Going through my now defunct, original blog, I came across a post from almost 10 years ago--a time well before I had honestly considered educational leadership. However, I had unsuspectingly taken my first steps towards pursuing work at building level of leadership. Here is that post:
"My older brother recommended a book to me, and this afternoon I stopped at Barnes and Noble to purchase the book, Strengths Finder 2.0. The book can be found in the Business Management section. The purpose of the read was to discover what my natural instincts indicate my top five themes of strength are in relation to the career I have chosen. This year, more than any, I have felt underutilized. The result of feeling underutilized is that I am restless and wanting more from my job. Rath lists six results from when "you're not able to use your strengths at work..." 1. dread going to work. 2. have more negative than positive interactions with your colleagues 3. treat customers poorly 4. tell your friends what a miserable company you work for 5. achieve less on a daily basis 6. have fewer positive and creative moments All six of these thoughts and realities have expressed themselves this year. Some of the culpability certainly rests on my outlook of the situation, but much of it stems from a drastic change in the way I am able to perform as a teacher. I never gave my previous principal credit for creating an environment for me that allowed me to grow as a teacher and to succeed as a teacher. After taking the online quiz, which is only available with a unique code from the book, I discovered my top five strengths. The descriptions and warnings have already begun to influence me. Here are my top five with their brief 'Shared Theme Description:' 1. Activator--people who are especially talented in the Activator theme can make things happen by turning thoughts into action. They are often impatient. 2. Communication--people who are especially talented in the Communication theme generally find it easy to put their thoughts into words. They are good conversationalists and presenters. 3. Adaptability--people who are especially talented in the Adaptability theme prefer to "go with the flow." They tend to be "now" people who take things as they come and discover the future one day at a time. 4. Command--people who are especially talented in the Command theme have presence. They can take control of a situation and make decisions. 5. Self-Assurance--people who are especially talented in the Self-Assurance theme feel confident in their ability to manage their own lives. They posses an inner compass that gives them the confidence that their decisions are right. I want to follow up with more posts relating this book to teaching. But first, let me just thank my previous principal, Mr. Dean, for allowing me to operate according to my strengths. Even when I took risks within my strengths, Mr. Dean never hindered my growth. I didn't necessarily appreciate it fully in the moment, but I do now." Here I sit, ten years later, finding so much in this post that is true today. I continue to use these five themes and strengths of mine. I continue to be thankful for the model of Mr. Dean. Further, I am thankful for the first two administrators to recognize in me these same skills, encouraging their growth, and leading me towards my pursuit of administration, Mr. Whibey and Mr. Merlino.
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July 2018
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