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Strategies to avoid #PrincipalPanic in the pandemic…it’s a thing.

March 30, 2020 by Amber Leave a Comment

One little month away from the blog and literally everything has changed. What are you doing as a principal right now to help your people stay calm in this pandemic, while also taking care of you? I’m about ready for our structured, regularly stressful, typical work world to return. (Remember when STAAR test stress was the worst stress? Ugh. I miss those days!)

I’ve seen much on the Facebook or the twitters about what we “should” be doing or what “actually” matters right now. I’m just trying to not kick my children and husband out of the house, 🙂

That being said…I have seen some really good ideas come across and wanted to share some of what we’re doing with you…it’s definitely helping me stay sane and feel productive. There’s nothing worse than an unproductive enneagram 3!

 

Things I am doing for Amber:

  • waking up and working out, just an hour and a half later than usual
  • watching things I don’t usually have time to watch b/c I go to bed at 9pm like a 7th grader
  • walking the dog twice (TWICE!) a day
  • having a “schedule”…even if it’s a made-up in my head schedule that nobody knows about but me
  • eating snacks

 

Things I am doing for staff:

Taking care of my people is LITERALLY one of my favorite parts of my job, so not being able to get to them has been hard.

  • phone calls. ACTUAL voice calls to check in and say hi. I ask how they ARE, not what they’ve been doing. 
  • Sunday night motivation texts to teams, just an image or a gif
  • Keeping emails brief, supportive, and appreciative
  • Letting go of unreasonable expectations, just being REAL PROUD of a pivot none of us saw coming
  • Respecting that some are parenting, wife-ing/husband-ing, and teaching…all at the same time
  • weekly staff meetings, to see all the faces via google meet–trying to make these short, sweet, and involve something FUN!
  • I’m going to mail, as soon as the OCD fireman allows me to, one of these out to everyone
    • Business sized motivation cards
    • Kindness cards
    • Live the life you love postcards (<— these are my favorites! and there are 100 of them!)

 

Things I am doing for lil’Wolves and families:

We are lucky enough to have an engaged community via social media, so I am able to utilize Facebook and know we’re getting exposure. Because I’ve read so much about the different ways Facebook links the algorithms of views and their feed, I know that the more engagement a post has, the more it is going to show up in people’s feeds. That means every time we post something, and we get a comment, the page comments back. This has raised the average view of what we’ve been sharing post-pandemic by 150%. Enlisting some of our professional staff who may not be as busy with our online learning has been a win-win for this strategy. 🙂

  • Coach Kyle, our PE coach, jumping in twice a week with fun workouts for Wolves
  • Read aloud each day at 9 am by a surprise guest reader (Alpha Phonics, ESL, Art…all our people want a turn doing this! Even our lunch lady signed up!)
  • Friday we go live with jokes on Facebook with our assistant principal and myself
  • Our music teacher plays the flute, sings, or has her son play the piano as she announces all the day’s birthdays
  • teachers are making posters/signs for us to share in a video, set to some sappy song I haven’t chosen yet 🙂

Anything that we do live, you could also just record and send links out!

 

What are you doing to avoid #PrincipalPanic right now?

I hope that you are modeling what it looks like to be calm in an absolute season of knowing nothing.

Click To Tweet

It’s ok not to know. And if I could convey peace and assuredness to my people right now, then I can turn everything else off, and hopefully, communicate what is most important…which is that we’re going to be ok.

 

Thinking of you &

Technically, yours Amber Teamann

Filed Under: Principal, Uncategorized Tagged With: #beintentional, #students, #teachers, AmberTeamann

When little things send a big message… #QuoteOfTheDay

February 29, 2020 by Amber Leave a Comment

One of my favorite spots in our halls is right in the front entryway. Our building is laid out so that every wing of classrooms branches out off of a long main hall, so to get to where you want to be, you’ll walk right by our “Quote of the Day” spot on the wall.

