my version of transparent, collaborative leadership...with a Teamann twist

Looking for advice or its been given? You can go your own way!

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Advice.

ədˈvīs/
noun
  1. guidance or recommendations concerning prudent future action, typically given by someone regarded as knowledgeable or authoritative.

Everyone has advice to offer. Sometimes it’s solicited, sometimes it’s not. Sometimes it is helpful, sometimes it’s not. I always get questions in the spring asking how to handle certain questions or how to prepare for interviews they have coming up. This is year 15 for me, and I have definitely had my fair share of advice offered up. I wanted to share some of the absolute worst advice I’ve ever been given, in hopes that you, as you move forward, can discern between what you should, and maybe what you shouldn’t, listen to.

**This all is ACTUAL advice I have been given. Now, for the most part I fully understand this was all shared with the intent of HELPING ME, and I don’t at all (cough, cough) question the motives.**

  • Quit with the twitter business. It’s not going to do anything for you.
    • Multiple LIFE CHANGING relationships, true friendships cross the nation, professional experiences and keynote opportunities later, I disagree.
  • Have you thought about wearing turtlenecks? People shouldn’t notice your outfit.
    • I’m not even dignifying this one. (I still have the notebook in which I wrote all the “gems” this one was shared with. I’m impressed with my calmness in writing it all. Sigh.)
  • Don’t mention the Troy Aikman stuff anymore, it makes it hard for people to take you seriously.
  • Those cutesy sign offs? Your staff won’t respect you.
    • When I started blogging in 2005 I used the same lil’sign offs that I do now. While I don’t use them a ton in my professional correspondence, using them here just feels right. They’re…part of the me-ness that I always want to come through. If I lose respect because of an email or blog sign off, I’m thinking I didn’t actually have it to begin with.
  • Technology or leadership, you have to pick.
    • Negative ghost rider. I don’t write code. I don’t build computers. I leverage the tools available to maximize what I do. In ALL facets of my life…my leadership role is no different. I can also talk about guided reading. It’s not a zero sum game… you can know about BOTH!
  • Poems? No one has time to read your poems. Your staff won’t respect you.
    • Teaching is hard. Days are LONG. If I can write a silly poem letting teachers have a jeans day or announcing the teacher of the month, and it’ll make them smile, I’ll take it. Admittedly, it won’t be everyone’s cup of professional tea, but it is what it is. I am what I am.
  • Talk less, smile more. Don’t let them know what you’re against or what you’re for.
    • BONUS HAMILTON QUOTE!!! I’ve never been actually GIVEN this advice but it’s from a Hamilton song (skip to 1:02), and doesn’t it SOUND like some people you’ve worked for? It does for me. I never want people to have to wonder what I believe in, or stand for when it comes to doing what we do. It’s one of the reasons I value this blog so much. I can chronicle my career (post 2005) and see the evolution of who I am as an educator. Yes, I’ve changed my mind on things…but mostly, I’ve used this platform to extrapolate why I’ve changed or shifted in my thoughts. You don’t have to wonder who I am, or what I stand for…it’s all here.

Now, I am fully biased in my sharing that none of this was given recently, or from anyone I currently work with. (Not surprising, huh?) In fact, when I first met with my current superintendent and mentioned how stressed I was in trying to separate my “Technically, Teamann” self from the principal role, he literally laughed and said, “It’s who you are, Amber. Embrace and OWN IT.”

Do you know how empowering that statement is? You’re never going to get away from WHO YOU ARE. Todd Whitaker talks about a superstar being a superstar no matter where they are employed in his “What Great Teachers do Differently”. It’s true…your gifts, talents, and passions are going to come to light no matter what role you are playing. I once volunteered in an animal shelter and got reassigned to the front office entering data reports and answering the phone because my “perkiness was wasted on the pekingese!”

Stop trying to hide what makes you you…and know that there is a place, a GENUINE PLACE that will take you, take your quirks, take your strengths and embrace them. Never feel like you have to change who you are in order to get a position. And if you did, and got that position? How utterly exhausting having to pretend to be something you’re not. It’s not worth it, friends.

 

Good luck this hiring season. I hope that your world is full of people who give REALLY GOOD advice…but if not, come back & share what you’ve been told here!

 

advice giveN,

Amber

 

 

It’s spring…how can you support teachers when they’re tired?

