At times as a school leader you may feel you are being asked to achieve the impossible. Everyone needs your attention, support or guidance. Your to-do list gets longer after a long day where you’ve worked really hard, it seems like everyone feels you need to give more attention to them or their priorities, you beat yourself up because you feel you never get the right balance for home and school life… this may sound familiar to you.
In essence it sounds pretty normal but also makes us realise that we do sometimes need to stop to breathe and think, to replenish the ‘well of hope’ and be inspired. The Inspiring Leadership Conference for school leaders in Birmingham each year does this through challenge, reflection, dialogue and friendship. Ironically it is the only time I feel compelled to write up my reflections and share as I try and make sense of the diverse speakers and experience to share on my return to school. So I will try and do it some justice. At the end of each section you will find a few questions for reflection which will make sure I act on some of these reflections.
If you are too busy and want the 30 second version scroll to the end of the post to see the 5 headlines…
- Lead the change you want to see in your community through the uncertainties of the world
There are many perceived threats and challenges in the world and a sense of uncertainty. Education in the UK is still valued and teachers trusted but it is not seen as a high priority for the electorate as it is not seen as in crisis like the NHS or cost of living. In leading change ourselves we need to do it in smaller groups, make it personal and not rely on email / online communication. The ageing population we have will lead to changes in the birth rate and excess places in schools that will need us to work more collaboratively in groups. Equally migration will create a more diverse student population that we need to be aware of.
What can we do to be responsive to the changing world around us?
Do we at times need to be countercultural for the students in our care?
How can we stay on top of the changes that are happening around us and not rely on yesterday’s solutions or successes?
2. We find untapped pools of resilience and strength when faced by challenges
In a time of crisis we find a deeper collective response and strength within community. Look at the response within time of crisis such as Ukraine and tragic circumstances such as the port bomb in Lebanon.
Resilience and fortitude are a collective response in a time of crisis. We are all stronger in community and our collective strength is seen – when we are faced by threats we feel happier, braver and more resilient when we stick together.
The more connected we are the longer we live. Living in isolation puts us at risk and diminishes our humanity. It is no surprise how people struggled in lockdown or every country in the world uses solitary confinement as a punishment to break people down!
So we need to keep people connected…. if we have a best friend at work we are happier, more successful and work harder. We seek acceptance in the group and connectedness. We ‘want to be together’ and when we do so we feel happy and safe – watch Chimp Empire on Netflix to get a clue as to where this comes from in an evolutionary perspective! It is simply our desire to be accepted and part of the group and by achieving this we can survive and be happy.
We can achieve more together – this is known as collective effervescence. We behave differently within the group and will buy into behaviours to be part of it. The Icelandic chant which became famous at Euro 2016 when they knocked out England is a perfect example of this. If you ever want an uplifting staff meeting or whole school assembly beat that drum!
We have moved from ‘generation we to generation me’ with the reliance on smartphones, technology and social media to entertain and form relationships. This has led to a plummet in teenage pregnancies! We get more satisfaction from a sense of belonging, community and joy when it is achieved together.
What can we do to feel more connected? Who is on the edges of our groups?
How do we provide opportunities to find friendship at school for students and staff? Do we need to bring back team building activities for staff at the start of the year?
How do we make everyone known and loved?
3. The value of creativity and original thinking is our human distinctiveness
In the world we live in there is a continual focus on automation, convenience and AI. We can be passive consumers of this or critically aware enough to reflect on how we respond to it. Creativity and inquisitiveness are two attributes Chat GPT or AI will never be able to replicate so we need to cherish these human commodities more and encourage an ethical and conscious use of technology to enhance society and not control it.
What can we do to make students critical consumers of technology?
How do we value and cherish creativity?
What can we do to ensure technology does not diminish our feeling of being connected?
4. Tell stories that change lives…
We need to help every student ‘tell their story’… we seek a sense of belonging and identity. In the complexity of young peoples lives we need to ensure they are known and loved enough to see what is happening for them behind what we see on the surface.
As teachers when we care it transforms lives – we can help young people write their own amazing stories even in the face of unimaginable adversity. As Nelson Mandela said “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
What can we do to make sure we get beyond the surface issues for challenging students?
How can we be advocates for them in their lives?
How can we tell stories to transform their lives and be dealers in hope and optimism?
5. We need to think carefully about how we manage change – make people feel safe and part of the group
Our own perspective is informed by our experience. We are hard-wired to resist change to enable us to survive and limit consumption of energy and thinking power.
Ask people their three hopes and fears and it gives them a sense of being at ease in feeling we are in it together. It becomes our session or priority not just yours.
We don’t intrinsically have a fear of being wrong but a fear of being seen to be wrong as this could isolate us from the group. We feel happier when we can test the evidence to see if it is a valid view. We want the baby test to ‘touch and taste’ before we truly trust in something.
As leaders we need to model the behaviours we want consistently as people mimic this to fit in with the group and keep their sense of belonging and togetherness. Leadership is communication and the response to it. People watch you do and remember how you make them feel rather than listening to the words you say.
Ultimately three things we need to remember are;
- Seek forgiveness – it usually works rather than asking permission!
- We learn more when we laugh – create opportunities to simply enjoy being together.
- Lead through love not fear – fear simply closes the brain down.
So in summary, leaders probably do need to be able to walk on water… it is maybe in our failings that we show our humanity. How we commit to improving and learning from these failures will define our credibility, ability to improve and our leadership of others.
So after the two days away I would challenge you to ‘step out of the boat’ and take a chance to show courageous leadership and respond with faith, hope and love to the world that we live in.
5 headlines to consider
- Lead the change you want to see in your community through the uncertainties of the world.
- We find untapped pools of resilience and strength when faced by challenges.
- The value of creativity and original thinking is our human distinctiveness
- Tell stories that change lives.
- Think carefully about how we manage change – make people feel safe and part of the group.
Keep the faith – what you do matters more than you will ever know.
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