Why do it?

I greatly enjoyed the conversation and sharing of our December 3 meeting. However, it also reminded me of the stress and tangled problems that come with administrative work (I currently teach 5th grade, but I used to be Head of Upper School). I am looking into rejoining the administrative ranks. I am, therefore, curious to know the reasons (besides the impact on the paycheck) that you decided to go into administration. Also, with all the pressure and difficulties of the job, what keeps you going? In other words, wouldn't you rather be teaching? I would like to hear what you have to say.

Recess

I had a wonderful tour and visit at St. Andrew's Episcopal School in Saratoga with Victoria last week. Thank you, Victoria! In my admissions role, I try to visit a few schools each year to tour and observe, ask questions, and learn about processes, successes and challenges. My time with Victoria was less about admissions and more about the total visit and the work we are doing together in our BATDC group.

After walking around, going in and out of classrooms, and talking about teaching and learning, we were able to chat a bit inside. No more than 10 minutes passed when Victoria, Lower School Director, was summoned to cover pre-kindergarten recess for an absent teacher! Without missing a beat, we walked outsde to the pre-k playground and spent the next 20 minutes watching the kids negotiate, socialize and play together on the wood chip covered playground. (They make the best sandy chocolate chip pizza, by the way!)

As literature such as Daniel Pink's "A Whole New Mind" and Stuart Brown's "Play" populate bookshelves in school classrooms and corporate America's high rise offices alike, I am reminded at the importance of taking "breaks" more often -- whether planned or interrupted. Although impromptu, it was refreshing to cover pre-k recess duty and continue our conversation on the playground. I also think it is so important that the kids see all adults (faculty, staff and administration) in a variety of places and capacities on campus. It was fun to engage with the four year olds, and eat their pizza too!

Respecting Others

"If you do not respect people, they will feel it from you." - Fran Scoble, from our meeting on 10/28

Ouch! This comment hit home. For most of my co-workers I have unqualified respect, but, if I am honest, not for all. I sometimes catch myself doing an internal eyeroll after a colleague's remark (or I wait until they leave, and then I really roll my eyes, sigh, scoff, etc.). I should not try to hide it: they can sense the lack of respect anyway.

I found it useful to make a list of the qualities I respect in co-workers and qualities I don't. It lead me back to my core values, and that lead me to think about the core values of those people for whom I have less respect. Why do they think this way? Why do they teach the way they do?

Fran was, of course, already there. Later in the talk she said, "Good leaders frame for others where their effectiveness is coming from." Much better than rolling the eyes.

From our discussion with Fran Scoble. What core values bring us to this work?

Commitments: what are the core values that bring us to this work?
The pull of daily urgencies takes us away from our core values.

Connect myself ethically and morally
Time to breathe, reflect and find joy
To well-being, and growth of students
Students-yes, but also to adults
Ongoing learner-grow and open mind
Create and sustain connection
Every student understood and valued as learner and person
Compassionate school
Children feel known, understood and cared about
Authentic relationships
Stewardship of the school
To do what’s right for kids
Increase willingness to take risks
Enter relationships with spirit of dialogue
Cultivate a culture of curiosity, hard work, compassion and respect from bottom to top: students, teachers, admin, parents
Supporting work of teachers with dignity, praise, time, money and honest feedback
Learn “Working with” rather than “telling.”
All children should be respected and loved
Encourage meaningful learning for students and colleagues-> value their contributions.

Challenge from Fran: what can you do to come from the place of your core values to deal with the annoying person who is always taking up your time? The person you feel least compassion for is the person you should draw on your core values for?

