The old adage of “You can’t make everyone happy” is certainly true whether it is a little league game of a multi-national company.  But making everyone happy isn’t the point to leadership.  Anyone who thinks that isn’t a leader.  So knowing that, leaders have to realize and know, leadership will not always be fun or easy.  There may be a season or two that quarterly numbers are steadily increasing, employee morale is high and nothing seems to go wrong.  But we all know that seasons change and when that happens, the criticism comes.

This post is being published on Martin Luther King Day, 2012 and when I think of a leader who endured seasons of terrible criticism followed by times of mountain top ascension and then back to the valley, I think of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  From assuming the mantle of the moral voice of America in the late 1950′s to the “I Have a Dream” speech in Washington, D.C., to his criticism of the Vietnam War to his fight over living conditions in the north, Dr. King had those who listened to every word and those who criticized every word. That is one of the reasons why leadership will never be regulated to speech or a moment.  His long journey was based on principle and it didn’t have to only rely on a moment in time.  Those “special moments” are few and far between and leaders know that.

So, is leadership fun, exciting and from time to time an adrenaline rush?  YES!  But is leadership hard, energy draining and and from time to time, completely exhausting, YES!!!  But leaders know that going into the opportunity.  When they cast vision, they do so because they believe in something bigger.  They believe their company can provide a better product or offer a better service.  They believe their church, parish or synagogue can reach and help more people.  They believe in the foundation from where their vision derives, and when the attacks and criticism come, it is met with a shield of principled beliefs.

Now GO Lead!

Leadership is about inspiring and taking people to a new place. Leadership involves character and influence and one has to believe in what their mission is to truly be effective. Leaders set the bar high and work like crazy to pole vault right over the bar with plenty of room to take all of his followers with him. But to begin trying to achieve the height that is set, the leader must issue the challenge.

That’s what leaders do. They put forth a challenge…one so great and grand that it seems impossible to even try. But there is no fun in not trying . Leaders do more than try, they inspire those who believe in the challenge to meet it head-on, with all of the energy and excitement of a high school Friday night football game.

Leaders issue challenges for three different reasons:

1. People need something great to be put in front of them so they can achieve something great. Leaders know this and that is why the great leaders are constantly pushing and constantly challenging.

2. People need something great put in front of them so they can believe in their ability. . Leaders recognize that people want to know that they are believed in. When a leader puts forth a challenge and then gets behind his people offering encouragement, support, resources and direction, followers will respond.

3. Leaders always need a challenge. This one can be hard to explain or maybe it’s very simple. It could be a company that is the example or maybe putting something together at home, whatever the case, leaders believe they can accomplish most any challenge. I don’t believe it’s always arrogance, just a strong confidence and belief in what they are trying to do.

Now, find a great cause that you believe in, set the challenge and GO Lead!

Now, the problem with resolutions are that sometimes (or maybe all of the time:), they are too easily broken. However, setting goals and looking forward to the next year with your family is one that provides a great opportunity to do something together.

Some ideas that I thought might be helpful and useful during a time of both looking back and looking forward are:

1. Either for yourself, or with your family, make a list of all of the blessings that happened during 2011 ( some years have more than others)

2. As the list of positives are being complied, think about some of the things that could have gone better and discuss those with your children or self-reflect.

3. Ask questions of your family with prompts such as “Do you remember when…” or “What did you think when this happened”?

4. Talk about what might happen in 2012?

5. Give your kids a chance to set goals….fun goals, but maybe some academic goals as well as some academic goals ( nothing with too much pressure…this about putting something in front of them and teaching discipline to achieve it)

6. Parents, set goals along with your children…let them see you stick to it!!

7. Use a chart to map out the progress of everyone in the family and how you are progressing toward your goals.

8. As a family, stay on task with your goals and celebrate as a family when goals are met

9. Be an example for your kids…model what you want to see in them

10. Have fun in 2012!!

A couple of years ago, during a Christmas break, I spent a lot of time reading different blogs and listening to various podcast from leaders in social media concepts. Scott Monty, Global Digital & Multimedia Communications Manager for Ford Motor Company is credited with being one of the initiators of the some the social media market that exists (the phrase Tweetup comes from Scott). Well, I read of a lot of Scott’s stuff and followed many of his links to find out what he is interested in. I thought I would email him about what he knows about education social media and what is out there. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting a response. The guy has to be very busy appearing on the Fox Business Network and other media channels as well as running social media for Ford. Why would he respond to a local school principal.

