Blog
Jo had a problem that a lot of headteachers will be familiar with. She had a good team, who worked hard and were mostly fully onboard with her goal of delivering excellence to all her children (though some of them ‘didn’t get it’, most did). They didn’t have the easiest of contexts, being a large […]
Do this with me: Grab a piece of paper. Write down how many people are in your team (the number on payroll, but don’t worry about being exact). Now write down these three headings side by side: Some issues Solid […]
On Wednesday you should have received my top tip about one difficult conversation that keeps coming up: caretakers. Did you get it? Did you like it?Do you want more? Remember, if you’d like to keep getting these top tips to help you have more successful difficult conversations then please subscribe here: Why? […]
You may remember my 2-minute top tips; weekly videos designed to help you tackle tough conversations in school. And they’re coming back next week! Here’s what to expect: Here’s what happens next: Next Wednesday 28th February I’ll land in your inbox with a top tip about a difficult conversation that is showing up more […]
Would you like to improve your team, with minimum input and maximum output? ‘Yes!’ I hear you cry! I mean, who wouldn’t? So let me share this tool which school leaders love (after all it’s Valentine’s day next week so let’s share the love). It’s great for creating high performance. It’s beautifully simple […]
I’ve spent over a decade walking into schools and talking to school leaders trying to answer this question: What stops us breaking through the ceiling of normal, and move beyond delivering good education to providing exceptional education? Thinking about how to share what I’ve learned puts me in mind of the old game […]
If you get a stone in your shoe, what do you do? Stop, take your shoe off, remove the stone, put your shoe back on and carry on. Right? Because having a stone in your shoe: Can be painful, and it slows down how fast you can walk. Simple problem, obvious solution (the […]
I know you love your school. But as a leader doesn’t it feel like there are more hard bits in your day than good bits? A parent is upset about a decision. There’s been an incident in class. You can’t get the absence figures to improve, despite best efforts. And then there’s staff. You love […]
Who, not what, is the issue you need to fix this year? I ask because I regularly hear this phrase from school leaders: “It’s been brilliant this week in school because ‘X’ has been off sick/on leave”. I imagine you’re instantly picturing someone who makes you feel the same way. Maybe […]