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This is the time of year I struggle more than any other. Spring in Texas is just hard. The weather is wonky. It’s testing season. My teachers are exhausted. My students are spring fever-ing. Spring break is past, and there’s much to do before we can call it summer.

I can’t fix all the things.

I can buy more chocolate, but I can’t add hours to the day. I can bring in food, but I can’t take away testing stress. I can give you a break from a particular friend, but I can’t guarantee excellent behavior. I can smile and give high fives, but at this point that may actually be more annoying than helpful. Recognizing that everyone is tired is hard for me to handle. I am thankful we have a 4 day weekend coming up because I just want my people to be able to take a break. To refresh and renew. To pause and to reflect. Their commitment level is so intense, I recognize how exhausting that is…and I can’t take that away. But it’s in my very nature to WANT to!

What I can do is be supportive, be visible in my support. Keep buying that chocolate. Keep voicing my appreciation and encouraging them to finish.  I can show kindness…if that’s in the form of a pizza or a protein cookie, I can (and should!) know my  people well enough to be able to offer it up. I can be by their side, in the trenches, in whatever that looks like for them. The call to support and mentor my teachers is always important, but even more so when they are tired. I can maintain the calm, lessening the noise from outside that impacts their crucial final weeks. Provide opportunities to vent or to cry or to pause…and make sure they know that it is OK. It’s OK for passionate, committed people to be tired. That doesn’t make you any less awesome. It makes you human. It makes you an educator in the spring.

 

I would love to hear what you do, in particularly, for individual teachers, to support your team/campus this time of year!

 

CheerleadN,

Amber

All about changes? Remember this… #IMMOOC & an @ASCD giveaway

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It’s easy to have great ideas, or energy, or a big grand vision. The hard part is remembering  that it is your experiences that led you to a place where those ideas, or big changes you want to make, is your reality. Making changes is not inherently bad, unless it’s at the expense of damaging relationships or sacrificing the integrity of your campus/classroom. All of what you’ve seen or read, or been exposed to is what helped shape who you are today. From things that you remember or feel from when you were in school, from coworkers or administrators that taught you what you didn’t want to be, to the role and mindset you’re currently in…there are a variety of influences that helped create the educator you are, right now.

But that’s not where everyone else is.

You have to be careful in your passion and zeal to make an impact that you don’t leave your people behind. This is one of the reason they say significant change takes such a long time, there has to be a level of trust in place before people can take risks. I met an amazing educator at #EMPOWER17 who took a risk in opening up to a mentor, one who also happened to be his evaluative supervisor. At the end of the year, when his sharing and risk taking led to some evaluative push back, he choose to take a demotion and move to another district. That trust had been shattered and he knew he wouldn’t be able to ever feel safe taking those risks again. That district lost out on someone who wanted and was willing to be innovative and take risks.

I also think that it’s hard to drill holes in the boat, if you’re busy paddling. If you’re the only person moving your ship forward, for whatever reason, means there’s going to be plenty of time & room for people to be drilling. Keeping your team involved and feeling that they have a voice or say in what is happening will help keep them invested and feel as if they are a part of the change, instead of change being done to them.

 

What do you do to ensure your whole ship is helping you paddle? I have a copy of “Bold Moves for Schools” to give to some fabulous reader who comments below. I would love to hear how YOU are keeping your ship afloat!

 

Captain Amber

#empower17, step out of your lane! Initiate conversations!

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I have the benefit of being at the annual ASCD conference, #EMPOWER17, this weekend, and as always, there are so many incredible things to learn and to see.

But the best thing that happened today? Completely random and happened because I just have no social fear. We were walking back and forth down one of the hallways deciding where we were going to next and noticed a passionate conversation that I finally just couldn’t help but just jump into. Like literally, stopped and said, “Hey, what are ya’ll talking about because it looks incredibly interesting.”

It was real talk, ya’ll. It was about impacting parents, impacting students…it was about changing the world when the target of change keeps moving. We talked about how very hard leadership is, no matter what your population looks like. We talked about the dangers of vulnerability, in evaluative settings. Of the inherent dangers of having a plan, sharing that plan…and the bravery it takes to make that plan happen. It was intense, and it was amazing. And all because I’m bouncey and random. 

