Leading during Consistent Turbulence and Change
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The beginning of the school year has made it very clear that we are still leading our schools through new territory and constant change. We may have gotten better about not waiting until things "calm down" to take that next step, but if you are trying to lead on your own, you're probably exhausted. We wanted to share a couple of posts from last year that were focused on how to lead an organization when there is consistent turbulence and change.
In April of 2020, we shared The First Steps for Thriving in a Whitewater Environment. This post focused on 1) building collective trust, and 2) ensuring all employees use your mission, vision, and values to lead from any seat at any time.
Now, employ these techniques to thrive during constant change, as proposed in the follow-up article “How to Lead in Permanent Whitewater:”
Vulnerability makes us stronger. Don't pretend to have all the answers. Practice humility. Embrace growth, learning, and transformation during this time.
Leading is a team sport. Ensure everyone knows that they have the ability & responsibility to lead and make decisions in the moment based on your values, mission, & vision.
Pause to find the pattern. Even while rafting, you may pause to view the river from above. Calm your mind enough to observe and reflect. Find the logical pattern so that you at least fail forward.
Model collective trust and safety to innovate. Model risk-taking. Celebrate those who used the values and mission to decide what to do. Celebrate what we learned, even if we failed.
Get wet before rafting & go with the flow. Start with improving existing processes or testing something on a small scale. More success comes from improving your skills to navigate the flow than from trying to change the direction of the water.
Razzetti, G. (2019, December 12). “How to Lead in Permanent Whitewater.” Retrieved August 11, 2020, from https://liberationist.org/how-to-lead-in-permanent-whitewater/