Where Did The Morning Go?
By Scott Beda | March 24th
Some days I feel stunned when I am sitting at my desk at 11AM and I am still responding to the morning emails. I suppose when we have an inbox that requires follow up conversations and dozens of related tasks, the morning can get away from you. Have you had a board member, staff member, or someone from your family ask you what you do as an administrator? How easy it is to feel tongue-tied and not know what to say. My logical mind wants to pull out a neat-and-tidy job description or a pie graph: 20% Staff Leadership, 25% Student Life, 10% Facilities Management, etc. The truth is that leadership rarely feels so tidy and we easily get pulled in many directions. I find myself continually reflecting on time management, and how as effective leaders we should spend our time.
In Smart Leadership, Mark Miller outlines what might be the typical lifecycle of a growing leader. There are four stages that are mentioned on pages 98-100. The “Doer” makes their reputation getting things done, often rolling up their sleeves themselves to do the work. The “Delegator” has learned to pass tasks along to competent people, often arriving at this stage out of good counsel, frustration, or exhaustion. The “Developer” shifts the focus from tasks to people, investing heavily in the development of key leaders. Finally, the “Designer” leverages all they have learned on their leadership journey to see the big picture, identify gaps and opportunities, and envision the best future for their organization. Miller wisely notes that the phases are not fixed or mutually exclusive; as leaders we tend to slide from one stage to another, depending on the season. He cautions against becoming stuck in one of the first three stages for a long period of time.
I find it interesting that those four D-words could easily be applied to Jesus in his days of leadership. His ministry was marked by seasons as a “Doer”, teaching and working signs and wonders. The sending of the 12 apostles and the 72 disciples point to Christ as “Delegator”, calling His children to a Great Commission. His intense mentorship of his apostles show Jesus as a “Developer” as He invested heavily in His followers. Reading through the Acts of the Apostles, we can begin to identify Jesus as “Designer”, bringing the Gospel first to the Jewish people and then to the Gentiles in the ends of the earth.
As I reflect on a typical day at my school, I can find myself in various stages- Doer/Delegator/Developer/Designer. How about you? Take a few minutes this week to reflect on where you are at in your leadership journey and consider if you need to invest more time in one of the four stages. Small adjustments made in the area of time management can bring great benefits to your school in the long run!
Scott Beda is the Upper Grand Cohort Leader, and is COO/Principal at Cambridge Christian School.