Unselfish Leadership

Unselfish Leadership

Leadership opportunities give people a voice. Opportunity gives staffulty (faculty and staff) a voice, and it gives students a voice. Unselfish, selfless, kind, thoughtful, considerate, servant leadership is a lot like unconditional love. In order to get results, you have to be unselfish. This does not mean you don’t take care for yourself. Start with the person in the mirror and work your way out. Without your life’s balance, some people around you will lose their stability. Unselfish leadership promotes spending time with stakeholders.

We start training our students in leadership even before they enter our building. We have a camp for incoming fifth graders at the end of fourth grade. At our eighth grade leadership camp, the students are making decisions about the upcoming school year. One of our most powerful tools is our leadership exchanges with other middle schools during the year: students training students

The short version of a leadership exchange: a school visits us, a few months later we visit them to tour the schools, exchange ideas, team-building, problem solving, character, service, and leadership training. We take everyone out of their comfort zone by dancing and using an opening icebreaker. You can find a plethora of these activities online.

We talk to the students a lot about leadership qualities and their perceptions of great schools. There are commonalities that always exist. There is a correlation between the students’ and adults’ perceptions of unconditional love and unconditional leadership.

With the students we survey, the top qualities of a leader are always great character, communication, inspiration, enthusiasm, genuineness, service, and they value other people. When we ask the same students about top qualities of schools the answers are very similar. Then we talk about ways to get there. Because we explain that leadership is a choice and not just a position, students believe they can be leaders because it is true.

Never be afraid to fail but never be afraid to succeed either. What your life becomes is entirely up to you. Leadership is a choice. Because you have the power of choice, some remarkable things can happen. Because you have the power of choice, some unremarkable things can happen. Every time you choose, you have an opportunity cost. What other opportunities did you relinquish because of your choice? What did you give up? What can you gain?

Climate and culture have a profound impact on student and teacher performance. Happy people outperform unhappy people. That’s a fact. Fearful people may succeed in the short term but happy people succeed in the long run. The “Happy People” premise is based on research but it is also based on common sense. If you are anxious to get to work or school, you will outperform those people that are reluctant to arrive. Students and teachers swim oceans and move mountains when they are appreciated and respected. Leadership provides opportunities for these calculated, creative risks.

Students want to be challenged. They are creative. They want a voice. When we started this leadership journey at the middle school level, we found that most students did not understand leadership. They were satisfied with followership. Once they tasted leadership, they knew they were capable of accomplishing some amazing fetes. They viewed their possibilities differently.

Children are not born in a box until we put them there. Leadership is not only a choice but itis influence. That is how students find their voice. The students see their influence, and they act accordingly if it’s reinforced in a positive way.

I want my children to be successful but I also need them to be happy.