Good culture is invisible when you're inside it. Nobody mentions it because they don't need to.
You only notice what was there when you leave.
@richardwh84.bsky.social on that moment of realisation:
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Richard's argument for blogging isn't about the audience.
It's that when you know someone might read it and push back, you think more carefully before you write it.
Same principle works for any leadership decision, really.
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@richardwh84.bsky.social
It’s a horizontal working kind of day.
How’s your day treating you?
The people who always say well done feel good.
But @richardwh84.bsky.social makes the case that they might also be the reason you stop growing.
Real change needs someone who'll actually tell you when you're wrong.
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Really enjoyed being interviewed by Shane on my leadership journey hope some will resonate #Edusky
"Do you want to justify your past, or do you want me to help you move forward?"
@teachertoolkit.bsky.social said that to @richardwh84.bsky.social mid-conversation. Richard went quiet and just listened.
That moment changed everything for him.
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#SchoolLeadership
Richard spent years in a brilliant school and thought he understood why it worked.
Then he moved. Turns out he'd just been living inside something he'd never actually had to build.
Really honest conversation from @richardwh84.bsky.social
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We talk about cognitive load for students all the time. Meg Lee made me realise we never talk about it for the whole organisation. That hit differently.
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"Lots of small moves in the same direction."
That's how you steer a ship. Turns out it's also how you move a school system.
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What if your school doesn't have too many problems; it has too many ideas?
Talked about cognitive load in organisations this week and I haven't stopped thinking about it.
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#SchoolLeadership
Teachers' eye rolls at new initiatives are basically prior knowledge in action.
Meg Lee reframed this for me completely.
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#SchoolLeadership
I thought I understood something. Turned out I had just enough knowledge to be dangerous.
Meg Lee called it "brittle knowledge."
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Anyone else feeling rebellious? 😏
As we say at WeWork, #TGIM
Have a great day!
"It was just something we had to do. There was no discussion afterwards or sense that it mattered."
One teacher, quoted in a major CPD report. Probably not alone.
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#EducationalLeadership
I posted a LinkedIn poll to test a hunch. The results were bleaker than I expected, and confirmed by a report surveying 1,000+ teachers.
Turned it into an episode.
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Coaching: most effective form of CPD.
Also the least used. Only 22% of teachers had access.
We're defaulting to what's easy to organise, not what actually works.
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"Teachers have the rolliest eyes of any industry."
This is so true. Any time our administrators go to a workshop, we all brace ourselves for the "great new thing that will fix all our problems" they'll come back with. We know it won't work, and we spend the entire staff meeting rolling our eyes.
🙄
This time it's so different!!!!!
If your teachers quietly disagree with how well your PD programme is working, would you know?
Because the data says most leaders wouldn't.
shaneleaning.com/podcast/153
#SchoolLeadership
100 people told me what happens after outside CPD comes into their school.
1% said lasting change.
I wasn't shocked. But I also couldn't stop thinking about it.
New ep: shaneleaning.com/podcast/153
Ever had that moment where meet your people and full-on mindmeld?
Well I have just had the MOST INCREDIBLE conversation with @andrewwatsonttb.bsky.social.
Feeling grateful!
Online learning gets a terrible rap and mostly it's deserved. But I think the intent is usually good. It's a design problem. Too much "watch and reflect," not enough practise and interaction. We've been trying to flip that. So far it's working.
Shane Leaning smiling in his home studio, wearing a grey hoodie over a white t-shirt. Behind him is a dual-monitor desk setup with a professional microphone, studio lighting, and white acoustic panels on the wall. One screen shows the Education Leaders Intensive branding with participants on screen.
Ran my favourite session of the Intensive last night. Two hours on delegation. Breakout rooms, real debate, someone brought in military strategy and connected it to school leadership. I was buzzing.
Yes!!!!!!!!
You are not wrong! In my talk we chatted about the risk of coming away from conferences and moving straight in to implementing something you picked up there.
Teachers have the rolliest eyes of any industry. Not because they don't care. Because 90-95% of school change doesn't survive two years and they know it.
From my FOBISIA keynote 👇
I think visibility in itself is a poor proxy for good leadership. I agree, modelling is a good attribute but that is not a given for just being visible.
One of the best leaders I ever worked for was nearly invisible.
But behind the scenes he was constantly advocating for staff and changing things for the better. Visibility isn't everything.
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A student stopped Chris in a corridor and asked if he was the new headteacher.
Reason: "You've got one of those coats."
That story ended up being the final item on his list. buff.ly/pPin74A
