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Tuesday, October 29, 2013

4 Caution Lights For School Leaders | Connected Principals

4 Caution Lights For School Leaders | Connected Principals:

4 Caution Lights For School Leaders

October 29, 2013
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Zig Ziglar’s “wheel of life” is often referred to by leadership coaches, like Chris Locurto, because it represents a good visual of the competing interests in each of our lives.
balance-wheel
The thought goes, when the areas of our life are held in good balance, the ride is much smoother. When one area of our life is off-balance, we experience a flat tire.
Although it is safe to say that none of us has a perfectly balanced life, I almost made a fatal assumption in my early years of school leadership by thinking if I worked harder, I would accomplish more.
I believed managing the needs of students, teachers, staff, parents, etc. required every second of school as well as hours before and after. As a result, I consistently worked through lunches or skip dinners to keep up with the demands.
Eventually, this pace led to burn-out. And a leader who burns out is a miserable leader…and eventually so are those around him or her.
Do you often feel driven to work harder and harder to reach your goals? Here are some caution-lights I try to keep in mind on my journey:
1. Recognize the The Danger-Signs of Workaholism
As I discovered the havoc over-work was creating in my life, my wife told me one day, “The kids