Ryan Morrow

A New Road Travelled

Tag: Response

Light from Many Lamps – Response to Monica Grace

December 3, 2018 / / 0 Comments

In her blog, Monica pens an honest and open reflection and response to Robert Browning.  Monica, thank you for your open thoughts about your journey.  Through disappointment,  the influence of immediate circumstances and the encouragement of your team member, it is great to see that you have been able to maintain an eternal perspective to your life and to your work.

So many times as I consider leadership, the parallels between leadership and parenting seem really direct to me.  I am continually interacting with parents of teenagers who are wondering how on earth their 16 year old is going to move past their current stage to become an successful adult.  Several years ago, I heard valuable advice about parenting and that is, it doesn’t stop.  If we extend our expectation of guidance for our children from completing some time after 30 rather than at 18 then it gives us the ability to deal with the challenges of a 16 year old.  Changing the time frame enables a broader perspective to help in times of challenge.  There are so many times when reflecting on leadership challenges can be helped by applying this same type of thinking.

As you experience the upcoming ministry transition I encourage you to continue to consider a longer time frame.  Browning’s words about seeking and seeing the whole design while putting your complete trust in God (Watson, 1951) were well chosen.

May you be continually blessed and encouraged as you seek to see the whole picture.

 

Grace, M. (2018). Seeing the whole picture: Light from many lamps. retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/monicagrace/2018/11/30/light-from-many-lamps-unit-10/

Watson, L.E. (1951). Light from Many Lamps. New York: Simon and Schuster.

 

Leadership story response – Chris Vacher

November 30, 2018 / / 0 Comments

Chris, Thanks for sharing your leadership story.  I love the images that you develop about leadership being the farthest thing from a straight line and the consideration of our story from the inside out (Vacher, 2018).  I have been using adventure for the major theme of my life over the last several years.  When we consider the great adventure stories, we know that they are indeed filled with stops and starts, challenges, obstacles and re-directions.  It is through this pathway though, that we are able to develop perspective, and when we begin to reach our destination we can have a deep sense of value for the journey.

How can I be an Ernie? (Vacher, 2018).  This question really struck me.  Throughout this course I have been considering my leadership as a formal role where I can build teams, set vision, and create space for other people to thrive, all within the context of my own organization.  Ernie was not part of your organization, he reached out and through guidance and mentorship challenged you to move forward in a way that would allow you to find practical space to develop your passion.  As the cursor flashes on my screen, I am left pondering your challenge, how can I be an Ernie for someone else? I suppose this is where Spears characteristics of a servant leader fit. Conceptualization, stewardship, commitment to the growth of people, foresight, awareness and community building (Spears, 2010)  all address the idea of mentorship in some way.  Thank you for the push to see the people who are around me who need the nudge, encouragement or opportunity that I may be able to provide.

 

Spears, L. C. (2010). Character and servant leadership: Ten characteristics of effective, caring leaders. The Journal of Virtues & Leadership, 1(1), 25-30. Retrieved from http://www.vizenllc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/CharacherAndServantLeadership.pdf

Response to DizzyButterfly – Learning Activity Three

November 11, 2018 / / 0 Comments

I am anticipating a great learning opportunity as I examine the principals learning appraisal process as posted by dizzybutterfly.  As the principal of an independent school in BC I do not work within the structure of the school district or even directly with other independent schools.  Much of the work I do is specific to my context including any evaluations that are completed on my leadership.  Collaboration is an essential part of professional growth in education.  I am intrigued by the idea of collaborating across schools from principal to principal. In an independent school context there would be great benefit by sharing leadership strengths and challenges, and considering together how we can work to improve practice in our respective schools.    Thanks for sharing this resource.

Principal Performance Appraisal

Response to Norm

November 11, 2018 / / 0 Comments

In his post, Norm asks how I have responded to unethical behaviour in my context.  I suppose that there is the unethical behaviour that I am aware of and that which I am not aware of.  I am pleased and thankful that there are not many instances of unethical behaviour which come to mind as I consider your question.  As I reflect on the few instances I have dealt with, I know that it has been important for me to work together with the individual to see a positive outcome.  I have leveraged the great relationship I have with the team that I work with to guide, coach, mentor and direct an individual to an outcome which is favourable for both the individual and our organization.  I think it is important to note that if a leader is not ethical themselves then they do not have a foundation for addressing unethical behaviour in others.  This underscores the importance of the ethical leadership behaviours described by Avolio and Gardner (2005).

