Leadership as a new role
As our Blended Learning Implementation Team (BLIT) moves towards leading and presenting our innovative organizational change, we understand we will be faced with high stakes, varied opinions, different perspectives, and emotions. This is why it is important to refine my skills as a Self-Differentiated Leader and know how to initiate those Crucial Conversations. I believe our Innovation Plan along with the Six sources of Influence
and our 4DX road map we will create impactful change and with the accountability to benefit the entire organization. As we created our plan with the six sources of influence, we are sure we have created a strong plan for implementation. I understand I must also lead by tugging at the heart along with the mind. I will incorporate the highly effective strategies that allow for a successful, sustainable, change with continuous progress.
Leadership is a choice and leaders can emerge at any level within an organization. As we begin to form and shape these new roles, I must take the time to understand our organization's culture and build relationships. My goal is to create a safe space within the organization in order to grow others into leaders. Empowering others will lead to long-lasting change within the organization. As others take on leadership roles we will work on collaboration, trust, and open communication to strengthen our ideas and our goals.
Get Unstuck
We must begin with getting unstuck. If we want blended learning to be a successful implementation, everyone within the organization should be able to share their valuable input. We are aware implementing a blended learning model will only work when all members are on board, concerns are heard and their ideas for change can be shared.
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Start with the heart
Can I truly stay focused, have conversation flow in order to encourage honest dialogue. If I am to be successful at this, I need to work on me. I need to know what I really want when pursuing a crucial conversation. What do I want? To move forward with implementing a blended learning model within our organization. What do I want for others? To assist teachers and staff with the best possible tools, resoucres and support to be successful.According to Camp (2010), an effective leader must be able to self differentiate, knowing where one begins and ends, but every successful and influential leader understands how effective dialogue is. As a leader, I must be able to share and articulate views even when those views are in opposition to the status quo.In order to remain focused on the teams goals especially when there is push back the following will help.
Skilled and focused communication.
Learning to control emotions and behavior.
Clarify any misconceptions and restate your goals and include
Communicate the Dos and Don'ts of what is needed.
This entails me being able to stay focused on what I can control and manage.
Forming a safe environment for open and honest communication.
The ability to listen when emotions are high
Formulating multiple solutions for challenges.
Learn to Look
We are keen to notice the obvious behavior and communication, but I must learn to notice when there is a risk in our plan and goals falling apart. Really listening for exclusion and noticing unfavorable conditions during meetings and conversations could lead to silence and even violence that can be destructive. As a leader I must learn when to table a meeting or conversation for a later date when I notice the red flags. If this happens I will:
Listen to when a conversation is turning crucial
Become a vigilant self monitor
Look for my own styles under stress
Make it safe
Our time spent having these crucial conversations MUST be set up in a safe space where everyone feels safe to share, safe to teach, safe to learn, safe to grow, and safe to lead. I will help lead our organization to create a mutual purpose to move our goals forward. This will happen by:
Clear and honest communication is crucial in building a trusting organization.
Never leave misunderstandings unsettled.
Respond and make adjusts in a timely manner.
Mutual purpose and respect
Bridge miscommunication gaps by brainstorming ideas as a team
Master My Stories
Gaining control. Keeping my emotions in check and learning not to take things personal will help me grow and not act on hurt feelings. If my goals get entangled in emotion and I act out, the organization may lose sight of why the importantance of our goals. I must emotionally tell a different story and state what I want. A story where I am in control of my emotions and be responisble for my actions. If I start to notice I am stuck I will retrace my path by:
Take responisbility and examine my behavior
Regain control and question my feelings and my story
Stick to the facts and not the story
Don't play the victim or blame others
Tell the rest of the story that lead to healty action
My Path
As a differentiated leader, the ability to STATE my path can help me void being caught up in an emotional triangle. Learning how to developing my path before I begin a crucial conversation can keep me focused on the ideas or points I need heard. If I can not master this the organization may not feel safe and may feel the need to be guarded. If this happens I will not be able to present my message. If I want others to hear, feel and listen to my story I must know what to do and how to do it by:
Share my facts
Tell my story
Ask for others' paths
Talk tentatively
Encourage testing
Explore Others' Path
To bring influencial change I must master listening to others. Not only listening, but being a sincere and activer listener. Mastering this skill and will not be easy for I know this is a weakness of mine. I do tend to want to interject when someone is sharing a story. I have become aware of this and practice pausing before speaking. Holding onto thoughts has proven beneficial. Listening and being able to feel their stories and conversatitons builds trust and safe spaces. When others know I am curious about their actions and that their emotions are validated they will be open to conversations and encourage others to follow. If I am to be a sincere and active listener, I will:
Ask others to express their interests and perspectives
Mirror, by validating emotions
Paraphrase, restate the stories others have shared
Prime, stay curious and offer what I feel may be the problem.
Move to Action
I have grown and will succeed by following through with all my tools and into healthy dialogue. By having committed actions, expectations and clarifying decisions I can achieve these goals with attainable results . When having crucial conversations I will need my audience to understand the process of beginning to the end solution. Clear and authorative dialogue needs to be stated and everyone must know the role they play in the organization. In order to move actions forward I will:
Command, Consult, Vote, and Consensus
I need to only include and consult those who care
I will involove those with valuable and knowlegde that is relevant to our goals
I will ask for asssitance in decsion making by those that share our vision
I will involve a select few to help influence change.
Our Blended Learning Implementation Team will soon have to embark on crucial conversations, but I am confident with the Crucial Conversation tools, we can clearly present our goals, influence members, and sustain success in order to help our students regain their confidence and motivation in school.
If I want to assist in leading our organization in a different direction, I must continue being less dependent and less reactive. This does not mean I will not seek out others for assistance and learn experience and knowledgeable staff and teachers, but my interpretation of less dependent meant not always seeking validation or needing to fit in when it is destructive to the organization.
Our team must be honest and start with our WHY. Our ultimate end goals are for both students and staff. We want to assist teachers in reigniting students' motivation and engagement. Learning from others' verbal and nonverbals will help us learn to read our team's concerns or when they are feeling unsafe in conversations. We can not become a successful team if we don't get to know each other. Listening and looking for cues when crucial conversations are headed in a negative or dangerous place. We know there will always be room for improvement and coming back to conversations may need to happen in order to maintain trust and honesty. Our time spent having these crucial conversations MUST be set up in a safe space where everyone feels safe to share, safe to teach, safe to learn, safe to grow, and safe to lead.
Our staff and students should never feel out of sync with the goals and plans we set. Full transparency and constant communication should help relieve some emotional angst they may feel. To create and lead an organizational change one must take a stand and regulate one’s own anxiety (Bardwell, 2010). We then become self-differentiated leaders. In short, we are able to identify our purpose clearly and take responsibility for our own emotional being (Bardwell, 2010). I must evolve into self-differentiated leader by making decisions, even those against the majority, and remain connected in a meaningful way without losing their identity (Camp, 2010).
Ready, set, let's implement blended learning.
References
Bardwell, M. (2010, November 10). Friedman's theory of differentiated leadership. Youtube. Retrieved March 2, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgdcljNV-Ew
Camp, J (2010, November 10). Friedman’s theory of differentiated leadership made simple. [YouTubeVideo] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgdcljNV-Ew
Patterson, K., Granny,J., McMillan, R., & Switzler, A. (2012). Crucial conversation tools for talking when stakes are high. Columbus, OH: McGraw-Hill.
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