, ‘oh, we’ll have to note it and get back to you, because in the interest of time, teachers need to return to their classes.” (Incidentally, the same spaces where the ‘issues’ exist).

 

Pitfalls school leaders can make:

 

• No succession planning: Yes, we wish all school leaders long life and health, may you retire peacefully and without incident. But the fact is, our job as educators is arguably one of the most stressful. Educators are dropping like flies, exiting the profession because their work/life balance is adversely affected, and all the while, we’re keeping it quiet. Teaching jobs are becoming available the world over, marketed as a great opportunity to go abroad. Ever wonder WHY those jobs are suddenly opening up? Teachers are burning out and are financially stretched to the last dollar. School leaders need to gather their team together and make a succession plan. They need to ask the hard question: “God forbid, but if I fall ill or cannot work, who is going to head this project/ continue this venture/ represent the school’s position? Ever notice how smoothly football captains take off their armbands when called off the pitch and hand it over? They know EXACTLY who to give the band too, before they make their exit off the pitch. School leaders need to be able to do the same- pass on the power.

 

• Conveniently forgetting their time in ‘the trenches’ : Many school leaders were once in the classroom. And I’m not going to be unfair: some still relish an opportunity to go back to it when they get a chance. I remember popping my head out my own classroom in the past, and being pleasantly surprised to see my principal at the time, teaching a Math lesson like he’d never skipped a beat doing it. He filled a need for a team: a teacher was ill, he didn’t think twice about stepping in and ‘taking one for the team’.  Yet some school leaders believe that when they grace the administrative office with their presence, the reality of the classroom is but an illusion/ figment of their imagination. More likely, pushed far down into the recesses of their mind. Who me? Go back into the classroom? You must be crazy!  And when you, MERE plebeian classroom teacher, complain about the heat/ the crowd/ the smell (yes, that after lunch student aroma), it must be something YOU’RE not doing right. Space them out! Encourage them to get their parents to buy fans! It’s on you…while I sit comfortably in my air-conditioned office, to spray Febreze or teach them about proper hygiene.

 

• Not addressing serious complaints: Well, I can’t say that even my favorite football club does this. Much more can be done by the powers that be to protect players from racism, but I use the example to make a point. Certain issues are touchy these days, particularly,  sexual/ racial/ cultural prejudice. Not just in sport, but in schools as well. While it’s easier to sweep these things under the carpet and pretend that they don’t exist in our schools, that’s not the approach school leaders should take, but unfortunately some do. 

 

I can appreciate the point that pressure is put on school leaders by the district/ board, to maintain an untarnished image of the institution/ school. But can we use this to justify keeping acts of abuse/misconduct under wraps? Did Duty of Care go out the window because it’s just too shameful or embarrassing to talk about? We can’t look like those ‘other’ schools on social media who are showing students, moving in packs and thirsty to draw first blood! We are prestigious, so let’s just call in the police to scare him/her a little…but it’s all hush hush. What a school leader does when they give into this, is relinquish their power and show himself/ herself, ready and willing to be a puppet of a system in dire need of revamping.

How School Leaders can bring out the best in their teams:

 

Listen to understand, not just wait to reply: Okay, just like we know some footballers are divas, some teachers are drama llamas. It takes nothing much to set them off ( the sky may not be as blue as they wanted it to be that day). Point is, YOU were chosen as a leader! That means, while I, (mere colleague of said drama llama) can roll my eyes and ignore their behavior / come up with some snippy comeback, you can’t do the same! 

 

Yes, my behavior might end up with me being called to your office with said llama, but YOU are a leader and that requires you to be objective. Put your feelings aside and give them a listening ear. Even if all you can say after, is “Okay Miss/ Sir, I’ll look into it and get back to you.” 

 

 If you assert yourself well, you can nod and indicate that you’re listening, repeat their own words to them to show you’re interested in getting their story straight and then give your take. 

 

Example: “So what I’m hearing you say is……, did I get that right?” 

 

                “Ok, so allow me to share my thoughts on the matter.” 

 

Or if you need more time, it’s perfectly fine to say, “Okay, I have a much better understanding of the situation. Let me reflect on it and get back to you by the end of the day (or whenever is most appropriate to you both.”

 

Nothing is worse for an employee, than walking into a school leader’s office, already knowing that the leader has a “what now?” expression on his face; or to hear a dramatic sigh (cuz then you be just like the llama) from you. He/She will ALREADY feel unheard, or worse, branded/ victimized.

 

Include your team in decision-making & projects: You’re one person, you don’t have all the answers. No one does. But collectively, a team can come up with some pretty awesome ideas. A team meeting isn’t one where you share YOUR IDEA and say, ‘Ok, well you’re dismissed now, go make it happen.’ Carry your plan/venture to the team and trash out what can make it work/ what can make it go downhill. Ask questions, request volunteers, include yourself in the work and be willing to admit your weak points. So like me, if I was a school leader,  I would say: “I am great with designing the presentation, but explaining/ calculating quantitative data…that’s not my strong point. Would anyone like to take the lead with that?” 

 

Sure, set deliverables, dates, deadlines, whatever you need. You can even do this through discussion with the team. The point is, in a dynamic and healthy school environment, no one should be a one-man/woman show. Leader or not.

 

Be honest & open: Yes, I appreciate that there are things all staff can/ should not know. Certain discussions are only for the higher echelons of the school hierarchy. But most times, when it affects your staff, you need to speak up and be authentic. A team will never function as a team without trust. I need to know that when my Principal, Head of Department or Dean is speaking to me, that I’m getting the truth as it affects me. Suppose my Dean tells me NOTHING about an incident that took place in my class and then low and behold, I come in Monday morning and am greeted by glaring parents who say ‘such and such’ happened? (Thank God, I’ve worked and continue to work with an amazing bunch of Deans, so this is not directed to them). But I’ve heard horror stories from other teachers.

 

Or worse, my school leader tells me everything is fine and I go skipping along in “LALA land’, only to see my school leader and the even higher powers that be, going at it like loggerheads. What now? I thought you said it was all fine and  peachy! My trust level is….GONE….ZERO. And as we know, once trust goes in ANY relationship, it’s hard to recoup or rebuild.

 

I can say a lot more about effective school leadership, but then you might not show up for our conference in July, and that’s the LAST thing I want to happen! Registration is opening soon, so continue to follow our page for details and know that in spite of it all, I will get through this process. 

 

Granted, Real Madrid wins that match next Wednesday! (LOLOL) Love you guys, keep strong, be blessed and stick to being the committed educators you are!