Each week a different teacher creates a “quote” poster that hangs for all to see. Think anchor chart… of inspiration! I have zero artistic ability, but something about my Wolves, they are incredibly willing to put themselves out there and make it happen, every time I ask.

We used a Silhouette to cut out the “Keep the Quote” part and use chart paper on a rope to roll down each week. (less than $20 bucks, tops!) When a teacher creates the new quote, they get to keep the one from the week before. One of my favorite things is seeing those older quotes hanging outside their door or in their rooms.

Words have such power. They can make us happy, they make us sad. They can make us FEEL.

Click To Tweet

Sometimes, when you don’t even have words, just feelings? That’s even more amazing.

My husband tells me all the time that I am very “simplistic”, (which is a different eye-roll worthy conversation in itself) but I know he means that because I allow myself to get so emotionally invested in words…in books or insanely meaningful twitter posts that make me cry…instead of having a staunch stoicism of evaluating whether any of it ACTUALLY matters in life. I’m the girl whose headache goes away when she takes Tylenol, because duh, that’s what it’s supposed to do. When I read something uplifting or encouraging? It brightens my mindset and outlook. It pushes me on. Simplistic or not…it works.

Within our halls, our goal is to encourage and motivate our wolves…from the moment they walk in, till the moment they walk out. The detail of what is hanging in our halls is a part of that.

That’s what these quotes are all about. Encouragement. Motivation. A reminder that words matter.

Use your words for good today.

 

Quotingly and

 

 

 

 

 

PS: Was this post helpful? You might like Melinda Miller’s and I’s book, Lead With Appreciation: Fostering a Culture of Gratitude! The book is packed with ideas to help leaders at any level support their staff and develop a PLAN for making sure climate and culture isn’t the ball that gets dropped when #leadershiplife happens! You can order your copy here, Lead with Appreciation: Fostering a Culture of Gratitude.

Filed Under: #leadwithappreciation, Campus ideas Tagged With: #beintentional, #communication, AmberTeamann

Over 400 years of leadership advice for NEW principals…but great lessons for us all!

January 28, 2020 by Amber 2 Comments

I’ve mentioned before the Achieving Leaders! group that our superintendent has started in Wylie ISD, meant to help leaders from all over be engaged in transparent authentic conversations that are sometimes hard to put into a district agenda. The kind of conversations that are organic to the seasons of the year that we go through, or are just flat out relevant in our leadership world. It’s these kinds of “sidebar” conversations that can sometimes help leaders grow the most. I don’t know about you, but being able to go back and forth with people who are doing the same thing I am doing can have a greater impact than someone just talking to me “about” something. Conversations, stories, relationships.

That’s what the Achieving leaders! group has been about. Feel free to join us!

I’ve been able to step in as “co-host”, if that’s an appropriate term and we’ve brought on a variety of our district admins, at all the levels, to just engage in conversations about things like “defining your green zone” or what it looks like as the leader to have ” the little while place”, a hard topic about conversations with your community in critical times…something no one wants to think about but GOOD GRIEF, how very beneficial it is to know someone has navigated through some tragic waters successfully.

One of my favorite episodes we invited in an “about to be named” elementary principal, Mr. Joey Wilborn, to receive the gifts of leadership advice, right before Christmas. I’m not going to link that episode, because we all dressed up as elves, and that should just remain buried on the page, 🙂 but I definitely wanted to make sure I shared the AMAZING advice that our district was able to share with him.

With over 400 years of cumulative experience, these bits of wisdom are not only great for new leaders but were fantastic reminders for me as well. I know there’s a lot, but I just couldn’t cut any of them out! I hope they resonate with you as well!

  • You will have so many great things you want to implement!! My advice is to not try and do everything right when you start. I have found that the more I am able to build context prior to changing something or trying something new, the better it is received. 
  • Give yourself the grace of a new day…every day! This is a tough role and while you have an idea of what you will want to do while you live in it, it will take time to become THAT person.
    YOU will be your toughest critic, so lighten up and give yourself room to breathe.

