Creating a Clear Leadership Vision
Compelling Teachers to Action with Leadership
Principals have a difficult task: inspiring teachers to work at quality levels with a sense of urgency under high pressure for little pay. This takes more than mere building management; this takes leadership. And leadership that is effective always begins with a clear vision. It has been said, where there is no vision, the people will perish. The stakes in school are too high to lead without a clear and compelling vision.
Clear Leadership Vision
The vision needs to be clear and significant. Asking questions that form a gap analysis such as, “What is the ideal? What would you like to see happen in this school?” and also “Where are we now? What do we have to do to get there?” is the beginning to opening minds towards possibilities. A leader with a vision should have solid ideas on both sides of these questions, but she should also be willing to allow that vision to be shaped by those who want to be involved. The leader’s vision should also be a little risky. It’s is hard to inspire people with the pedestrian.
The leader needs to be passionate about the vision. There is something contagious about a passionate person. Apathy has been compared to a stench in the nostrils, and it can damage a clear vision. Passion, commitment, and action are enthralling. It draws people in. Clear, concise communication that is ardently delivered about a vision that is needed can ignite people to a cause above themselves.
Motivating People to Action
People need to be invited to join in significant ways. Leaders should not shy away from challenging people. They should delegate, delegate, delegate – but also delegate tasks that are challenging, rewarding, and significant. People should have a chance to affect their environment and the future. It is a chance for people to create their legacy, their mark on the world.
The leader needs to be trustworthy. Following someone and buying into their vision can be scary. Also, feedback is vitally important to a challenging task. Feedback – positive or constructive – from an untrustworthy or disreputable person means nothing.
Communication in Leadership
The leader needs to be slow to speak, quick to listen, and quicker to give feedback. Although speaking and sharing vision is important to a leader’s role, she must invite others to voice their opinions, wait for people to think things through, and not interrupt. The leader needs to fully listen to those she works with and digest those comments and questions before responding.
The leader needs to reward the team members. This is different from feedback. Feedback is constructive and formative. It is different than a paycheck, also. Paychecks are contractual and part of a bargain. Rewards are acknowledgment, gratitude, and understanding of the work that is going into the vision. Rewards can be little, but they need to be tangible and sincere.
Teachers that feel appreciated, valuable, significant, impassioned, trusted, and invested in will perform at levels unmatched by tangible rewards or pay. In the business world it is called synergy. In education, it is merely necessary for students to succeed.
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