Module 2 - Tiffany

           One of the most effective leaders I’ve had the pleasure of working with was a boss of mine while I was still working in sales and management. I had recently relocated, leaving behind one job and taking another that was essentially the same position, just with a different company. Up until that time, the bosses that I had had, I had always considered to be good. I had no major problems with any of them, and had always enjoyed working with and for them. Then I started working for this boss. Personality wise, he was extremely out going and charismatic; if you mentioned who you worked for to someone who knew him, they always responded with a huge smile and an exclamation that they knew him. So more than likely, I would have considered him a good boss based solely on that. However, I soon learned that he wasn’t only a boss, he was a leader and up until that point, I’d sorely been lacking one in my career. 
            What stands out the most in his leadership skills was his ability to motivate our team, sometimes with rewards for meeting goals, but often the only incentive was a job well done. Somehow, you never wanted to disappoint him; nor would he ever require anything of anyone he wasn’t willing to do himself. He was always positive with our team, even when he confidently disclosed to me and stood up for them or took the brunt of responsibility when negativity came down from corporate. He considered his work team a type of family, and treated us as such. Interestingly, as corporate policies and expectations shifted that left us frustrated with the changes, we continued to plunge ahead because of his confidence in himself and us, to continue to do a good job.
            A lot of the leadership skills that I’ve acquired over the years, I have tried to emulate from him. I scored a 68 on the leadership skills assessment. I wasn’t sure how accurate the test would be, but reading it over, I found it to be generally spot on, especially when it came to my weaknesses. I scored the lowest in self-confidence and managing performance effectively. To me, these go hand in hand. A leader that exhibits uncertainty in themselves, is going to have a difficult time in being concise about their expectations of others. Speaking personally, if I’m not certain I can achieve a particular goal, I feel I can ask someone to achieve it; even if I know that they can. I suppose it is the act of expecting something that I myself cannot do, or feel that I cannot do.
          I scored the highest in emotional intelligence, motivation, and providing support; which pleased me, as I strive to be a compassionate and motivated leader.  Like the boss I described above, I want to lead by motivating people to do well, just because they can. I also scored high on being a good role model, which surprised me somewhat because I’ve always felt that I could do better in that regard.

Chapter 3 Keys to Leading Sustainable Change

“Secret 1: Love Your Employees”

         Fullan implores leaders to value and empower their team in order for them to take chances and make mistakes in order to grow. I liked this particular secret to change because I have seen it in action and know the effect it can have on a team.

“Secret 2: Learning Is the Work”

          Fullan advocates that leaders fully support their team in their continual efforts to learn in order to facilitate professional growth. If we’re to instill the ideal of lifelong learning in students, it’s important to establish a lifelong learning environment, from the top down.

Chapter 4 Leading with Technology

         Social media has fully integrated itself into our culture. Part of a student’s education is social, and how to be a responsible member of society. If social media is an active part of our culture, then it stands to reason that students should be learning how to navigate social media responsibly. In order to do so, it needs to be integrated into the school system. I think it is natural to automatically associate social media with Facebook or Twitter. However, there are plenty of other sites that can be incorporated into schools such as Blackboard, Twiducate, or Edmodo.
           We often speak of it in terms of the students, but it’s a part of many lives of adults as well. There are advantages for teachers in networking and sharing ideas via social networking sites such as The Educators PLN. Additionally, I feel there can be a place for sites such as Facebook or Twitter, as it allows parents to connect with teachers and schools.