    Click To Tweet

  • Do overreact. Step back and think about the challenge before you say something or something.
  • Smile and encourage always – even in the worst situations! There is always someone listening and watching you, your words and definitely your actions.
  • 1. Take the time to learn about your students, parents, staff, and the relationships that exist in your school community before you make big changes.
    2.

    Recognize that you will make mistake and bad decisions, and the important thing is to learn from those experiences…and not repeat them.

    Click To Tweet

    3. Be intentional about the people you invite into your circle of trust. They should be people who truly support your leadership, and who will also be honest with you. Identify the “yes” people early on.
    4. This is a marathon, not a sprint. Take time for the things that matter most to you.
    5. Students, parents, and staff will provide you with many challenges…don’t be afraid to laugh at some of the trickiness that you will be presented with…it will keep you sane.

  • 1.) Listen first, speak last.
    2.) Don’t make assumptions-learn the “campus” way and then make decisions.
    3.) Being visible in the hallway, at events, and around parents goes a LONG way!
    4.) Get to know the leaders on your campus and listen to their vision of the school. Find out about the past to help shape the future and your vision.
    5.) Take the time to meet with all of your teachers and get to know them! Time spent one-on-one with your teachers will help them to get to know you better and what you are all about.
    6.) Sweet notes are appreciated and will help build trust.
    7.) Ask for help from the district and other principals. It doesn’t mean you are not capable, it just means you want to make the best decision for your staff and students.
    8.) Not everyone will like you or your ideas…that’s OKAY! If you are making a decision that is best for kids then it is a good idea!
    9.) Find the areas of the job that bring you JOY, and do them every day. For me, it is either writing an encouraging note to a staff member or having a conversation (or two) with kids at lunch, in the hallway, or in their classrooms!
    10.) Stay positive! Your attitude will reflect the feelings of the campus.
  • Don’t underestimate the little wins. Develop a system to monitor your big three goals as well as your day to day to do.
  • Don’t rush relationships!

    Click To Tweet

  • Find what makes you happiest on campus and visit there often. Your bucket needs to be filled too and knowing how to do that is very important to keeping balance with the everyday events and activities. Good luck!
  • Listen, listen, listen… whether it is your students, teachers, or a parent… most of the time people just need to be heard and they feel better once they have shared their thoughts, concerns, etc… Your willingness to hear them out often allows you to steer the conversation to where there is a positive outcome for all!!
    And above all, be a servant leader…never forget what it was like to be in the classroom – teacher eyes, always!
  • Take time for people- You are great at this and it pays off. Call for help- You don’t have all the answers right now. When times get hard or overwhelming, go find kids.

 

If I’d had these words, five years ago, when I started this journey…and actually LISTENED to them…I can’t even imagine how much easier that first couple of years would have been. I know Joey was super appreciative and I can’t wait to watch his journey!

Do you have any additional advice you would share?

 

helpingly &

Filed Under: Leadership Tagged With: #beintentional, AmberTeamann

How can you make your February FABULOUS for your teachers? #LeadWithAppreciation

January 24, 2020 by Amber 5 Comments

 

We all know by this point February can be a dip in morale for our teams. It’s cold, it’s dreary, spring break still seems like it’s forever away…what if you INTENTIONALLY make this a fun month for your team? Try having Fabulous Fridays in February!

What began as something fun for me to do to brighten our team’s month has not only become a tradition but at this point, five years into my Whitt Wolf world, my teachers are ASKING for Fab Fridays! I can’t tell you how happy that makes me! It’s been 10 years of Fab Fridays y’all. TEN!! Here are five things I’ve learned to help you make sure your Fab Friday’s go off without a hitch!

