What makes a group highly successful? Daniel Coyle in his book, Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups, tells us that there are three key skills that leaders use to build cohesive, high functioning organizations. The first is to build safety. When we create a safe environment, people connect and create bonds of belonging along with […]
Category Archive:
For School Leaders
BOOK | Peace, Love, Action!
August 28, 1963. The evening news showed Martin Luther King, Jr. giving his now famous I Have a Dream speech. As an almost eight-year-old, I listened, sensing the underlying truth of what he was saying. The next day’s newspaper carried the full text and I read it out loud to my mother, asking for clarification […]
Why You Should Pay Your Child’s School Tuition
(even if your school is closed) Over the past couple of weeks with school closures due to the COVID-19 emergency, school leaders and parents have voiced concerns to me about school tuition. “Several families have requested tuition refunds since we are closed and not offering our contracted services,” said one head of school. “Why should […]
7 Habits Of Highly Effective School Leaders
Positive change. How do we know which direction to head when we decide we want to be more effective. The ideas from the book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey, are a good place to start. Here is a series of articles to help you on your journey to be a […]
Habit 8 | Find Your Voice
Over the past two weeks I’ve shared insights from Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People. In 2004 Covey published The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness To Greatness. In The 8th Habit Covey urges us to find our voice and help others find their voice. One idea from this book that I use almost every […]
Habit 7 | Sharpen The Saw
Carpenters and cooks know a certain rule of productivity. A sharp well-maintained tool makes a job go faster and easier. Plus, tools that are ready to go are a pleasure to use. One of facts of life that I understand now, that I didn’t appreciate in my 20‘s, 30, or 40’s, is that our physical […]
Habit 6 | Synergize
Synergize? When I first read The 7 Habits, this idea of synergize lacked clarity for me. Covey subtitles this chapter on synergy as Principles of Creative Cooperation. As I incorporated the first five habits into my life, though, synergy appeared in my life. As I worked to put my ideas into action, solutions to setbacks […]
Habit 5 | Seek First To Understand
There are four basic types of communication: Reading and writing, listening and speaking. Most of our days are spent communicating in some form or the other. Our school days are filled with learning to become better readers and writers, but how much time do we spend in learning to become more effective listeners to understand […]
Habit 4 | Thinking Win/Win
One of the habits of highly effective people is to think win/win. In our building of relationships there is a fundamental idea that comes into play: We cannot create interdependent connections until we have established independence in ourselves. The first three habits help us develop independence: Be Proactive Begin With The End In Mind Put […]
Habit 3 | Put First Things First
In The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey tells us that time management is a misnomer. Our challenge is not to manage time but to manage ourselves. Our focus should be on enhancing relationships and accomplishing results instead of focusing on things and time. Covey says that our activities can be categorized into […]