Photo by Paweł Czerwiński on Unsplash
At the cusp of ending Leading Change in Digital Learning, reflecting on the beginning, the course has been truly transforming for me. This course has helped me cultivate new leadership skills that I can foster professionally and personally. I have gained two learning moments that I wish to share.
What stood out the most for me is the common theme of change. As Albert Einstein once said, “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Therefore, change is inevitable but undoubtedly challenging. The first learning moment, I have learned that sometimes employing what worked in the past does not guarantee the same successful future results. Thus, it requires us to be flexible and adapt when required. Yukl & Mahsud (2010) built upon this narrative with “flexible and adaptive leadership involves changing behaviour in appropriate ways as the situation changes” (p.1).
At the beginning of the course, I stated that “each one of us has a leader within.” I still believe that to be true. Additionally, Sheninger’s (2019) statement “leadership is about action, not position” (para. 3) resonated deeply with me still. I have since recognized that to lead is to take on responsibilities and need a certain capacity to take risks. As Huggins (2017) echoed, most leaders admit that they have a high tolerance for risk in fostering leadership capacity. Accordingly, I have learned that even though each of us has a leader within, our leadership is not all activated simultaneously. Additionally, each of us has a different level and bandwidth to take risks at different stages of our lives.
Moving forward, I hope to have more opportunities to lead and to follow. To lead in course development, design, and educational projects as it is where I have gained years of experience, have the ability to adapt and built a high tolerance to take risks. I would gladly follow to learn and nurture my knowledge and skills on projects I am less experienced in.
References:
Huggins, K. S. (2017). Developing Leadership Capacity in Others: An Examination of High School Principals’ Personal Capacities for Fostering Leadership. International Journal of Education Policy and Leadership, 12(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.22230/ijepl.2017v12n1a670
Sheninger, E. (2019). Pillars of Digital Leadership. International Center for Leadership in Education. https://leadered.com/pillars-of-digital-leadership/
Yukl, G., & Mahsud, R. (2010). Why flexible and adaptive leadership is essential. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 62(2), 81–93. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019835
Vanessa,
I appreciate your moments of learning, and I can relate. We have experienced so many situations just this year alone where we’ve had to be flexible and adapt. What worked in the past is not necessarily working right now! Interestingly this first point fits with your second moment. Sometimes we lead, and sometimes we follow; we switch back and forth, depending on the situation. I think experiencing both roles is refreshing. I wonder if there is a human need to experience a bit of both in our lifetimes?
Thank you, Wendy! You are absolutely right, both roles are great and beneficial.
Vanessa, awesome read with regards to your reflection. May your future offer many opportunities, to express your leadership.
Vanessa,
I really connect with how you speak about risk-taking. This is something I struggle with. I like the idea of risk-taking because of the excitement of it all, but with risk-taking comes a higher probability of failure, and that is where my heart skips a beat. In the end, being a good risk-taker is really all about not being afraid of failure. Maybe I will get there one day?