Be brave, edufriends. If you’re at #empower17, step out of the comfort zone of the people who you know. If you’re at a conference, MAKE CONNECTIONS. Be willing to initiate conversations, regardless of the lane you find yourself in today. You never know when you might develop a relationship, learn a lesson, or get a burst of inspiration. Angela was so impressed (Do you know Angela? She is pretty darn amazing.) that she’s going to meet back up with Ms. Hairston this weekend and have her on her “Truth for Teachers” podcast.

I hope you’re following along the hashtag, #empower17, there is greatness being shared! And if you’re feeling brave? Share something too!

 

tweetingly,

Amber

 

Don’t forget…relationships should include parents too! What do parents want from a principal? #IMMOOC

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I am a relational leader. I am casual to a fault. I can’t help but build connections, which leads to relationships, which leads to a MUCH BETTER LIFE FOR ME. I have the benefit of having the VERY best parents in my Whitt Wolf world. One of them Mrs. Stacie Smith is not only a parent I respect  & admire, but our daughters are firstie besties as well. I decided to ask her, given that she does have 4 children, three of whom I will have had the pleasure of principaling, what she thought about the importance of relationships. In her own words, here are the 5 things she wants her children’s principal to know. After that, will follow the 5 things I want all of my parents to know. ( Yes, this goes over GC’s 200 words. Yes, it SO worth it!)

Here’s Stacie:

With 4 children, I have had the opportunity for that first day of school a number of times.  They usually all feel pretty similar, though the hand holding has stopped with my oldest two – they would probably die of embarrassment … Some uncertainty on the child’s part … Some worry on mine … Me placing my trust in those who will teach and lead and guide. Now I won’t ever go on record as saying I liked or even listened to the Spice Girls, but in collaborating on this blog post, the Spice Girls’ song with the ever-famous line, “So tell me what you want, what you really, really want…” may have come up – now was this for good blogging purposes or just for an excuse to break out into Spice Girls song? … Who really knows?

 

Got this song stuck in your head now? …  Going to be singing it all day? … You’re so welcome!

(Amber comment: See? Don’t YOU already love her too???)

What do I really, really want in my child’s principal?  I’m sure that list is a little different for each of us, but here are 5 things I’d like my children’s principals to consider:

1. I want my child’s principal to know my child.

Please know my child’s name.  I realize and understand that you are charged with the care of many students, but my child will know who you are.  My child will look up to you.  My child will want your approval.  My child will want you to be happy with him/her. If you know who my child is – if you can call him or her by name – then he/she, regardless of age, will feel loved.  My child will feel a part of something.  My child will feel connected to you.  My child will feel important.  My child will want to do better and will want to be better. Know your students.  Know what they’re going through.  Know what they struggle with.  Know what they excel at. Create a sense of team, of family, of unity.  I truly believe that when you are able to come to know a child, then – and only then – can you guide a child. I have never taught in a classroom.  I have never sat at the helm of a school and been in charge of hundreds of students … but I have watched my own children with different principals, and I have seen the impact a principal that genuinely wants to know his/her students can have.

2. I want my child’s principal to keep my child safe.

My child will be in your care for 7+ hours a day.  The most important thing to me is my child’s safety and that my child returns home safe and sound – physically and emotionally.  Please take measures to ensure that safety and make the safety of your students a priority.  Do your best to protect students from things that would not only harm them physically but that could harm their minds, their self-worth, and their innocence.

3. I want my child’s principal to love being a principal.

Be a principal because you genuinely love these kids and want to do all you can to help them achieve their potential.  Your love for or your disdain for your job is contagious and can be felt, and it will set the climate at your school.  Set a climate at the school that makes students and staff feel happy, safe, needed, appreciated, encouraged, and excited.  Be visible.  Be accessible.  Be supportive.  Be at events.  Be outside welcoming students in the morning.  Smile and laugh, encourage and love, discipline and direct.

4. I want my child’s principal to communicate.

Maybe it’s just me, but when I ask my kids what they did at school, I usually get the answer, “Good.”  Wait, what?!  Clearly you didn’t even hear the question, because that answer was for a completely different question!  Getting information out of my child is not always successful. Communication requires both speaking and listening.  Keep parents informed of what is going on at school – events, programs, testing dates, picture days, policies and procedures, etc.  Parents want to know what’s going on with their children at school.    Have an effective and a consistent way of communicating with parents, and communicate from many different avenues – email, voicemail, social media, flyers.  Listen to your parents.  Get feedback from your parents.  Have a parent advisory council where you can run new ideas and programs by a variety of parents to get insight and where you can get feedback on how things are going.  Let parents be a part of the team.

