basic agreement; however, to run a school in the modern world is to be
a politician, with all this word implies.
Ms. Hildebrand’s basic leadership belief (also the belief implicit in this
book) is that slow and what may seem like plodding change works best
because when change is gradual it is almost imperceptible and is therefore
acceptable. Such change, while slow, becomes institutionalized far better
than rapid change, which will often prove ephemeral. Bottom line: Mr.
Maroon needed to vent, his principal listened, and they both felt better.
This chapter could have been titled, “Put Yourself in the Place of the Per-
son Speaking to You.” This has become a cliché of interpersonal relations,
but it is true. You can refer back to all the previous examples and add
this principle. Listen to the student, the parent, the teacher, the assistant
principal as if he or she were you. Ask yourself then, what am I really
saying? How do I feel? What do I want from my listener? By creating
this empathy between yourself and the person speaking, you will be better
able to defuse volatile situations.
The only real downside to this principle has to do with the perceptions
of other people. It doesn’t take long for a school leader to realize that
different staff members have different visions of what a school leader
should be and how a school leader should act. To read modern texts on
school leadership, one would think that all staff members want a leader
who shares leadership among all. Yes, some do. But, you will find that
there are many excellent teachers who only want you to make it possible
for them to have the best teaching conditions and want nothing to do with
decision making. Some will flatly tell you that you are being paid the “big
bucks” to make the decisions. They want you to seek their opinions, but
they do not want leadership roles.
You will find that there are some teachers who don’t even want you to
seek their opinions. In general, they are the older professionals who are
used to the authoritative leadership style of a different generation. Many
who have been teaching a long time just want a principal to say what he
wants so they can do it. Seeking opinions is just being wishy-washy.
Listening without strongly expressing an opinion can been seen as being
weak and indecisive. Of course, if you are doing your job well, you’ve lined
up your ducks and made sure that others are expressing your opinion for you
so that you can give them the credit, which leads us into the next chapter.
36 Chapter 3