Sarah Colbath

Reflect But Don't Remain

One of the most damaging choices a leader can make is to place a box around the potential of those they work with, but the even more egregious choice is when we believe them.

Reflecting on my educational journey, I noticed this trend as early as my student teaching. When I was in my undergraduate teaching program, my assignment was in a kindergarten classroom. Prepping the morning meeting on the rug, gathering materials for the station rotation for math, and ensuring my students had visual manipulatives were all accomplished. I was putting in the work. I was attentive, punctual, and curious.

I can remember distinctly sitting on the rug during our circle/story time when I read the word government aloud to the kindergarteners. I was then heckled by my cooperating teacher because I hadn't stopped to explain the word to my kindergarteners. After that incident, she told me that she didn't think I was cut out for kindergarten and that it wasn't where I fit.

The purpose of this recollection is not to demean another educator, as I am certain she was trying to help guide me. Rather, it is to mark the moment that I allowed someone else's opinion to limit my potential and ultimately place me in a box that didn't include elementary education.

Later in my career, I wanted to teach high school English, and I approached the English Supervisor to ask about how to apply. Her response? She felt I wasn't ready to teach high school English and would be more suited to middle school education. Similarly, I truly believe she felt she was giving sound advice, but what was really happening was that she was placing a box around my potential, and I was allowing her to do so.

My point? There are countless moments in my journey when someone told me that I wasn't ready, couldn't do it, or wasn't suited for who I was. My mistake? I believed them. My lesson? Feedback drives decision-making among educators, and the way in which we give it can trap the potential in front of us.

Patience and Gratitude

As I moved through my career, I started to define what my shape was. I was grateful for each experience I was given because it provided the blueprint for what I was building. Somewhere along the way, I realized I didn't have to be in a box. I could define how that shape was formed through opportunity, connection, gratitude, humility, and authenticity.

Admittedly, this did take time and patience to define, but I surrounded myself with positive, solution-based thinkers. Leadership should be hinged on empowerment, not the imprisonment of the potential that lies within the educators in their building.

Remember that your journey might seem hard to envision, and building your shape might take mistakes, redo's, and rewrites-but it is exactly that: your shape.

Own it. Define it. Celebrate it. Evolve it. After all, it takes many shapes to build something beautiful.

The Power of a Simple "Thank You"

Of course, we know that studies suggest gratitude is the key to happiness. We have read countless accounts of the ways it enriches our individual lives, but I would argue that gratitude is more powerful than simply strengthening our own sense of self-worth. Gratitude is one of the most powerful prescriptions for strengthening school climate and culture. Naturally, there are other practices that help build and reinforce a positive school environment, but the lasting impact of a simple "thank you" is something today's schools need more than ever.

One phrase I have said myself as an educator—and have heard and read from countless other educators—is:

"This is a thankless job."

But does it have to be?

One of the primary responsibilities of school leaders is to support their staff. That idea has always intrigued me because I have often asked myself: What does support actually look like from an administrator to a staff member?

As educators, we can all agree on what the absence of support looks like within a school system. Sometimes support is mistaken for the extra treats provided during a faculty meeting. While those gestures are certainly appreciated, they are not the defining feature of what it means to truly support a staff.

So, what does support look like, and how can it help foster a positive school climate and culture?

I believe the simple phrase "thank you" is one of the most effective antidotes to a toxic environment.

However, these expressions of gratitude should not be generalized statements delivered only during department or faculty meetings, although those moments are still important. Instead, a thank you should be authentic, personal, and specific to your school, your staff, and your students.

For example:

• To a staff member: "Thank you for handling that difficult situation yesterday. I know I added stress to your day, and I truly appreciate knowing I can rely on you."
• To your school community: "Thank you for being respectful during today's fire drill. Your actions show that you understand the importance of safety and care about keeping our school a safe place for everyone."
• To your students: "Thank you for grabbing your notebooks every day when you walk in. I appreciate the respect you show for our classroom routines."
• To your office staff: "Thank you for organizing that meeting and making sure everything ran smoothly. It truly lifted a weight off my shoulders."
• To your custodial staff: "Thank you for cleaning up that spill in the hallway so our students have a safe and healthy environment."

Why do I believe so strongly in the power of a simple thank you?

Because those two words represent a much larger idea: people matter.

Every person who comes to work, gives their best, and helps you do your job deserves to be recognized.

In education, time is always limited. Yet expressing gratitude is one of the simplest, most meaningful, and most time-effective ways to strengthen a school's culture.

No one is too busy to say, "Thank you."

Expectation Vs. Reality

When I began this journey into leadership, my expectations were that I would go on a few interviews, get selected, and land a job. Like anything in life, my expectations did not match my reality. I say this not because I am a scorned teacher in education, but to help those who are playing their own version of pin the tail on the donkey in educational leadership.

Expectation vs. reality is always the monster lurking in our lives and we never see it appear until reality hits us smack dab between the eyeballs. Motherhood, for me, was very similar to this. I had these expectations of what motherhood would look like: leisurely walks in the park, dressing my child up to match the ambiance, cute cuddles all day long. However, after I became a mother, I began to realize that the reality of it is explosive diarrhea up the back of your child in the Target parking lot, after being with no spare diaper in sight.

Of course there were, and are, the moments where my children make me laugh so hard my sides hurt and the continuous ways in which they inspire me to be better and do better. I was once given advice by a business administrator who said, " just enjoy the journey, whatever that looks like." As I think about my experience in educational leadership, those words resonate with me the most.

Experience and "The Right Fit"

For those who are interested in educational leadership, I would like to give a few pieces of advice and encouragement.

1. It is not about you, it is about them. After each interview I went on, I was reeling for a week straight meticulously going over what I said in the interview. I would replay it in my mind and think about the missteps or the successes and the end result was always the same. I didn't get the job, I thought I did well, and my self confidence began to dwindle. I quickly learned that it isn't really about me, it is about what type of leadership the district is looking for. Sure, I could have spoken on certain topics with more knowledge or depth, but really, a lot of it dealt with the district's idea of leadership and winning over the current leadership. After all, they will have to work with this person and rely on them. So, it is understandable that they want to make sure it is "the right fit."
2. Don't let the voice in your head be louder than your drive to succeed. Failure has always been tough for me. I played sports for my entire life where the sole purpose is to win. I have experienced defeat in games before, but it hits harder when there are lives depending on your success. It would have been easy to give up. It would have been more comfortable to give up. But I can't and you shouldn't either.
3. Connect and communicate with people who are currently in leadership or are thinking about it. Perspective is such a valuable tool no matter where you are in your journey of life. Use that perspective to glean new understandings, create new avenues of thinking, and to celebrate or commiserate with others who get it.

The "So What Now?"

I always joke around with my students about the instant gratification society that they live in. They want answers yesterday to questions they have asked in the current moment. I always compare this to working out. You can't expect to have a full set of abs after one workout in the gym. It takes time, dedication, and the daily commitment to want to work out.

Finding a leadership position has been the same experience for me. It is a daily commitment to scour the internet, to apply, to wait, to prepare for an interview, to complete the interview, and to get back to it when it doesn't go as planned. It's a daily choice similar to making an effort at the gym. You may not see the results in the first week of working out or even in the first month. But if you are consistent, if you are dedicated, if you are tenacious, then the results will come.

My hope is that you and I can share in our successes together in the near future. I wont give up if you don't!