Funny how life has a way of turning the tables when a teenager grows up and eventually has a teenager! I can distinctly remember a conversation with my father when I was in high school.
“Neil, I think we need to get you a math tutor?”
“Why, Dad? I’m not failing my math class.”
“People shouldn’t think the need a tutor only when they are failing something; everyone should get tutors to get better.”
At the time, I was afraid of the stigma of being associated with a tutor for fear it meant I was not smart or needed help. This was definitely one of my fixed mindset beliefs. While I had a negative view of getting help to be better in my academics (which completely went away when I got to college), I never had that attitude in sports.
From an early age of five, I loved being coached in tennis. I knew I wasn’t the best I could be, and I wanted to get better. I had many sports coaches growing up, and I admired and idolized their attitude, feedback, and approach to teaching and guiding me. In turn, I craved that same role in coaching others.
Today, I am convinced the fundamental need for all school leaders is to both coach others and be coached up! Regardless of where you are in your leadership journey, it is crucial to find a trusted leader to help guide and provide feedback in your own leadership journey. And, regardless of where you are in your leadership journey, you have the power and responsibility to coach others!
People shouldn’t think the need a coach only when they are failing something; everyone should be coached to get better.
Join me on Tuesday, May 17 at 4:00 PM EST for a webinar sponsored by Learning Bird on “Coaching Up Leader”. The event is free!
Register HERE
During the webinar, we will invest time in reflecting on how you were coached up as a leader, as you gather strategies from other leader principles to build your plan to coach others up! This webinar will provide the sense of urgency and need to build leadership capacity in others.
I will help you identify the key characteristics in coaching. Together, we will analyze the four coaching strategies and self-reflect on a plan to seek coaching as well as coach others. By the end of this live, interactive session, you will be able to:
- Identify strategies to match various coaching situations
- Create a plan to be coached as well as coach other leaders
Leadership principles target the need for succession and capacity-building as major areas of need among leaders and organizations. And, as leaders, we need to identify strategies and create clear plans to lead efforts of engagement to increase building and district initiatives for student learning and a conducive learning environment.
Neil Gupta, Ed.D. 