Do You Know Educational Leaders Who Are Drowning?

Most educational leaders are drowning. They are drowning in data. They are drowning in competing interests. They are drowning in personnel problems, parent problems, student problems. Consequently, they are also drowning in self doubt.

Unless!

Unless, they have a clear philosophy that grounds ALL of their choices, responses and actions. Without a detailed “desired outcome” for their school/district, decisions are not decisions. Decisions are reactions; reactions to what’s loudest and what’s the most tenacious.

Do you need a life preserver or are you surfing just fine, ready for the Next Big Wave?

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Comment by ddeubel on December 4, 2007 at 6:21am: atu,

If you drown enough you are born again. Meaning, as the old Bob Dylan adage goes, "he not busy being born, is abusy dying.".

I can only guess what you are pointing at, but I guess that was your intention. In my own case, yes, it might appear I am drowning but what I do is swim. And not with any grounding philosophy however comforting that may sound.

Your arguement sounds good in theory but in practice, people "react" and they react poor or well. But most certainly it isn't related to a grounding philosophy other than "what works". That should be the "crie de coeur" of the finest teachers. Not some one size doesn't fit all, which I think you are suggesting.

I'm surfing and feeling fine. I can live in a shack with a tin drum or with my 4 monitors and multiple Web 2.0 interests. Why? Because what I do is not looking back but looking forward. I'm almost there......

But I like your provocative post, we need more probing and less poking...

David

Comment by Randy Rivers on December 6, 2007 at 6:41am: I encourage educational leaders who feel they are drowning to study the following resources. If heeded they will lead to balanced, principle-centered leadership.

Principle-Centered Leadership by Stephen Covey
First, Break All The Rules by Coffman & Buckingham
Good to Great by Jim Collins
Stewardship by Peter Block

Comment by Kelly Christopherson on January 9, 2008 at 8:16pm: I have to agree with ddeubel. Having a great philosophy to put forth in your stump speech works at that time. But, when things are happening and you are in a position where you need to make a decision, you're going to make a good one or poor one and your philosophy on education probably won't enter the mix. Many decisions I make have very little to do with the an actual philosophy of education and all to do with the very complicated world of humans and their actions. Sometimes I surf, sometimes I fall off but I always get back up, taking what I learned from each fall and using it on the next wave. The best surfers didn't just show up, have a philosophy of surfing, go out and be champions. They worked at it, fell and learned and kept at it. They make it look easy because they've worked at it. The same goes for administrators.