Whether I thought he would respond or not became irrelevant after he sent me a reply to my email. He said it was great to make a local connection (we live probably within an hour of each other) and that although he was real familiar with education social media, directed me to a few links. To me, that was huge!! So huge that if I was in the market for a new car, I would start with Ford. His taking the time to connect with me was a really big deal.

Another connection experience I had was with Mitch Joel. Mitch is another author and digital marketing specialist who I have read a lot lately. His blog posts and podcasts are extremely interesting and helpful. through Linked In, I asked a friend of mine who was connected to Mitch, to make a connection. Within a day, Mitch got back to me, connected with me and offered a nice personal note. Again, this is a big deal for me. These people are considered experts in what they do and certainly have more things to do than find links for me to read or write me nice notes…or isn’t this part of the success they are having. Taking time to connect.

These examples come at a perfect time: the beginning of 2012 with all types of resolutions on our plates. My resolution: take time to connect. Respond to emails from concerned families at my school. Respond to phone calls that need to addressing. Look for new ways to connect with people. That re-investment into “people connection” and relationship building, may go along way to improving the climate of your organization and your leadership.

Without even knowing me, Scott and Mitch took time to connect. What a great example! Plus, when I someday buy my new Ford automobile, I can use their cool Sync technology and pipe in Mitch’s podcasts. What a great day that will be:)

Those couples who are “in love” maintain that their thoughts are soley focused in one direction … on that other person. To be drawn into such a deep relationship that can only be satisfied by additional time with your beloved: what a feeling!

There’s no way I could make a jump from falling in love with another person to loving learning if it wasn’t for something I heard recently.

A couple of weeks ago, I was listening to Jim Fey, one of the founders of the Love and Logic Institute, and he was talking about educators and students. He described one of the most important aspects of teaching: to make students fall in love with us. Meaning, if the students fall in love with what the teacher is teaching, then a deeper relationship may unfold. If that relationship develops, the students may want to keep coming back for more. If that happens, a llifelong passion for learning may begin to transpire. What a feeling!

So how do we create this lifelong passion? How do we get people to fall in love with learning? I’ve got two quick thoughts, but be careful about trying to implement these ideas. They just might work!

The first: Engage people. Find out something about the follower that you are not aware of. It doesn’t have to be business related, just start the relationship. Let them know you are interested in knowing them as a person. Let people know you care. That’s not a bad thing … it’s a good thing and one that will lead to the next idea.

The second idea: Get the person engaged in the learning. Any projects you have laying around that could use a leader? Is there something groups of workers could work on outside of the normal textbook curriculum? It doesn’t really matter how well it turns out, the question is, can engagement turn people onto learning?

Falling in love with learning isn’t just reserved for students in a classroom. Lifelong learning is for all leaders, those who are new and those who are veterans. Learning for a lifetime is a passion that should be nurtured and passed on.

Now GO Lead…and Learn!

Take a look and join me as we continue to walk in daily leadership.

1000 – Leaders say “Hi” to people

999 – Leaders remember the names of people

998 – Leaders aren’t fake, because people see through it

997 – Leaders aren’t political

996 – Leaders admit when  they are wrong

995 – Leaders look people in the eye

994 – Leaders ask for help when they need it

993 – Leadership isn’t a cliche

992 – Leaders realize the sun will come up in the morning

991 – Leaders create jobs and opportunties

990 – Leaders are lifelong learners

989 – Leaders welcome the challenge of a crisis

988 – Leaders fins the right players for the right field

987 –  Leadership and attitude..you have to have one

986 – Leadership is a team sport

985 – Leaders care about reconciliation

984 – Elvis Presley, leadership and the danger of “Yes”

983 – Leadership and momentum…a wave of influence

982 – Leadership and the bad side of momentum

981 – Turning the tide of momentum…positive momentum and leadership

980 – Leading outside of the lines

979 – Leaders make decisions “fearfully”, not out of fear

978 – Failing doesn’t feel like going forward..sometimes

977 – Leadership…you can’t fail if you are not in the game

976 – Leadership – you can’t fail if you don’t take a chance

975 – Leadership…you can’t fail if you don’t look forward

974 – Leadership and energy! Is your tank full or empty

973 – Leadership and questions…do you ask why?

