As a leader, how do you bring about change in the best interest of your school/organization by both 'comforting' and 'distressing' your staff?
Last year, an educator I greatly respect used the phrase, "Comfort the distressed and distress the comfortable." I liked it very much at the time and as I've reflected on it, I have come to realize how very important it is for leaders to do this very thing. We need to distress the comfortable. If we don't we're likely supporting the status quo and there aren't many places where the status quo is truly accomplishing what we need to accomplish.
Equally, as leaders, we need to comfort the distressed. One of our key roles is to support and nurture learning and growth - not only for ourselves - for those we lead. Learning happens when we are out of our comfort zones and that can be a distressing place for people to be. However, if we never go there, we really can't learn and become more effective in our practice. As a leader, you need to take people out of their comfort zone and simultaneously comforting them as they move away from what is familiar.
How do you balance comforting and distressing? That's part of the art of leadership. If that idea could be captured in a blog post, it probably wouldn't be a skill much worth cultivating. Leading is artistry when it is done well because we can 'distress' people and 'comfort' them at the same time.....and it all works out well. In fact, when done well, people seek out this apparently paradoxical state because they see how it helps them learn and grow....and people like to grow professionally.
Showing posts with label comfort. Show all posts
Showing posts with label comfort. Show all posts
Monday, 7 November 2011
Thursday, 3 November 2011
Knowing what to do when you don't know what to do
As a leader, do you know what to do when you don't know what to do?
As leaders, we have a significant role to play in leading our organizations especially when challenging situations emerge. People look to you for direction, for comfort, for reassurance, and for strength. This can be incredibly difficult if you aren't feeling completely in control of the situation or if you feel you might not have the skills you need to navigate something really challenging. Nonetheless, your staff are watching you and what they are seeing is important.
We don't usually get warning about challenging situations in the workplace. Things happen. As leaders, we need to be able to respond to the 'things' that happen. A great phrase to keep in mind is: I know what to do when I don't know what to do. In other words, when these challenging situations arise, I know that I need to develop a response. I know I need to communicate with everyone affected. I know I may need to seek help or support from others. Your staff will watch you especially closely in such situations. Knowing what to do when you don't know what do - that is, developing a response, communicating, and drawing on outside knowledge and skill - will demonstrate that you are managing the situation in the best way possible. This is reassuring to your staff. They can't attend to their work if they're worried about what's going on. By being prepared to handle challenging situations at a moment's notice, you ensure that your staff can keep their focus on the important work they do and not channel their energies into a focus on what's going wrong.
As leaders, we have a significant role to play in leading our organizations especially when challenging situations emerge. People look to you for direction, for comfort, for reassurance, and for strength. This can be incredibly difficult if you aren't feeling completely in control of the situation or if you feel you might not have the skills you need to navigate something really challenging. Nonetheless, your staff are watching you and what they are seeing is important.
We don't usually get warning about challenging situations in the workplace. Things happen. As leaders, we need to be able to respond to the 'things' that happen. A great phrase to keep in mind is: I know what to do when I don't know what to do. In other words, when these challenging situations arise, I know that I need to develop a response. I know I need to communicate with everyone affected. I know I may need to seek help or support from others. Your staff will watch you especially closely in such situations. Knowing what to do when you don't know what do - that is, developing a response, communicating, and drawing on outside knowledge and skill - will demonstrate that you are managing the situation in the best way possible. This is reassuring to your staff. They can't attend to their work if they're worried about what's going on. By being prepared to handle challenging situations at a moment's notice, you ensure that your staff can keep their focus on the important work they do and not channel their energies into a focus on what's going wrong.
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