It wasn’t until I sat down to write this paper that I decided to change the title. Let me explain.
I am assuming that ‘school leader’ refers to those people in schools with specific leadership roles and responsibilities, and those who take it upon themselves to initiate change. In this context it means both leadership of and within an organisation.
The notion of being successful is seldom clear-cut, particularly in an area as complex as leadership. A principal may be successful in one setting, but unsuccessful in another. Even in fields of endeavor where success appears clear cut (such as for an athlete) success has a great deal to do with timing, with being in the right race, with the right field of athletes, at the right time. The Williams sisters are very successful tennis players, but would they be so successful if they were of the same generation as Martina Navratilova? Similarly the success of a school leader depends on being in the right school at the right time. They may well have the same qualities, but whether these qualities lead to success is strongly affected by place and time.
The notion of being successful also raises questions about who is judging the leader’s level of success, and what criteria they are using. Is a successful political leader the one who wins four consecutive elections, or the one who initiates substantial change that you agree with, but loses office early? This is particularly fraught in the business of schools. People’s expectations of schools vary, as therefore do their judgments about the success of the leaders. It is likely that fifteen-year-old students would use very different criteria from those of the Director General of Education in passing their judgement.
These are very important questions, and beyond the scope of this paper. What we do know is that leaders need to be capable of influencing others; and to be influential they have to have power; and the most effective source of power is referent power i.e. freely given by others.
Particular people value particular qualities. Whether leaders are judged by themselves or others to be successful is another matter, for a particular time and context.
So: What are the qualities of an influential school leader?
School leaders have clarity
‘It is unwise to be too sure of one's own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.’ Mahatma Gandhi
Clarity is essential; of belief, thought and action. Leaders, because of the responsibility that comes with their influence and power (and without these things they would not be leaders), do not have the clarity that comes with ignorance, but the clarity that appears at the other side of complexity; a result of curiosity, thinking and sense-making. Clarity requires discrimination.
Leaders have clarity about themselves. They have strong beliefs and values. They know their own worth, which gives them the freedom to be the fool, an essential characteristic of any leader. They are clear about their purpose. These are the lenses though which they gain clarity.
‘Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.’ Mahatma Gandhi
Leaders can cut through mess, mayhem and madness. They have an acute ability to detect crap, and to sort out what is important and what can be ignored. They know when to a decision is important and when it can be put on hold. They can draw bottom lines for themselves and for others.
Leaders are tough, and they know when it counts.
‘A ‘No’ uttered from deepest conviction is better and greater than a ‘Yes’ merely uttered to please, or what is worse, to avoid trouble.’ Mahatma Gandhi
School leaders connect with people
‘I suppose leadership at one time meant muscles; but today it means getting along with people.’ Mahatma Gandhi
School leaders connect with people, and connection is a two-way street. Leaders need people to be influential. It is people who give leaders their power. The most effective sources of their power are who and how they are, and the extent of their credibility that comes from competence and knowledge.
It's a lesson I learned in drama school: the teacher asks, how do you be the queen? And everybody says, 'Oh it's about posture and authority.' And they said, no, it's about how the air in the room shifts when you walk in. And that's everyone else's work. Meryl Streep
Leaders will not always like all the people they lead, but they do want the best for them. They don’t blame. Their first question to themselves is: ‘What is about who I am and what I am doing that is contributing to our current situation?’.
Leaders are respectful, and expect respect in return. They trust and expect to be trusted. They are honest, and allow others the safety of also being honest. They expect the best from people, in the same way as people expect it from the leaders.
Leaders listen and respond. They explain things in ways that people can understand. They keep it simple; the simplicity that lies at the other side of complexity. They keep it sensible; logical, relevant, and in accordance with wisdom and the likelihood of benefit.
Leaders are never too worried about looking foolish occasionally.
School leaders are curious
Listening is everything. Listening is the whole deal. That's what I think. And I mean that in terms of before you work, after you work, in between work, with your children, with your husband, with your friends, with your mother, with your father. It's everything. And it's where you learn everything. Meryl Streep
Leaders know that they don’t know everything, and that the only way to find out what they don’t know is to listen and watch. They take care to know. They are curious.
Curiosity is not demanding, coming as it does from a desire to learn and understand. Curiosity is playful. It leads down many garden paths, sometimes to nowhere in particular, but sometimes to unexpected and extraordinary places. Curiosity leads to flexibility, and appreciating shades of grey. Curiosity is open and optimistic.
Curiosity leads to finding out what is working and what isn’t working.
School leaders challenge the status quo
Leaders investigate what needs changing and set out to create this change. This happens when they challenge the existing state of affairs. Their effectiveness depends on a mix of committed resistance they encounter, and their own artfulness and tenacity.
‘The more efficient a force is the more silent and the more subtle it is.’ Mahatma Gandhi
Challenging the status quo is the nub of leadership. In it lurks risk and excitement. Leaders know that the buck stops with them. They embrace responsibility and expect others to do likewise.
‘The history of the world is full of men who rose to leadership, by sheer force of self-confidence, bravery and tenacity.’ Mahatma Gandhi
To summarise:
For more information, go to: www.leaderslead.edu.au
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mr Jeremy Hurley is Leaders Lead National Coordinator at the APAPDC (Australian Principals Associations Professional Development Council), in Hindmarsh, South Australia, Australia.