Thanks for the helpful comments to the previous post in this series – they have helped me to explore the tension between the desire to “always tell the truth” and being an “effective leader”

Regardless of my desire to promote a non-hierarchical culture there is a reality that I am in a position of ‘power’ within education in East Lothian. There are potentially many things I see and hear as part of my daily work that I don’t really like, agree with, or support.  If I was “always going to tell the truth” then I might express my feelings explicity through my words, actions or body language. However, I need to balance the impact such negative feedback might have upon individuals, groups and the wider culture.

It might help here to refer to the Emotional Intelligence and more specifically the competency sets which Michael Fullan describes in Leading in  Culture of Change

 Five main emotional competency sets:

Self-awareness (knowing one’s internal state, preferences, resources, and

intuitions)

Self-regulation (managing one’s internal states, impulses, and resources)

Motivation (emotional tendencies that guide or facilitate reaching goals)

Empathy (awareness of others’ feelings, needs, and concerns)

Social skills (adeptness at inducing desirable responses from others)

In relation to the tension between “truth” and “effective leadership” I reckon there’s much to be taken from the above competences:

Self-regulation – I must manage my own impulses – e.g. don’t react to something by saying  “That was a hopeless presentation”. It might be how I feel, and it might be my immediate reaction but the damage such a statement might do – particularly to someone whom I manage – might be irreversible.

Empathy – I must try to be aware of how people will feel if I give negative feedback. I have the ‘power’ to create real emotional stress and ill-health through careless comments, actions or body language.

Social Skills – I need to judge how to interact with different people and groups – what works in one context won’t work in another.

Returning to my theme of “honesty and Leadership” I don’t think there’s a contradiction in anything I’ve said here and about my desire to ‘never avoid the truth”. The reality of the matter is that there can be no avoiding the “truth” if it impacts upon the educational well-being of children in East Lothian.

However, I need to realise that my position, personal preferences and standards do not give me a licence to pass negative comment whenever I feel the urge.