In conversation with an administrator who has 15 + years of experience in that role (almost half his life), he was telling me about a leadership conference he coordinated. The others in attendance supervised varying sized teams in their communities, tasked with providing essential services for the children as public school superintendents. This man took his role seriously, as he himself, had worked his way up from classroom teacher, to principal to superintendent. He witnessed the glowing successes and dismal failures in various school settings. Naturally, he wanted to sustain the first and remedy the second.
One exercise he mentioned assisted the others in determining the likelihood of turning the ship around in certain circumstances. He wrote on the top of a whiteboard, the words WILL and SKILL and drew a line between them. They then listed the initials of the staff who fit into each category and discussed the strengths and challenges each person embodied. They agreed that certain individuals had the training and ability to do their jobs well, but were lacking the motivation to put them into practice. On the flip side, there were those who had the drive and desire but required the coaching and guidance it would take to uplevel their performance. Once they had this measure in place, they got to work to create remediation in their home districts.
This exercise is useful in all areas of life; personal or professional. I have long contended that the adage, “most people do the best they are able,” is limited. I add to it, that most people do the best they are willing to do. Think about the challenges you have faced throughout your life. Have you surprised yourself by exceeding your expectations and thought back, “Hmmm…how did I ever accomplish that considering what I had to work with?” I have. It was indeed a sheer act of will that got me through some of the most daunting events in the past 60 years, including deaths of dear ones, life-challenging illnesses, job changes, financial downturns and the loss of my home in Hurricane Andrew. While my life and professional training as a social worker, therapist and minister may have prepared me in some form or fashion to rise to the occasions as they presented themselves, it sometimes felt like something within which I had cultivated that got me going when my ‘get up and go got up and went’. Call it resilience, if you want. My parents taught me through their example that when ‘life gets lifey,’ you find a way to turn lemons into lemon meringue pie. And did it ever!? Both of them lost their fathers relatively early on; my maternal grandfather died when my mom was 18 and my paternal grandfather passed when my dad was in his early 30s. Both found a way to support their mothers who didn’t work outside the home. Many years since they each crossed the threshold into their next incarnation (dad in 2008 and mom in 2010), I am grateful that they showed me how to live without them.
What other factors go into being a successful leader?
- Creativity and out of the box thinking
- Teamwork that has individuals blending strengths
- Innovation and trying something new
- Envisioning and intention setting
- Sustainability
- Generosity and letting others shine
- Integrity
- Life long learning and honing skills
- Stretching comfort zones
- Personal examination and taking ones’ own inventory
- Setting the bar high and daring people to leap over
- Encouragement and cheerleading
- Kind and compassionate re-direction
- An eye toward growth
Do you have what it takes to be a leader?
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