Transparency in Leadership, Reason #3

Reason #3 for Administrators to Blog

Okay, here’s the tricky part. It’s risky to put yourself out here each and every day. You’ve got to have some chutzpah to do it. But if you haven’t got the moxie, what are you doing in administration in the first place? It’s our job to lead, not just lead the status quo, but to INSPIRE and MOTIVATE and MAKE EXCELLENT DECISIONS and SUPPORT and ENCOURAGE, to create with our teachers and our students  the best possible education.

You can’t do that quietly in your office. You can’t do it by yourself. If you’re really in this job to make a difference and to change the world, then we’ve got to step up and stand up for what we know is right. Being transparent and allowing our entire school community to know what we’re thinking in person and on the blog is one means to that end. Listening to those around us and considering their thinking is another important means to that same end. And it happens here on the blog as much as it happens in the hallways and at the school events.

Does it ever come back to bite you? Every now and then, someone will quote something I’ve said on the blog in a way that I never intended. And you know what it makes me do? It makes me reflect on that thinking, to re-read the post, and to realize that I must be mindful with my words. I know I have to carefully think about what I say here, to consider my audience, to share appropriate topics–it’s a responsibility to say what I mean and mean what I say.

That’s my responsibility every day when I come to work, so how much harder can it be on the blog? It’s not. The more you write, the better you’ll get at it. Be sincere and tell the truth, always.