Lights, Camera, Action

People keep asking me how my summer is going. I tell them I’m waiting for it to start. As principal of a middle school, I work all year. Don’t get me wrong, I spend a lot more time with family and friends than during the school year; however, there is a lot of work to get done. It was time well spent. 

This just out: the governor called, “Do more with less. I don’t mean just money but time as well.” We will get it done in a timely, exemplary fashion but it can be done in a much more efficient way if I were the commissioner of education. I’ll save that topic for another blog post. Educators will never get their “just desserts” and that’s a shame because great teachers should be the most revered people on earth.

Back to the topic, we are ready to break out our new theme. Each year since 2005, we have started the new school year with a school-wide theme. This year’s theme: (drum roll please)  “You Are A+ Star.” We will have a Hollywood type of atmosphere with our students and staffulty starring in hard work, commitment, great character, leadership, and participation by involving students, staffulty, parents, and the community in sharing the fun and passion for excellence in education. 

We are looking for a service learning platform to accompany our school-wide theme. Hopefully, we can lay it out shortly. We will juice up the kids this week when they come in for leadership camp then our staffulty next week. Creating a place where everyone wants to be will enable all stakeholders to take an active role in their success. 

During the year, we will have themed events starting with a red carpet event next week. Our paparazzi will be everywhere taking pictures when are teachers arrive. The students will be greeted with similar fanfare and enthusiasm. Our traditional “Happy New Year” always gets the kids excited. I know we can make a difference in our students this year, and we will make a positive difference. Passion beats data every time.

It’s all quiet now as I walk down the halls but I cannot wait to open the doors on a new school year! There is always something to be said by the smiles I will see in a few weeks, and that is how I will measure our success. Peace in the new school year.

Celebrate

Celebrate

“We don’t need a herd of chickens. We need a team of eagles.” Rudnesky

Celebration is an essential component of any organization. As a society, we Americans celebrate just about anything. So, why not celebrate success and collegiality within our organizations? Whether it’s school, workplace, a team, or a community group, celebrate when you achieve your goals. In our organization, we celebrate being together among other things. We celebrate a strong start to the New Year. We also celebrate a strong finish at the end of the year. We have a half-left celebration midway through the year. Don’t keep the great things happening in your organization a secret.

We celebrate each other. Most celebrations become traditions. If your celebrations become traditions please do not forget to fine-tune the quality to appeal to different stakeholders and different types of colleagues. We have a team picture each year along with a team huddle each month. The year is started with a staffulty field trip. We have a leadership summit. Leadership Olympics occur towards the end of the year.

A lot of times what makes you feel great makes other people feel great as well. How did you celebrate today? We do a plethora of celebrations. No one has ever come up to me and said, “Hey, stop celebrating so much.”  What are you going to celebrate today? Self-communicate a celebration then spread the fun.

Significance can occur in some of the strangest situations.  We hosted a leadership conference that included over fifty organizations. There was an abundance of breakout sessions, an opening and closing, and just fun in general. Here is an email from one of our staffulty members:

“I woke up Friday not feeling well, but knowing we were hosting the (leadership) conference gave me the strength to come into work. The pep rally was one of the best I have ever seen!  The energy in the room was awesome.  I was sitting near Charley and watching the smile on his face was priceless.  Both the kids and adults all seem to enjoy every second of it.  Throughout the day I heard people saying such great things about our school and our students that it almost brought tears to my eyes I was so proud.  Even in the bathroom there were teachers taking pictures (we have murals and quotes) to share with their schools when they returned.  I found myself last night thinking again how truly fortunate I am to be a part of such a great school.  I know it was a team effort, but none of it would have been possible without you.  You are truly an inspiration to so many teachers and students.  Enjoy the rest of your weekend.”  

Consider Different Points of View

Consider Different Points of View

I hope you are young when you read this because if you are old, this concept will take longer to develop. The approach you take to getting something changed will make a big difference. Always consider someone else’s “point of view” especially when it doesn’t agree with yours. Other “points of view” should be valued because that is someone’s reality. Good advice though, “Do not expect anyone to look through your eyes even when you look through their eyes.” You can refer back to unconditional love. Don’t expect anything in return. If only I considered and valued everyone’s point of view from an early age, my success in certain areas would have been met in a timelier manner. It takes practice, so start now.

Learn

When you stop learning you stop leading. I have met numerous individuals that put “so called” experts around them. This can be a wonderful concept if you understand what they are talking about, and you gain knowledge you can consolidate into a meaningful outcome. When you designate, you must be sure accomplishments are made in a positive direction. Never ask anyone to do something you would not do.

A continual review of the literature is essential in every aspect of a professional career. Add your own research to this review. I found that my own research in my organizations did not always follow the concepts I found in other people’s research. You must take your knowledge and match it to the situation. People are unique in some ways and alike in so many other ways. Do not be insulted when your opinion does not match the literature or your research. Be a learner and a leader. Then and only then can you stay on the leader-ship in the long-term.

We have a plethora of knowledge at the end of your fingertips. I mean this literally. You can look up anything on your smartphone then disseminate that information to your entire organization seamlessly. Sometimes it helps significantly to triangulate your data to make an informative decision. I think that is where a lot of younger people get hung up. They rely of partial information.

