Leadership
What Might We Learn From Science? A Personal Journey
In March of this year I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It came as a shock with lots of fear and then quickly turned into gratitude and comfort due to early detection and a great team of doctors. I really knew nothing about cancer except to fear the disease and that beloved colleagues and friends…
Read MoreTrust: The Foundation of Leadership
Trust is an elusive thing. It takes a long time to capture, yet we can lose it forever with one tiny slip. One instance of thoughtless behavior can drive another away from us forever. As a coach leader, how often do you assess your levels of trust? A friend tells the story of returning to…
Read MoreWhose Job is it Anyway?
Whose responsibility is it to build trust in a leader-follower relationship? The leader! It’s up to the leader to make the first move to earn the trust of his/her followers. Not only does the leader have to earn trust, the leader has to grant trust to others so they feel empowered to act responsibly and with…
Read MorePinkie Swear
My friend, John Wink, is a respected school leader and a stand-out colleague. One of the things I admire most about John is his capacity to share his experiences and wise leadership. Recently he tweeted a self-authored article titled the Five Fingers of Leadership. I was especially intrigued with his description of the pinkie’s role…
Read MoreTeam Effectiveness: Life or Death
“Houston: We have a problem!” What if the effectiveness of your team were a life or death situation like the Challenger disaster? What if your team knew there was an “o-ring” flaw in some aspect of teaching and learning and you failed to address it? While some would say that our work as educators does…
Read MoreTeacher One and Teacher Two, What’s a Leader S’posed to Do?
While I served as an instructional specialist, I was asked by a principal to observe two teachers new to her campus. In my initial conversation with each teacher, I verified that they were aware that their principal had asked me to observe their instruction. I then simply asked, “Please share the process you use to…
Read MoreWHAT vs. DO
Coach leaders communicate values by expressing clear expectations for all and asking staff questions that result in deep reflection. Some examples of a shared value and reflective, open-ended questions include: Since members of our school community value life-long learning, What professional growth activities are you finding most helpful in developing your lessons? Rather than Did…
Read MoreWhat is Your Most Valuable Asset for 2013?
Happy 2013! All of us at Coaching For Results Global wish you a very Happy New Year and thank you for your business and your continuous commitment to being a highly competent, confident and courageous leader! We’re proud to be your partner and we look forward to more great times together in the New Year.…
Read MoreBuilding Community – No Longer Just a Nice to Have
“Leadership is not a matter of style or vision but is about getting the right people together in the right way: convening is a more critical skill than commanding” is a tenet of Peter Block’s work described in Community: The Structure of Belonging. Providing structures and spaces for conversations that create communal accountability and commitment…
Read MoreBelonging Goes a Long Way on the Road to Improvement!
One Principal, who recognizes the importance of belonging as a key strategy for improvement in his school, works to create opportunities for frequent and regular conversation with and between staff and students. He believes the synergy that comes from collaborative work will accelerate progress in the school. He believes leadership is convening; that small groups…
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