The Art of Leadership

I had the fortunate opportunity to attend ASBO International’s 2009 Eagle Institute in Washington, DC recently. Also attending were fellow board member and President-elect Darcie Birkett, past President Stephanie Eagen, and Executive Director David Martell. The purpose of our attendance was to gain firsthand knowledge of the leadership development program that ASBO sponsors annually. One of the goals the board of directors established for this year was to investigate the possibility of MSBO establishing a leadership program of its own. Indiana SBO has successfully operated a leadership program, and as an organization we need to provide the tools to cultivate the leaders of tomorrow.
 
Over a four-day period, we attended seminars that focused on various aspects of leadership; past, present, and future. The first day we listened to a presentation by the leader of the four-day event, Dr. Jeffrey McCausland of the Penn State Dickinson School of Law and former Dean of the U.S. Army War College. His presentation was entitled, “Leadership in Four Directions”. We learned that while management can be described as controlling complex institutions and dealing with work standards, resource allocation and organizational design, leadership is moving people and organizations into the future.
 
The first dimension is leading the boss. We all do this, either consciously or subconsciously. As stewards of our school system finances, it is our responsibility to interpret the financial data and make projections for the future, both short term and long term. We are the ones who must make budget recommendations to keep our school systems solvent. This requires courage, especially lately with all of the bad economic news that has been coming out of Lansing for the last seven or eight years. Just imagine where your school district would be if you did not recommend the budget targets required to remain financially viable. The responsibility to lead has fallen more heavily on our shoulders, necessitated by events outside of our control.
 
The second dimension is leading subordinates. We learned that leadership is generational, and that there are four generations in the workplace today: The WWI generation made up of those 65 and older; the Baby Boomers made up of those between 45 and 64 years of age; The 27 to 44 age group known as Generation X; and the youngest workers known as Generation Y. Each one of these age groups have been shaped by the key events that have occurred during their lifetimes, and also have different core values as a result. Most importantly to those of us in leadership positions, each group has distinct motivation factors, and unless we understand what those motivational factor are, we will not be able to provide the leadership that is necessary to move our organizations forward. There is a lot of information on generational factors in the workforce, and I encourage doing a Google search to learn more if you have not already done so. The information on this subject is just fascinating, and you will probably learn some things about yourself.
 
The third dimension is leading your peers. This deals with developing relationships with your colleagues and convincing others in your organization to follow your vision. I relate this back to my theme for this year, which is “Together We Can.” So much more can be accomplished if we stick together, both as an organization and as organizations cooperating for the common good. I am reminded of the quote by President Harry Truman: “It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” Leading your peers also requires you to understand the needs of your peers and champion their issues as well. You need to be open and not have a hidden agenda. This requires building trust and being ethical.
 
The fourth dimension is leading yourself. Leading yourself requires balance. Perhaps one of the most important things I learned from the event was that everyone must have balance in their lives, and everyone must have the proper balance between work, family, and time for themselves. We all have physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs, and they cannot all be met if we lack balance in our lives. If we lack the proper balance, then something or someone suffers. We need to remind ourselves of this when we are sitting in our offices late day after day. Leadership requires us to take control of our own lives.
 
The following day we visited the Battle of Bull Run or Manassas battlefield for a walking tour. Bull Run was the first major battle of the Civil War. We learned about the different leadership styles of the two sides; the challenges and solutions that they encountered, and compared them to the issues that we face today.
 
The third day was spent at the Center for Strategic International Studies where we discussed the Seven Revolutions, described as the seven major changes that we will face over the next twenty years. In no particular order, the seven revolutions are population, resource management, technology, information, economic integration, conflict, and governance. The presentation focused on international aspects of these changes and we discussed how these will affect us in our daily lives, and how we as leaders need to carefully consider both the opportunities and risks associated with these changes. For example, M.I.T. is developing a $100 wireless laptop computer for use by students in developing countries. Students are no longer limited by geography, and constant learning and retraining is essential in a dynamic, knowledge-based global economy. What does this mean for the students of our districts and how do we provide the resources for our students to compete? Much more information can be learned from their website at http://csis.org.
 
The final half-day we visited President Lincoln’s cottage, located about two and a half miles north of downtown Washington, D.C. A predecessor to the current Camp David, it is where he spent his summers as a way to escape the heat of the city and provided President Lincoln a sanctuary from the daily demands of the office. We discussed how important it was for his leadership style to be able to escape to a place where he could concentrate on the enormous demands of the office of the Presidency and concentrate on ending a war that was threatening to divide the county.
 
Leadership comes in many shapes and sizes. The issues we have to deal with on a daily basis require us to be leaders in our districts. We all have our own leadership style, and one style is not better than the other. Leadership also requires us to look to the future in addition to dealing with the problems at hand. Let’s also remember to keep balance in our lives.