If you really want to learn a lot about life, observe children. They are born without boundaries, and they offer terrific insight. Only after they are influenced by adults, do they become less free about their opinions. Instead of telling you what you want to hear, they tell you the truth. The truth always works in the long run even if there are consequences to your opinion.

Problem-solving

“The best way to solve a problem is not to have one.” –Rudnesky

The first step with problem solving is to identify the problem. After you identify the problem, eliminate yourself as the problem. For instance, some people have problems because they create them in their own minds. They look at threats and weaknesses without considering the opportunities and strengths. With every conflict, there comes opportunity.

If you still have a problem, then you can proceed. What is the problem? Is it definitive? If it is definitive, then state the problem. Now let’s do an analysis. List the opportunities (outside your organization or you), and the strengths (inside your organization and you). Now you must list the threats (outside your organization or you), and the weaknesses (inside your organization and you). Compare the two sides.

What are your solutions? There may be more than one. There should be more than one. Which one is the most feasible? Now come up with a plan. This plan will be important. Your strengths will be the team’s strengths. The same with the rest of your team. Likewise, use your strengths to devour the weaknesses.

The Leader-Ship: Who's On Board?

The WOW! Factor

Let’s imagine that the Leader-Ship is a huge cruise ship. Why did you choose to be here? When you talk to people about your organization, do they get that WOW? WOW stems from passion and creates more passion. What’s the WOW factor that keeps people coming back each day?

“Be passionate about it or don’t do it.” –Rudnesky

According to urbandictionary.com The WOW factor is: “The distinctive appeal that an object, behavior or person has on others. An impressive display brought on by a certain object, behavior or person.”

When you walk into our building, we want you to get that WOW! Factor. We absolutely need that distinctive appeal that makes us different in a positive way. When you talk to someone about our organization, we want you to get that WOW! Factor. Some contemporary leadership literature documents that you don’t need enthusiasm to be an effective leader. I disagree. I see that enthusiasm carry over to all aspects of our organization. Enthusiasm generates enthusiasm.

I work in a school, and you may think some of the examples I use won’t work in your organization. Keep an open mind. I think these examples will work in any organization. We’ve had people from all over the world visit our organization from as far away as Japan. One of the common threads is happiness. We had a visitor a few weeks ago state that the first thing she noticed was smiles. WOW, got that one!

Another common thread is kindness. Granted, we certainly are not perfect at it, but we practice on a daily basis. Each year the New Jersey Department of Education requires all schools to have a Week of Respect. I think it’s lame because we should practice respect all year. So I asked the mayor of our town for a proclamation declaring the whole year, a “Year of Respect.” And that’s what he did. WOW!

“I start with the premise that the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers." --Ralph Nader

Commitment

Commitment

I do not know where he got it or if it is his own, but a friend of mine always demonstrates three levels of commitment when he speaks to an audience about leadership.

Level One- Try

Level Two- Do my best.

Level Three – Whatever it takes

Use this analogy: Have ever flown on a plane? The pilot gets on the loud speaker, “Hi, I’m Pilot Bob. I’m going to try to get to your destination.”

Sorry, Bob. I want the pilot that’s actually going to get me to my destination. How about if your heart doctor told you, “Hey, I’m Dr. Pete, and I’m going to try and cure you.” No! I want the doctor that can actually cure me.

Level three commitment reminded of a Star Wars movie:

“Do or do not there is no try.” –Yoda

In the Empire Strikes Back, Luke Skywalker is training with Master Yoda in a swamp on some planet I can’t recollect. Luke, through his new found Jedi powers, is trying to raise his ship out of the swamp. The ship starts to rise then Luke gives up. He says, “I can’t.”  Yoda replies with one of my favorite quotes listed above.

That quote is painted on the wall in our school. It reminds me every day of the third level of commitment. I secretly wanted to be a Jedi master but until they actually perfect an authentic light saber, I will not go through the training. I still partake in Jedi mind tricks once in a while but not in an official capacity.

If you self-communicate the concept of commitment through hard work and preparation, it becomes a mindset. Instead of making excuses, you find a way to make things happen in a positive way.

There will always be self-centered, hidden agendas from people trying to create more followers. When your goal is to create more leaders, the focus stays away from useless meetings, bureaucracy, and meaningless data. Find your passion. Self-communicate your goals, and change your environment in a positive way.

In addition to self-communication, self-reflection becomes a part of a quality process. In the foyer of our school, we have a sign that is twenty feet wide. We would have made it bigger but the wall was not any wider. I was facilitating a breakout session at a leadership conference last week and I asked the audience of adults if they noticed the sign. Not one did. The sign reads: LEADERSHIP. Conversely, I facilitated the same session to all students and asked the same question. Almost all of the students noticed the sign. Why?

As adults, we are already making our next move or talking without listening or not stopping to enjoy the moment. Carpe  Diem! Stop and reflect. Are you where you want to be? I hope so. If not, leave or change the environment. Create more leaders instead looking for more followers. It works. If you don’t believe me, ask a student. LEADERSHIP: it’s on a wall near you. Now take it down and seize the moment! Self-communicate. Our future depends on it.