The 'And' Not The 'Or'

I've been down at the BCPVPA (BC Principals and Vice-Principals Association) annual Short Course at UBC all week. For many reasons, it's been the best professional development experience I've taken part in. Sure, I've been to the odd speaker or conference here or there who has challenged my paradigms, or who has entertained me, or who has caused me to mull obsessively over a fact or two, but this experience was far richer.




I always forget when I'm trapped in my office plugging away at whatever task I'm doing, that there are others out there sometimes. Others who are sharing the same experience; those who have the joy of moving schools forward, but those who also share the same frustrations and challenges. Here at the Short Course, I feel very fortunate to connect and grow with new people for a change. It's different than being with my day-to-day colleagues where I feel (possibly wrongly) that I have to "be on" and always make a good impression. This week, I was able to let my guard down, have some fun, and just be myself. And it feels good for a change. It was reaffirming.

 

 

Anyway, my biggest takeaway was something that has taken a while to come to fruition for me. I've had people speak of it before, but I've (for whatever reason) been dismissive - or have been to thick to understand what they've been trying to tell me. It's the very simple concept of the 'and' not the 'or' in what administrators do every single day. As academics, I think we've been hardwired to find dichotomy in nearly everything. Either something is something or it isn't. You are or you aren't. I have always struggled with this in my day to day tasks; I feel the pressure to be an instructional leader, but the vast majority of what I get bogged down seems to be managerial administrivia. And I've struggled with that. I always feel the pull to be doing something else that is more important, or somehow more meaningful. My 'ah ha' moment this week was this: If I change how I view some of what I do, and find the inherent leadership embedded (how people see you approach your tasks, how you dedicate yourself to these tasks, and how you take selfless pride in them), it will allow people to see me for who I am as a Vice-Principal far more than if I brood and grumble to myself.

It's all about synthesis I guess. It's about the 'and', not the 'or'. It's about looking beyond yourself and making meaning out of what you do for your school and for others.

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