CONNECTIONS: The Confident Educator
“One definition of leadership: The capacity and the will to rally men and women to a common purpose and the character which inspires confidence.”
Bernard Montgomery
Many years ago, we heard Todd Whitaker suggest that the greatest gift teachers can give their students is the gift of confidence. The same holds true, perhaps, throughout the school community: the greatest gift principals can give teachers and the greatest gift superintendents can give principals is also the gift of “confidence.” Successful students, teachers, and principals are, indeed, confident people. Moreover, we do not know a single successful educator who we would not describe as a confident educator. At the same time, these very same successful educators are also extremely humble people. At first glance, being noted as “confident” and “humble” might strike some as just a bit of a contradiction, but the more we ponder this apparent contradiction, the more we believe they often go hand-in-hand.
The difference lies in the subtle distinction between confidence and self-confidence. Many outstanding educators are confident professionals who also experience moments of self doubt, nervousness, and uncertainty about their capabilities or decision making. This is not only normal, but also a laudable characteristic of educators. These are real human beings who struggle with real problems and reflect on these problems continuously, as well as their own abilities to work through them along with the help of those with whom they serve. Ultimately, of course, such educators push through these moments of self doubt and project an aura of confidence when teaching and leading. What helps them push through these inevitable bouts of questioning is not so much self-confidence, but their confidence in the work itself, or their mission as an educator. The very best educators we know may experience moments of self doubt, but they never question the importance of the mission or their confidence in achieving the vision of the classroom, school, or district they are leading. This sense of confidence they project to others comes across not so much as self-confidence (and certainly not arrogance), but, rather, confidence in their belief that--with everyone pushing in the same direction--the mission must be fulfilled and the vision will be achieved. We admire--and follow--educators who are confident about the mission more than they are about themselves. Of course, deep down, many of these same educators who regularly question themselves do indeed possess a great deal of self-confidence and do firmly believe they can help others grow and help the organization succeed. However, they subordinate in importance any confidence they have in their own abilities to their confidence in the work and the ability of others to achieve great things.
In Good To Great, Jim Collins describes varying levels of leadership proficiency culminating in “Level 5” leaders. An important characteristic of such leaders is what he terms the Yin and Yang of personal humility and professional will. These are leaders who are modest, channeling their ambition into the organization rather than themselves, yet who demonstrate an unwavering resolve to do whatever necessary to produce the desired results. Confident educators are similarly laser-focused on “winning,” i.e., fulfilling the classroom, school, or district mission and achieving the vision by producing the best possible results for the students they serve. Confident educators know it is never about them, yet never lose sight of the end goal and always project an aura of confidence in the abilities of those they teach and lead to get there.
We often promote three critical messages that we first learned about from Jon Saphier: 1. The work we are doing is important. 2. You can do it. 3. I will not give up on you. Confident educators believe passionately in the work they are doing. Confident educators instill in others a sense that, together, the work can and will be accomplished. Confident educators never give up on themselves or others in striving to fulfill the mission and achieve the vision of their classroom, school, or district. Teaching and leading with confidence in our mission and our ability to achieve our vision is another way we create a positive and productive culture in our schools.
Thanks to all educators reading this for the amazing work you are doing during these challenging times. As always, Teach and Lead with Passion...
Jeff and Jimmy
DAILY INSPIRATION EDUCATOR
(Please let us know about an inspiring educator you think we should highlight in a future newsletter by completing this brief form!)
NEW RELEASE COMING SOON!
Daily Inspiration for Educators: Positive Thoughts for Every Day of the Year, Volume II by Jimmy Casas.
Due to the success of our first book of Daily Inspiration thoughts by Jimmy Casas, we are publishing Volume II, scheduled for publication soon. Similar to the first volume, this book includes daily variations on the “Thoughts for the Day” Casas has shared over the past years. Also included are sayings found elsewhere, some of which are hundreds of years old and others found only recently, including quotes from other ConnectEDD books. The goal of this volume is that in some small way, these daily thoughts will provide hope, validation, and inspiration to some of the most inspiring people in the world: hard working education professionals. Serving as a professional educator is so important that we must commit to doing whatever it takes to ensure that every child achieves success each and every day we serve. It is noble work, indeed. But it is difficult work with many daily challenges and disappointments. Daily Inspiration for Educators can serve as a resource that motivates and inspires educators during times of joy as well as when things get tough--as we know they will periodically in a profession as important and challenging as ours. Stay tuned for the release date (scheduled for early August)!
FEATURED BOOK
Eyes On Culture: Multiply Excellence In Your School by Emily Paschall
In this inspirational book, Emily Paschall supplies the recipe for success in today’s schools. School culture is the hidden curriculum that drives a school forward or backward, and when strong relationships and relentless passion are at its root, this is when excellence multiplies. This book is filled with a wide range of authentic stories and lessons, as well as tangible takeaways that will culturize your classroom, school, and community. Emily provides you with the necessary tools to not only live your own excellence, but to multiply excellence in others. In this book, you will learn:
How to use your lived experiences to help someone else
How to unlock the key to connecting with all kids, even those who seem unreachable
How to build partnerships with families so that they desire to work with you
How to make difficult conversations not so difficult
How to help every student, parent, and colleague achieve excellence
Check out more here
CONNECTEDD’S TAKEAWAYS
Thought for the Day: “Stop whatever you’re doing for a moment and ask yourself: Am I afraid of death because I won’t be able to do this anymore?” — Marcus Aurelius
Teaching Technique to Try: Human Timeline. A Human Timeline activity requires students to learn about a particular event and then line up with peers according to their events’ chronology. This strategy uses movement to help students understand and remember the order of events. Check out this link from Facing History and Ourselves for a step-by-step process for using this technique.
Eyes On Culture: We believe that culture is a true difference maker in any classroom, school, district, or organization. As a result, we focus much of the work we do on creating and maintaining positive and productive cultures. Culture Focus: Believe. High performing schools with strong cultures are places in which those teaching, learning, and leading within the school believe in each other. Although this applies to all relationships in the school, perhaps it is most impactful in terms of teachers believing in their students. Indeed, one of the primary variables determining whether a student can do something is the extent to which that student believes he/she can do something. And what, in turn, determines a student’s belief in herself? Largely, it is influenced by the extent to which the teacher believes the student can do it. Our kids--even those who may not show it often--look to us for many things and are constantly seeking our wisdom and approval. When we consistently show--not just tell--students that we believe in their ability to learn and perform at high levels, those students will be far more likely to do just that. We must believe in all children in our classrooms, especially, perhaps, when it comes to our students who are most likely to struggle. We must teach them that hard work and effort pay off and that “being smart” is not something you are, but rather, something you can get by putting in the effort and with our support and encouragement. In schools with positive cultures, the adults in the building believe in all students they serve and make it crystal clear to their students that this belief in their ability to succeed is unwavering. As the old saying goes, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t...you’re right.” Excellent educators make it known to all students that they think students can. As a result, students begin to think so, too. Believe!
What are some ways we can show our students we believe in them? Please share your thoughts about culture via Twitter: @ConnectEDDBooks We would love to hear from you!