Test Blog Post from Email

Hi All, 
This YouTube video will show you how to post to the Students of Leadership blog
directly from email--and receive email notifications of new posts as well.
Cheers,
Karen



Karen Bradley, Ph.D.
History, Technology
Grade 11 Dean
Head-Royce School
Oakland, CA 94602
http://faculty.headroyce.org/~kbradley/

Note from our meeting 10/28/10

BATDC 10.28.10

Fran Scoble session on leadership

Many roles in career: Westridge Head of School; division head; English teacher; now certified as a leadership coach; someone who embodies on-going learning

Introductions and common themes from group: need for more reflective time; time to focus on what’s important vs. what is urgent; how to build relationships with challenging decisions; hybrid positions and ability to work with teachers and administrators; loneliness as an administrator; challenges when we think about being a head of school; challenges around change; challenges around teaching vs. administration—which is the direction to take in our career?; paradigm shift on how administrators are perceived; how to build coalitions and alliances with all constituents in a school

Fran’s reflections:

Ø  Most of us did not start out with certain jobs in mind. How many of us knew where we would be now 10 years ago? In a way, leadership can be accidental.

Ø  How do we learn to grow and change with the career arc—and what about when you feel that it’s not as rewarding. When your mind starts to shop around about changing your life, pay attention to it.

Ø  Pay attention to the voices in our lives, in our heads—what is our whole self? Need to pay attention to that and to ability to be “authentic self”

Ø  Like the concept of overall internal balance—need to balance parts of internal self not balance work vs. personal life.

Ø  Three big ideas to share for today:

1. Mission and alignment: What’s my personal mission statement? Core commitments are the path for finding alignment every day with our work. Work will be more rewarding with this in frong of mind-- ask self: What have I done today that reflects my core values?

2. Self-awareness: most of mistakes in leadership come from lack of self-awareness

3. Sustaining self as leader

Ø  Mission and alignment: Write about five core values that are at the center of the work I do.

Ø  Notes from the group on mission areas—stewardship of school; moral and ethical conduct; time to breathe, reflect, and find joy; ability to create a culture of curiosity, compassion, hard work, respect; supporting teachers with dignity, time, honest feedback; on-going learner; authentic relationships

•We need to put those who are most irritating at the heart of our work—these are moments that are most challenging. If we do not profoundly respect people, they know it.

•Are these core principles really part of who I am??? How can we make sure that our work is centered in our mission and alignment?

•What about if we have to work with people whose core values are not aligned with ours or the school’s? Need to resolve that tension.

•Power of a collective decision with people who are in alignment

•How do we not “fix” every problem, but rather allow the wisdom of the group emerge?

Solitude and Leadership

Here's an interesting article with a whole different set of perspectives. I couldn't figure out how to share via diigo in the time I was willing to put in -- management of time being at the top of the list of stress management strategies.

http://www.theamericanscholar.org/solitude-and-leadership/

This was in the latest KlingBrief, a monthly digest of education-related articles/books/films/resources some of us learned about last year (or the previous?) from Pearl Kane. To subscribe to it, contact Adele Tonge, Communications Manager at klingbrief@tc.columbia.edu.

Reflections on Dissonance

I found it disheartening to read that "adopting a facade is a common tactic for people grappling with the Sacrifice Syndrome" (pg. 46). Even though I know this is true and I have seen it happen, I still find it hard to acknowledge. Authentic leadership is about transparency. It is about being true to yourself and leading with a compass guided by a core set of values. If you are constantly pretending all is well, when it is not, it will catch up with you sooner rather than later and the facade will come crumbling down. On pg. 60, Boyatzis and McKee discuss how success overshadows values and how it is not uncommon to find that one day we are not ourselves anymore. This saddens me as I think it is nearly impossible to lead with conviction if you are not true to yourself and what you believe.

I was also struck by how true it is that major life events often force you to critically analyze and reflect. It takes something major to change your outlook and to push you toward a new path. I did find it powerful to reflect on my life via Exercise #4 and to identify a common rhythm. If we are aware of this rhythm and can proactively address dissonance when it naturally occurs, perhaps stress would not have as great an impact as it usually does on our physical, mental and spiritual well-being.