 

Avolio, B. & Gardner, W. (2005). Authentic leadership development: Getting to the root of positive forms of leadership. Leadership Quarterly, 16, 315-338.

Response to Hiromi Hasegawa – Team effectiveness and Leadership

November 3, 2018 / / 0 Comments

Learning Activity 1~ Team Effectiveness and Leadership

The story about team selection in the medical field is fascinating. Because my leadership has taken place in a closed educational setting,  it hadn’t occurred to me that team selection could take place in a broad open environment where members may be unknown to each other.  I can recognize that it would be a significant challenge to draw effective people together to form a team like the one you have described. Drawing people together with food and drink while presenting the needs your team required allowed for your team to have shared experience from the beginning and come together with a common understanding of the goals or vision for the team.  It seems that your idea for mass recruitment in this way was an effective way to establish the start of a strong team.

I was also struck by the number of different paramedical roles required to make a procedure successful. “I tried to facilitate and connect each paramedical staff knowledge and roles towards the same goal and made the team work more efficiently” (Hasegawa, 2018). This need for specific knowledge and perspective to be shared across the expertise of the team would not happen without effective leadership.  The importance of ensuring members understand the role each other plays in the process is underscored when placed in a medical setting.

Thank you for sharing this story. Were you able to recruit your whole team from the initial meeting or did you have to individually recruit members to complete your team?

Ryan

Resources

Hasegawa. H (2018) Learning Activity 1- team effectiveness and leadership. Sourced from https://create.twu.ca/papagena163/2018/10/26/learning-activity-1/

 

Light from Many Lamps – Response to Monica Grace

October 17, 2018 / / 0 Comments

Monica Grace reflects honestly in her original post about how significant trials can cause a deeper faith, a strong foundation and an unshakeable spirit, ready to share God’s goodness with others. Her motivational story should inspire any leader to know each situation is always part of a greater story and exists for a greater purpose.

The details of complex, personal and challenging situations can blind us from being able to recognize a greater context.  At times we are blinded by urgency, emotion, or even our physical limitations.  It is during these times that if handled well, our leadership position can be strengthened.  People at all levels in an organization face trying times, if the leader is open about the challenges she faces, then leader and followers alike have an opportunity to come together, support one another and work to make the best of difficult situations.

I have learned to identify with others who are suffering in situations because I have faced my own trials.  Facing difficult times gave me a perspective which had previously been lacking.  It has allowed me to understand, listen and be present with people in a way that I was not always able to do.

Is it okay to be open and vulnerable as a leader when facing significant challenges?

Grace M (2018). Light from Many Lamps. lead, kindly light….the night is dark. retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/monicagrace/2018/10/07/light-from-many-lamps-lead-kindly-light-the-night-is-dark/

Light from Many Lamps – Response to Norm Beange

October 17, 2018 / / 0 Comments

In his post on James Gordon Gilkey, Beange challenges the leader to accept reality and keep moving. (Beange, 2018).  Inevitably leaders will face hard decisions, errors in judgement, or personal challenges. Instead of being lost and frozen in the moment, keep from lingering in denial and grief.

This is a word well spoken.  Leadership, or just life itself can provide obstacles which can seem too great to overcome. A mountain is climbed one step at a time and an elephant is eaten one bite at a time, in either case, action is required.

As I reflect on a time when I was unsure of how to move forward, or how to find an answer that I did not have to the question I faced, action was required.  I called on the wisdom of trusted employees to provide wisdom from their individual perspectives. Together we developed a response to the situation, it involved one of them to step forward into a space that I would not have recognized.  In a short time, not only had I moved forward but the whole department had moved forward.

Benge states that the most important thing is”what we do with a situation” (Benge, 2018). Whether we seek the advice of others, find a different perspective, or ask a different question, when it comes to difficult situations, leaders must keep pushing forward.

Benge J. (2018). Light From Many Lamps – james gordon gilkey. retrieved from https://create.twu.ca/norm/2018/10/16/light-from-many-lamps-james-gordon-gilkey/

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