Think about the school leadership training you received. Maybe you were taught to write a vision statement, create a strategic plan, and craft SMART goals. Maybe the training said you needed to get in the classroom more? Look at more data. Or give better feedback to teachers with that perfect script of hard conversations. This was the way to get everyone on board and moving together, with purpose, toward the goals you set.
That’s what a school leader does.
But the problem is that this type of school leadership in the real world is that you end up pushing or dragging people toward what you want. It often results in a scenario that we at Mindsteps see at many schools – you as the school leader end up working harder to eek out only incremental gains. Yet, when it comes to your vision of significantly improving or reinventing your school, it still seems out of reach.
That’s where Buildership® comes in.
To explain this, think about the difference between a boss, a leader, and a builder. When we act like a boss and say “Go,” we are trying force our school to achieve goals. That never works. When we act like a leader and say, “Let’s go,” we are trying to push or pull our school toward our goals. That can work to a limited degree, if we’re strong enough, obstinate enough, and assemble and deploy just the right resources. But when we become builders and say, “Come along with me,” we invite others to help us create something extraordinary. There’s no pushing, pulling, or dragging. We just get to work. And if what we are building is compelling enough, more and more people will choose to join us.
Buildership® allows you to get off the hamster wheel of school improvement and stop settling for exhausting work that produces tiny incremental gains. Instead, Buildership® will help you produce a bold vision, grow your staff, reduce teacher resistance, and develop the disciplined execution you need to realize that vision.
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