Our Head of schools, Dr. Byron Ernest, has chosen a book for members of the administrative team to read and reflect upon. Dr. Ernest discusses this process and what events led up to Dr. Ernest selecting specific books for the administrative team in his blog post: https://byronernest.wordpress.com/2015/12/07/good-leaderbad-leader/ The books that were chosen for each of us relate back to our goal areas that we met with Dr. Ernest to discuss. Dr. Ernest asked each of us to keep in mind why he selected the book that he did for us to read. As I finished reading Part 1 of the book, How the World Sees You, by Sally Hogshead the reasons why Dr. Ernest chose this book for me are becoming evident.
Listed below are the goals that I wrote about in my reflection to Dr. Ernest:
3 Goal Areas
- Something I need support with is building my confidence as a leader. I have always struggled with my confidence and I have always been very critical of myself. I think confidence is something that builds over time and that my confidence has grown considerably in my current role, but there is still growth that needs to occur. You always do a great job with providing me with encouragement and letting me know that you trust what I do, so please continue to do that.
(Confidence)
- I feel that I communicate very well in writing because when I write I have time to think, reflect, process, and edit my thoughts. I feel that I need to work on articulating my thoughts better verbally, for example when I present. I have always struggled with speaking in a group setting because I feel this is an area where I am not naturally gifted. This really stems from the first area that I would like to work on, confidence.
(Verbal articulation)
- I am an individual that doesn’t like conflict and I am definitely a people-pleaser. I need to work on speaking up when I don’t agree with something and understand that conflict doesn’t necessarily need to have negative connotations. Everyone will never agree with every decision that is made, and it’s okay to question why decisions are being made and offer thoughts/constructive criticism.
(Expressing thoughts/opinion)
- I reflect on a daily basis on my drive home from work. I actually don’t mind my drive to and from school because it provides me with time to reflect on the day. I would like to work on getting my thoughts in writing and possibly starting a blog or utilize some sort of medium as a tool for reflection. I believe that good leaders constantly reflect and I need to be more purposeful and get my thoughts in writing when I reflect.
(Reflection)
As I begin to delve into the book, I have been highlighting many amazing quotes to ponder. I tweeted many of the quotes from the book that stood out the most to me! A couple of quotes that resonated with me in particular were,
“You will never rise to your greatest potential by being all things to all people.”
“You are perfect for certain things. You are wrong for others. You do not have to be perfect for everything.”
In my mind, I have many thoughts as to what being a good leader entails. I feel that there are some qualities that I simply do not possess. After reading Part 1 of this book, I’m beginning to gain a new perspective. As the quotes above state, you can’t be perfect at everything. It’s not about blending in like a chameleon and being someone you’re not, it’s about successfully differentiating yourself. Differentiating yourself allows you to highlight the singular traits you already have within.
One of my goals areas is to build confidence in my current role. I believe that Dr. Ernest is sending me the message that I have strengths (Advantages), and rather than point out traits that I do not possess as a leader, I need to focus on my Advantages. My Advantages are what differentiates me and how I add value. I need to focus on my Advantages and how I am uniquely suited to tackle certain types of situations.
After taking the Fascination Advantage Assessment, I have found which two Advantages are my most attractive and professional traits.
As I continue to read this book I hope to learn more about my Advantages and how to add more of my highest distinct value to contribute to the success of Hoosier Academies.
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