The Four Cabins of the LeaderShip

By Frank Rudnesky, Ed.D.

In order to generate understanding and attract nontraditional interest for your school’s leadership, four areas of core competency have been compiled. These cabins of the LeaderShip will give you a starting point to promote positive culture with opportunities for everyone. Eliminate the myth that leadership is just for the popular students or for your administrative colleagues. Make leadership a choice. By creating more leaders, your leadership ability increases exponentially.

Because we are preparing our students for jobs that will be outrageously uncommon, we need the heretics, outliers, and disruptors at the leadership table. Not far in the future, even conventional and traditional careers will look nothing like they do now. Many barriers are being lifted for pathways that are inclusive. The landscape is changing, and we need to fine-tune the process of leadership.

By altering perception, we change the way our students look in the mirror. What if every middle school student had leadership training from the time they walked into your building? Two things would happen: They would not only see who they are but they would see who they can become. Your students will see themselves as smart, strong, beautiful, kind, and loved. Perception will shift and create leadership roles for everyone.

These are the four cabins of the LeaderShip:

1) Self-Management – Organization: Your chances of success increase significantly when you create goals, write them down, and formulate a plan. There is no secret to success; it takes hard work and commitment. By managing your time resources and organizing your priorities, your direction becomes clear.

Spend time creating a personal mission statement. A positive leadership style enables you to spend time with the positive people at your school. Your strengths should eliminate the weaknesses of others in your organization. Likewise, the strengths of others should eliminate your weaknesses. Your mission determines your legacy.

2) Communication – Listening:   Practice all areas of communication. If you want to be a great public speaker, then practice. Even when you think you are proficient at something; you need to keep practicing that growth mindset. Never become complacent in any area of communication. Stay balanced. Always be a self-communicator and a listener. Keep telling yourself what you want to accomplish. Dear You: You are amazing! Now, act accordingly!

 3) Problem Solving and Team Building: Any time you are solving a problem for the greater good of your school, look at it from everyone’s point-of-view. “When you connect the dots in your organization, a leadership picture will appear.” (Rudnesky, 2017) Empower the people around you to become leaders and it will generate multiple ideas and solutions. Great thinkers will emerge. It sounds like common sense but team building is essential for building a team. Keep it exciting and relevant.

4) Character & Service:  There will always be a timeless correlation between leadership and character. Be that person you want around you. Always be grateful by initiating service to the community. What you give will return in a positive light, and it sends a message of transformational leadership. Likewise, never forget to celebrate the success of your organization.

Conclusion: The Four Cabins of the LeaderShip provide a framework to a leadership culture. By offering opportunities, everyone feels like a contributor to school success. Positive attitudes are catchy and become commonplace. Never let anyone tell you, you cannot accomplish something. That is the highest form of identity theft.

Dr. Frank Rudnesky is a former middle school principal and presently an author, speaker, storyteller, and presenter. Email: FrankRudnesky@gmail.com Twitter and Instagram: @DrFrankRud

Rudnesky, F., 50 great things leaders do: let’s get fired up! (2017). Jostens, Minneapolis.