Providing effective leadership is something that I think about often. How to teach without sounding preachy, how to share without being too intrusive, how to help without being condescending. There were a lot of great articles and videos shared for this class, and my favorite was "Motivate the Masses: Experience is Believing" by Michael Fullan. In his opening paragraph, Fullan states, "You can’t make people change, and rewards and punishment either don’t work or are short lived—the only thing that works is people’s intrinsic motivation, and you have to get at this indirectly." (Fullan, 2011).
Fullan goes on to talk about how to help people find their own source of motivation. By modeling effective teaching strategies and technology integration, I can help build interest and energy for other teachers to follow. Next, I need to support, encourage, and celebrate success when teachers begin to find their own successes. Then, when they "actually experience the reality of improvement" (Fullan, 2011) they will be intrinsically motivated to continue the work of implementation.
The heart of the article is in Fullan's explanation of a term he calls "Motion Leadership":
Effective leaders put the needs and aspirations of the group above their own. By working together for the common good, trust and accountability to the group are nurtured. I feel that this is the heart of what I want to be as a leader in the schools and communities where I work. I want to help others attain their goals by sharing, encouraging, supporting and possibly inspiring the changes that others see for themselves.
Fullan, M. (2011). Motivate the masses: Experience is believing. Motion Leadership. Retrieved from http://www.michaelfullan.ca/articles
Fullan goes on to talk about how to help people find their own source of motivation. By modeling effective teaching strategies and technology integration, I can help build interest and energy for other teachers to follow. Next, I need to support, encourage, and celebrate success when teachers begin to find their own successes. Then, when they "actually experience the reality of improvement" (Fullan, 2011) they will be intrinsically motivated to continue the work of implementation.
The heart of the article is in Fullan's explanation of a term he calls "Motion Leadership":
- We have developed such a process, which we call “motion leadership.” It proactively shapes and trusts the “ready-fire-aim” process. Ready is directional; it identifies some core goals as priorities. But rather than forcing the ideas, motional leadership “trusts the process,” knowing that an effective change leader can greatly influence what happens. The process predictably generates intrinsic commitment and collective identity, both of which are powerful steering and sustaining forces. Leaders can still have (and should have) “aspirational visions,” but they need to pursue them indirectly, looking for opportunities to activate and align the needs of individuals and the group. Forcing the process will be counterproductive. (Fullan, 2011)
Effective leaders put the needs and aspirations of the group above their own. By working together for the common good, trust and accountability to the group are nurtured. I feel that this is the heart of what I want to be as a leader in the schools and communities where I work. I want to help others attain their goals by sharing, encouraging, supporting and possibly inspiring the changes that others see for themselves.
Fullan, M. (2011). Motivate the masses: Experience is believing. Motion Leadership. Retrieved from http://www.michaelfullan.ca/articles