972 – Leadership – The first impression is really important

971 – Leaders always go back to school

970 – Leaders plan for the majority, but prepare for the minority

969 – Leaders and crisis…where were you?

968 – Leaders don’t run from a crisis

967 – Leaders get all of the facts during a crisis

966 – leaders can be uncertain, but they can’t be unclear

965 – Leaders cant’ stand mediocrity

964 – Leaders create and innovate

963 – Leaders use the short term to plan long term

962 – Leaders show appreciation

961 – Leaders keep the contacts…for the relationship

960 – Leaders are interested in others

959 – Leadership and timing can be everything

958 – Leaders share success

957 – Leaders are compassionate

956 – Leaders are teachers

955 – Leadership and authenticity…does it matter?

954 – Leaders constantly learn about their people

953 – Leadership is a process

952 – Leadership means being in the present

951 – Leaders need to dream

950 – Leaders recognize real opportunities…and take a chance

So this is the first 50 of Leadership 1K…I can’t wait to see where the journey will take us.

Now GO Lead!

(Leadership 1K is a journal into the mission of leaders and leadership. To receive daily updates through email or RSS feeds, click on the links in the right corner)

“The iPad — the newest creation from Steve Jobs and the Apple crew — debuted this past week with all the fanfare and publicity that a politician could only dream of. And it looks pretty cool.

The iPad isn’t a phone or a laptop; it’s a third device that can be used to send e-mails, go online and read books and magazines. I’m not sure if it is a necessary device or just something that would be really neat to have. Sitting on your couch or in your favorite chair, you pull out the iPad and just do whatever it is you do with the iPad.

Will the iPad be something that changes the way we work, play and get our information? Or will this new endeavor just be another thing we buy that will collect dust? That’s the thing with new stuff: We never know what the outcome will be.

I think about that with education as well. There’s always something new that educational researchers are coming up with to “help” the classroom. From new theories to new practices, the educational landscape is full of ideas (open classroom and centurion style come to mind) that were good titles for seminars, but were not able to be sustained..

For innovative educational leaders, there is some level of risk taking in implementing new concepts. For those of us who are always thinking about improvement, it’s hard to sit still. In fact, it’s impossible!

Right now, I truly believe in the disruptive classroom model penned by Clayton Christensen, and that’s why I had a video created to articulate an approach I would like to take. I believe in student-centered education, but how do I know it’s not a fad that will pass with time or be replaced with something newer?

The reality is, I don’t know. However, there a three things I can use to give myself some comfort and reliance as I lead a school and students into a new direction.

Data — What does the research say about how students are developing? Has time shown these developments to be a good indicator of things to come. Data driven decision making isn’t a new concept, but it can get muddied in too many committees. If the data is good, there may be something to go on.

Trends — I differentiate the term “trend” from the term “fad.” I define trend as the overall landscape in which an industry is moving.For example, students are now living in social media … it’s an additional bedroom to the physical one they have. Because of this movement of an entire demographic (as well as baby-boomers), the space in which people live their live and communicate has shifted. That trend is one that can be used to forecast future developments.

Instinct — Now it’s hard sometimes to tell the difference between instinct and heartburn. However, innovative leaders just have a feeling in their gut that this approach will be good for kids. It’s a risk, but one worth taking.

It’s hard to distinguish a fad from a great idea. That’s why there has to be some level of trust involved. For the millions of people that follow Apple’s every move, there’s a belief that whatever the Apple Creators put out there, it will be good for the people.

For educational leaders, we must do the same. When a new idea comes our way, have we put the people, or in our case, students, at the top of the priority list. If we are making changes because of what is best for students, it’s probably hard to go wrong. Put kids first, let the fads pass by and at the end of the day, kids win.”