5 Fab Friday Lessons!

  1. Plan ahead. My *secretary* knew in September to make sure and watch my 461 (discretionary budget code) line because I always do a few “somethings” this month. I started asking our leadership teams earlier in the month what they had enjoyed in the past or wanted me to make sure and include. We’ve got ours nailed down, added to a calendar and handed out.
  2. Mix it up! I added *more* this year but balanced free things with things I could purchase or do. They love free time, they love the warm-up days…it doesn’t have to be expensive to show your team you’re grateful for what they do!
  3. KNOW your people! We talk a lot about the value in knowing your team in Lead with Appreciation: Fostering a Culture of Gratitude. I have friends who are gluten-free, friends who are vegetarians, friends who don’t eat like a teenage boy as I do. 🙂  We don’t want them to look at these activities as things that they don’t get to participate in, everyone should get excited about Fridays in February!
  4. Leverage your people! I have mommas who love to bake, who love to help, who love to cut and hand out. I make sure I include them this month as well. From finding and cutting out my celebrity couples to donations for that delicious baked treat…I take advantage of this incredible community. Y’all, I managed to ruin not one, but two, dinners this week (it’s just not my gift.) but ya know what? I don’t have to do all of this by myself! The goal isn’t for you to walk away even more tired or despondent because of all that you’ve added to your own personal plate.
    Look around and ask for help!

    Click To Tweet

  5. Keep it simple! You literally can do one big thing this month…or tons of little things. Do all the free things. Simply cancel a meeting. Remove an expectation. Let them leave early. So many options! If you’re looking for MORE ideas, you can find some of our past years’ plans here, here or here!

 

Are fabulous Fridays in February already here, and to close for you to handle all this thinking and creating? What about Mondays in March or even a “you’re awesome” in April can also work! The main goal is to remind your teachers that you see them working hard, keeping their students at the forefront of what they do and that you just want to, yep, you guessed it, lead with appreciation!

 

 

Fabulously &

 

 

 

PS: Was this post helpful? You might like Melinda Miller’s and I’s book, Lead With Appreciation: Fostering a Culture of Gratitude! The book is packed with ideas to help leaders at any level support their staff and develop a PLAN for making sure climate and culture isn’t the ball that gets dropped when #leadershiplife happens! You can order your copy here, Lead with Appreciation: Fostering a Culture of Gratitude.

 

Filed Under: #leadwithappreciation, Leadership Tagged With: #beintentional, AmberTeamann

To be known or to be impressive? #2020oneword

December 30, 2019 by Amber Leave a Comment

Twitter is so fun. We have a new-ish pastor. He’s been around now for about a year, but we attend a satellite church, so I’ve actually never met him. We are always entertained and moved through his message though. He also has been fantastic to follow and learn along with through the twitters.  It’s developed a “connection” from afar, and even just that tenuous of one, makes me feel more plugged into his sermons/messages.

While scrolling, I came across this tweet the other day and it made me pause.

 

Just through a quick read, I thought well that’s silly. Can’t I can be super impressed with people I know? I know some pretty impressive people after all… (coughTroycough)

He, so graciously, responded…and I just can’t stop thinking about how very much of THIS KIND of leader I want to be.

 

 

This is why I’m so transparent in my failures and the mistakes I’ve made as a leader. (#thefirstyear, just as a reminder.)

It’s also why I’m so anti “cotton candy leadership”. The notion that our jobs are all about riding tricycles or how giving up our offices is the right & easy thing to do…just kills me. Our jobs are hard! (and amazing and rewarding and filled with the VERY best of lil’people!!) but also, HARD.

Recognizing the multifaceted role that we are charged with…never letting any of those balls drop…being able to be SEEN in the role…means more to me than being impressive. It’s recognizing that sometimes it’s more important to let people see the struggle than just to assume the success. Otherwise its a misrepresentation of the MOST important things we do…change lives.

 

It means being KNOWN. Sharing the good, the bad, the struggles. Sharing the flaws and the failures…always being real.

And being ok with it.

 

My word for #2020 is going to be “known”. To be seen for #allthethings, not just the high light reel that is traditionally shared. (Although, let’s be honest, I’m not really that kinda girl anyway. )

 

Thanks for the nudge, JH! I look forward to ACTUALLY meeting you, 🙂

 

2020 ready &

 

Filed Under: #leadwithappreciation, Leadership Tagged With: #beintentional, #thefirstyear, AmberTeamann

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