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Showing posts from April, 2024

The Good, Great, Excellent, and the Successful Leader

 Welcome back teacher friends to another week of inSpiration! I'm glad you're here and I'm very excited to share some insight with you t his week. My message this week is and was not my original thought that popped into my head. I'd like to take this moment to thank Bishop Michael at my parish for providing me with the core idea to start my blog this week.  When I heard his message las week, I instantly wanted to take out my notes and start writing because while the message (of course,) had a spiritual overtone, I automatically connected the theme to leadership and teaching!   I often hear different quotes and phrases describing what makes a good leader, what makes a great one, and what makes an excellent leader. Most of the time these quotes come from the great John Maxwell . After all he is the guru on all things leadership. Over time, through workshops, books, observations, and my own experiences, I've seen all different kinds of leaders and leadership styles. I&

The Backstage Leader: Observe and Question to Lead

 Greetings fellow teacher friends! Welcome to another week of reflection and energizing our teacher spirits! I want to start off by apologizing for the absence of last week's post. It was scheduled to go out, however it ended up in "drafts" and part of it was missing. I figured, let's not test the "secret gnomes" that live inside our computers and start fresh this week with a deeper dive into my inSpiration Sunday.  As teacher leaders, we know that leadership does not look the same for everyone. Let's think about the different types of leaders we see. Some leaders instinctively are the first to make a suggestion for an idea. Other leaders are the first to leap into a task that needs to be completed, but doesn't necessarily need to talk a lot or give suggestions to others. Still other leaders find observing and asking questions the key to their success. This way, they are able to challenge others to think "outside the box" or highlight somet

Position is Power for a Teacher Vision

Happy spring everyone! Time is flying by this school year, that's for sure! I hope everyone who had Spring Break had a chance to catch their breath, regroup, and enjoy it! Taking this time to regroup is not only well deserved but much needed.  As we enter deeper into spring and the latter half of the year,  let's continue our journey of being teacher leaders and think how we can grow as leaders. Those who know me well know that I am a fan of John Maxwell. He is an expert on leadership and I highly suggest if you don't know him to "go down the rabbit hole" with me and feel inspired. You can visit his website here: Maxwell Leadership I want to reflect on a quote I recently read by him “A great leader’s courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position.”   Many people (not just teachers,) believe they have to have a title or special position to lead and make a difference. For the longest time I too equated leadership with titles and positions, especiall