Now GO Lead!

After I spend time with Lincoln, I’ll walk back down the steps to spend time with King. I’ll stand on the spot where one of the most famous 20th century speeches was delivered. I’ll look out over the reflecting pool and imagine what it was like that day in 1963. The day when a man stood before the world and dreamed…dreamed of a better place for people…dreamed of a better place for his children…dreamed of a better place for his country.

It seems an appropriate time to continue a dream that involves our children. This is my dream;

Children are our greatest gift and we have a responsibility to their future. We have a responsibility to guide them, protect them and provide an environment that encourages learning. Learning that is centered around the needs of students. Students no longer live in a world where they have to wait for knowledge to come to them. The days of the teacher being the possessor of knowledge and bestowing that knowledge to the child is coming to an end. It’s coming to an end because students are no longer going to wait for the information.

• I dream of a day where schools are created in a way where education meets students where they are.
• I dream of a day where curriculum is designed based on what is best for students.
• I dream of a day where teachers are valued for the blessings they are.
• I dream of a day when students have the ability to learn in real-time achieving real-time results.
• I dream of a day when students have a say in the design and development of curriculum based on their needs and not those of publishing companies.
• I dream of a day when students, no matter how they learn are viewed as special pieces of a amazing puzzle.

I believe that “dream” will one day exist. There are too many great teachers and educational leaders who feel the same way. They have the student’s need at the center of their desire. It’s a dream we can all achieve. One step at a time, one victory at a time, one child at a time.

Now GO Lead!

For me, I am a big picture kind of guy. Constantly thinking about where we will be in eighteen to twenty-four months. But there is a problem with that. If I spend too much time in the future and never take a look at the present, there will be a disconnect between me and the school. So here are three things I work on daily to stay engaged:

1. Get up and walk around. I wasn’t always very good at this. I would spend most of my time in my office with my head buried in charts and graphs. But now, I spend as much time possible in the hallways of the schools observing and watching….just walking around. I want to see our students as they engage with each other between classes. I want to see the elementary projects hanging in the hallways. I want to hear the voices of our future as they live their present.

2. Having small conversations with people daily. I was probably worse at this than the walking around part. But people want to know you are interested and having small conversations with staff at breaks during the day, eating lunch with teachers and just general small talk goes a long way.

3. Actually listening to your stakeholders. I constantly ask for feedback and continuously use the suggestions for improvement. I firmly believe our culture is an open place, partly because of the listening component. Of course, not every suggestion can be used, but people are made to feel as if they were at least heard.

I’m sure there are more research based ways of staying in touch, but for me these three ideas, “Walking, Talking and Listening” are working pretty well. Vision is an key ingredient to leadership but you cannot choose a future direction unless you understand the current present. Know what’s happening today within your organization. Get up, take a walk…have a conversation and listen…listen…listen. It will prove to be some of the best spent time of your day.

Now GO Lead!

So I started walking toward the woods in the back of our house, with my sister crying hysterically, “Momma, he’s gone for good. Randy’s leaving.” To which my mom replied, “That’s nice.” Well, that just made me even more upset and determined to be on my own. I would show her.

As I found my special place in the woods, I began to notice a few things. I didn’t bring anything to sleep in or food to eat (forgot to take “Running Away 101″). I only had a shovel and a pair of shorts…

As I walked back into my house, my sister started screaming, “He’s home momma…Randy’s back.” To which my mom replied, “That’s nice, time for lunch.” A couple of lessons can be learned from this unfortunate situation:

1. Planning really does matter. It’s important in business, it’s important in schools, it’s important in leadership and it’s important when one is running away. Too many times, organizations jump right into a great new idea without any thought about how the strategy is going to be executed. Planning matters!!

2. With no support, you’re going nowhere. Strategy is good…planning, definitely a must, but without a support team and good people around you, success will never happen. Leaders know that getting to the next level only happens with good support around you.

We’re always learning and growing. Everyday, leaders have to be the number one learners in their organization. And it is a process. One that may even begin on a snowy day.

Now GO Lead!