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6 Essential Leadership Skills to Kick off the New Year (and how to develop them)

Date postedDecember 17, 2024
Posted By: Dana Schon, Ed.D. Mentoring Matters, Superintendents,

Successful leadership in an ever changing educational landscape requires an evolved skill set. This summary adapted from a recent Harvard Business Review article identifies 6 key leadership skills to support you in inspiring those you lead to the results your students deserve.

Three key changes impact the need for a different skill set:

  1. In the 20th century, leaders set the vision from above and answered questions; today, the best leaders solicit feedback and ask questions (get curious about yourself, your staff, and your context).
  2. The pandemic has influenced who we are today and what people want from their employer; what has been the impact on your staff?
  3. Significant technological shifts have opened doors to new ways of thinking, being, and working (new generations want a quality leadership-life fit and purpose in their work).

These leadership skills are essential for navigating today’s workplace.

Leadership Skill How to Develop It
1. Emotional Aperture (tuning into the emotional dynamics of your people)
  1. Is everyone on the same page?
  2. Is there tension or are you cohesive?
  3. Does everyone know the role they play in achieving your school improvement plan?
  4. Are all voices heard?

Engage in practices that focus on group dynamics and self-reflection:

  1. After a meeting, jot down what you noticed about group dynamics and your interpretations.  This encourages you to be intentional about noticing, which develops your “antenna.”
  2. Take temperature checks with your admin team. Example: Ask everyone to write down (anonymously or not) 3 things they love about their work that motivate them, and 3 things that are frustrating. Collect responses and take time to review and synthesize the feedback. Then, share common themes with the group. Discuss the positives and the pain points. Be open and honest; transparency helps build morale and trust within the team.
  3. People Watch. Notice and observe wherever you are! Pay attention to emotional undertones and reactions--what’s being said or not said? What do the non-verbal cues communicate?
2. Adaptive Communication (adjusting your behavior and leadership style to fit the situation). “Connecting with the group’s emotional energy can make a difference in your problem-solving and relationship- building; it helps you work toward a compelling vision. Simply put: Vibes matter.” (Exactly what I’ve been saying for years)!
  1. Treat people as THEY want to be treated.
  2. Schedule 1:1 conversations to know your board, your admin team, etc. What do they care about? What’s important to them? Empathize.
  3. Use a personality assessment to gain deeper insight and greater perspective about your board or admin team. Example: 16 types (it’s free and easy to use).
  4. Rather than try to change someone’s emotional state by cheering them up or calming them down, for example, simply acknowledge their emotion-- “this is really hard for you.” Such language builds trust.
  5. Set intentions before a meeting. How do you want to show up? How do you want people to experience you? Do you want to be more curious? More inquisitive? Example: I intend to listen with empathy and limit my contributions so that I can learn from my team. Afterwards, self reflect on how you did.
3. Flexible Thinking (get comfortable with uncertainty and ambiguity; stay open,  seek new ideas and opinions)
  1. Ask the right questions.
  2. Diagram ideas and organize information into mind maps to help you visually explore ideas and tap into your creativity. It will help you discover connections you may have otherwise missed.
4. Perspective Seeking, Taking, & Coordinating (research shows power reduces empathy and narrows focus)
  1. Question your assumptions.
  2. Surface your blind spots.
  3. Expand your network to include those with a different worldview from yours.
  4. Read more novels (fiction immerses you in the perspective of others and exposes you to different viewpoints and challenges people face)
5. Strategic Disruption Skills (Identify and question outdated practices. Push for continuous improvement)
  1. Meet weekly with groups of staff and ask “What could we be doing better?”
  2. Support your admin team and staff in learning new skills -- test, try, iterate
6. Resilient Self-Awareness (recognize your own limitations and understand when to seek support; in addition to shouldering the responsibility for the well-being of your team and staff, you also need to take care of you)
  1. Have a support team (your mentor, colleagues, counselor, etc.)
  2. Regularly ask 6-8 people at work who know you best for feedback. Ask them: What am I doing well? And what could I improve? Give them a week to reflect, then follow up for their ideas.

Choose 1-2 areas of focus, and then follow up with specific questions like: Five months ago, you told me to work on becoming a better listener. I’ve tried not to interrupt and to stay off my phone. How am I doing?

Repeat 2-3 times/year. In doing so, you model how to accept feedback.

Questions for processing in your mentoring partnership:

  1. Which of these skills feels most comfortable to me?
  2. Where do I have opportunities to develop?
  3. What activity will I try to develop this skill? How will I know I have improved?
  4. What other activities will help me develop the 1-2 skills on which I’d like to focus?
  5. Mentors, what activities have supported you in developing these skills?

Read the full article here. 

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