Effective leadership is the key to every successful organization, business or school. An effective leader is a visionary who is not only knowledgeable in his/her field, but someone who can “see the bigger picture” as well. He/she has a dream or goal for the future of the school that is grounded in research-based, best practices and is morally sound. Leaders have an uncanny ability to draw people to them, create the sense of a collective vision, and empower others to cooperatively reach the group’s goals.
Leading by example, the effective leader sets the tone and the standards by which the team operates. He is passionate, reliable, resourceful and honest. As a team member, a great leader actively contributes to meeting group goals and expects that if others are to participate he must “show the way.”
An effective leader develops the leaders around him. In the Sep/Oct 2004 issue of Leadership, George Manthey states that “Leadership that matters is leadership that is sustained. Sustaining leadership requires a plan for distributing it to others”. Capitalizing on the strengths of those around him, a good leader is able to step back and allow individuals to demonstrate their capabilities, develop their skills, and share in the work of leading the school. Individuals are valued for the contributions they make to the school’s success and according to Maxwell (2005) an environment is created that “enables people to leverage each other beyond their own individual capabilities.”
The following link provides a statement regarding educational leadership from the Canadian Association of Principals:
http://www.cdnprincipals.org/educational%20leadership.pdf
For further reading:
Davis, Stephen H. (2004). The leadership journey. Leadership, 34, 1 (p. 8-13).
Manthey, George. (2004). Most powerful act of leadership is giving it away. Educational Leadership, 34, 1 (p.13).
Maxwell, John C. (2005). 25 Ways to Win With People. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc.
Walker, Keith. (2007). Serviette Leadership. Submitted for Publication. University of Saskatchewan.
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There are so many serious tomes out there about leadership and how to be successful at it. For unusual leadership advice take a look at "A Dog's Advice to Leaders." It's really about 13 commonsense principles to enhance your people skills and make you a more effective leader. It's written by a dog owner (there's a surprise!) who also had a degree in HR, who took a look at what works, leadership wise, and what does. I read this book and found myself wishing my leader at work had done so, too! (I'm wondering if I can sneak it in as an anonymous "gift.")
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