Southwest and Soap

Hi Friends -

"Seldom have I known any profound being that had anything to say to this world, unless forced to stammer out something by way of getting a living." (from Moby Dick)

I'm posting because this is an assignment and I'm a dutiful student – not b/c I fancy myself, in deed or aspiration, a profound being.

I feel bad for Karl.

Much of what Niall did/experience strikes me as pablum. It might be that so much of it was in the service of bath soap. I'm a snob, to be sure, and I don't like Unilever (isn't it the green and white one?).

More bothersome is the implied twist on the Coolidge adage that would go like this: "The business of business is taking care of one's self." I agree this mindfulness and marathon running is part of the equation, but I'm also a little bothered by how generally well-cared for (fit, rested, happy) business executives and school administrators are compared to the salespeople and teachers who work for them.

I'm still waiting to see what resonant leadership looks like that isn't registered principally by a company's bottom line and/or in the personal health and vitality of said leader(s).

Sacrifice, unchecked, is not a virtue

1. The biology of stress interests me: seems that overdoing stress robs people of the very qualities that probably make them good leaders in the first place--the ability to stay positive, the ability to learn, and the ability to think creatively: “Under stress, not only does the brain shut down and lessen our ability to function, it also loses capability to learn. . .

. . . we have an increased tendency to . . . perceive things that people say or do as threatening or negative. . . . Our bodies, minds, and emotions lose resilience and creativity. . . (43) Sacrifice, unchecked, leads to less effective leadership and dissonance” (44).

Yes, yes, yes. The imperative of moderation.

2. I'd like to talk about the challenges of giving and receiving honest feedback--really at many levels. Even Boyatzis and McKee seem a little conflicted on the issue. On the story of Karl, in “Chapter 4-Dissonance is the Default” they write, “He decided to share a piece of his mind with the board and wrote a scathing letter criticizing the political environment at headquarters. He knew, of course, that he was violating a cardinal rule of business wisdom by putting such opinions in writing, but he no longer cared” (37).

Later, we read “. . . even when others can actually see that [leaders] are slipping into dissonance, it is unlikely that anyone will tell them the truth about what they see (60). . . and “Most leaders. . . are susceptible to CEO disease, so not getting enough, accurate, or timely information is a common problem” (61). I'm not entirely clear if the cardinal rule that Karl broke was providing blunt feedback, expressing his emotions, or putting any of this in writing. At any rate, it seems that people are reluctant to give their higher-ups honest feedback unless it is good because they fear reprisal, no surprise there! Yet the authors say such feedback is really important (and I agree). A complex challenge that doesn't get enough attention.

Operating Philosophies

Did anyone else do Exercise 1 in Appendix B. . Insight into your Operating Philosophy? I'd love to talk about it when we meet. I'm not sure I understand the implications of the percentile chart, for one thing, and I'm also curious about how others in the group scored! Certainly internal conflicts are a source of stress, as are conflicts between our values and the values of others on our admin teams, the values of our parents, the demands of various tasks. I went back and forth between the chapters and appendices so many times that I got pretty lost and can't quite remember what the context was of that piece on philosophy, but I did make a note when I was reading it that it was blog-worthy. . .

Mindfulness

I am struck by Niall's experiences as described in chapter four of "Resonant Leadership" and find myself nodding frequently throughout the pages. While it was a bit discomforting to read over and over that stress is, inherently, a part of our jobs (must it be this way?), the opportunity we have to recognize the Sacrifice Syndrome and seek renewal should be equally as powerful. The authors introduce the notion of mindfulness: "living in a state of full and conscious awareness of one's whole self, other people, and the context in which we live and work" (p. 73).

Last week, I attended the BATDC/POCIS Leadership Diversity conference. It was an inspiring and thought-provoking day. During one discussion, I shared my feelings concerning how to bring back all this good work regarding diversity to my school. It is one thing to have serious and candid conversations with one's allies and another to try to create this dialogue with peers/constituents who may not be aligned with the same ideals and values. Where do we start? And, then, how do we continue this ever so important work?