5. I want my child’s principal to value his/her teachers.

The teachers you hire will have the most contact with and potentially the biggest impact on my child.  Hire teachers that love to teach.  Value your teachers.  Realize that just like your students, they all have different personalities and different strengths.  Lead in a manner that pulls those personalities and strengths out of them.  Let them know they are appreciated.  Give them honest feedback.  Help them grow when growth is needed.  Inspire, encourage, and guide them.  Show them you value them by listening to them.

Each September, I send you what is most important to me.  I have trust and faith in you.  I am here to support you.  I will cheer for your accomplishments and rally for your successes.  I thank you for all you do.  We share in the same goal – to help these amazing kids realize their abilities and achieve their potentials.

Ya’ll. Is that not SO powerful?

Here’s mine…without a Spice Girls tie in, 🙂

1. I want my parents to know how seriously I take my position.

I don’t take myself too seriously. (Again, I am casual to a fault.) But what I do? Each and every day matters. Each interaction I have with you, or your child, is important. It could be the ONE time I speak to/with you or the 500th…it is still so important. It’s important that you know that you can come and talk to me, and that I am going to take you and your concerns very seriously. What matters to you, is important to me. I am a PROUD principal. I am HONORED to be where I am. I know some AMAZING people who would love to sit where I am blessed to sit every day, and I won’t ever take that lightly. That doesn’t mean that I won’t dress up or be silly with my Wolves, because I also take their LOVING school, very seriously.

2. I want my parents to know how much I appreciate their role in what we do.

I can’t do my job alone. More than that, I don’t want to. I am a firm believer in a collaborative style of leadership. If the smartest person in the room, is the room, then parents? I want you in my room! Who knows your child better than you do? Who is going to fight harder for your child than you will? No one. I see you up there, decorating, filing papers, having hard conversations. Mommying and daddying your hearts out. I see you.  There are 667 Wolves enrolled in my care, as of today. (I know this number, each and every day. Why? Because every.single.one.matters!)

3. I want my parents to know I trust my teachers and while I will ALWAYS listen to them, I will also go to my teachers with concerns.

As a professional, I recognize there are always three sides to every story. (Four sometimes if there is a kindergartener involved!) I will 100% listen to every single concern, situation, or question you have. But I will also 99% of the time go straight to my teacher when we are finished. They are on my front lines. They know the context of the situations, they know the dynamics of their classrooms. I value what my teachers do and the power in what they do every day. I will always have their backs. That doesn’t mean I won’t do right by you, but I will also try to do my best by them.

4. I want my parents to know I am doing the very best that I can, but I know I can always do better.

There is no manual with this position. Even after having been an assistant principal for 5 years, I can say I learn something EVERY day. I would like to think I get better every day.  I read books like a crazy person. I’ve chosen to surround myself with learners, some of the nation’s best principals via my learning network, and have our superintendents on speed dial. By going to conferences and speaking on leadership, I am actually growing myself, which makes me a better leader for you, our staff, and my students. I never want to be “all finished” with learning how to be the very best principal I can.

5. I want my parents to know I am a wife & mom too.

I have a teenager, my beast. I have a first grader, my TsT who keeps me on my toes. They are active girls, who deserve to have me at their events, at their celebrations, and awake in the evening. I am probably the meanest wife in the world, because by the end of the day, I have nothing left. I am asleep by 9pm. I say that it’s a good thing I’m cute & funny, because domestication tasks are NOT my gift.  Although, MT would tell you I’m actually not that funny!   My point is that I am like you…I have a life, responsibilities. And despite those, I am still 100% committed to being the VERY proud principal of my Wolves. Sometimes I may just need you to help me balance it all..

Which, actually, brings me to this.

Separately, we can only be so successful. But together? We can, and will, change the world. Do it…with me.

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And, yes, a Spice Girls song to help seal the deal.

 

 

Stacie, THANK YOU for writing this with me. I appreciate your truth, always.

Sharingly,

Amber