Boyatzis and McKee offer some suggestions. Mindfulness and awareness. Authentic leadership. Renewal. Hopefulness. Compassion. Collegiality. What else will it take to feel renewed in the heat of the battle, and lead us on the road to sustainable leadership and sustainable schools?

Diigo Group Access Instructions

Hi Folks,
I have put a screencast explaining how to access our diigo group at http://screencast.com/t/MTNlZDQ5ZjMt. The Diigo group is a social bookmarking tool for us all to post announcements, bookmark and comment on interesting articles related to our topic, and share resources. If you did not yet receive an invitation to the group, please email me (kbradley@headroyce.org) and I'll take care of that. You can also access the group directly and request to join by clicking on the "Apply to Join this Group" button. http://groups.diigo.com/group/batdc-students-of-leadership

What does distributed leadership look like? What works well? What are the challenges?

John, Rebekah, & Nick's Group:

Post question brainstorm in the comments section.

Core Questions:

1. What does distributed leadership look like? What works well? What are the challenges?
2. Leading from the middle: how to best collaborate with our superiors and work when there is dissonance--feedback loop coming and going. . . how best to manage up?
3. How is the leadership team structured at different schools? Titles; interrelationship, frequency of meetings?
4. How is leadership assumed and exercised at the school as opposed to bossing or exercising authority? We'd like toe xplore how other people receive this--for instance Emma come to my (Jonatahn's) school and gather data about leadership at the school.
5. How do teachers take on certain roles at schools? Committee leadership, community leadership: why do they take on these roles, how do they feel about it? How can we nurture them more?
6. If I want to be a resonant leader, how do I maintain my own equilibrium with my most challenging colleagues--people who are regularly negative and dissonant? What atrategies can I come up with to change their dissonant behavior--and or my reaction to their behavior?
7. Is it only by changing ourselves that we change school culture In changing ourselves, do we really change the whole dynamic, which opens the door to culture change?
8. How do I understand why dissonant people feel the way they do? Are those dissonant voices actually the sand in the oyster? How do we discern that? Or perhaps we should not worry about trying to lubricate the wheel with the sand in it and instead grow cells of strength. . .
9. How do we create buy-in around the difficult topics? Especially around parents, who are less invested in the community and therefore not as accountable. . .?
10. How do administrators get feedback? Some admins get no feedback from below or above?

Small Working Groups Formed Today

1. Karen C, Gina, Tim O
2. Karen M., Erin, Pam
3. Mallory, Emma, Jonathan, Kathy
4. Nick, John, Rebekah
5. Rae, Roz, Dave
6. Karen W., Stephanie R., Karen B., Crystal L., Kim
7. Dana, Vicky

Glad to be part of the group

I don't have much to say yet, I'm just experimenting with how this works. I'm looking forward to more! Kim

Boyatzis & McKee, Resonant Leadership Reflections

Chapters 1 & 2: Did it resonate? Yes, in both of the following examples!

On Sacrifice Syndrome: page 18-- "Like Eduardo, we miss the real goals and create dissonance along the way. Our negativity causes us to close down and to stop functioning effectively. At the same time, our stress and negative emotions are actually contagious,. . . It becomes a vicious cycle: power stress, sacrifice, dissonance, more stress, and more sacrifice. . . . that's the challenge of being a leader today: how to manage the Sacrifice Syndrome, to build and sustain resonance in the face of great trials."

On Infectiousness of Resonant Leadership: page 25-- "People's behavior at the company [Southwest] reflects the values and mission that Colleen's contagious resonant leadership has helped create. Resonance is a way of life, not just an abstract goal. People demonstrate obvious, tangible care and concern for one another, and yet they are direct and hold each other accountable for getting the job done and living the company values." [emphasis added]