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In this week’s Monday Matters, Jen and Will talk about the challenge of the work of any educator, in knowing you are making a meaningful impact, not just a good impression.
Upcoming Events
If you’re going to be in St George, Utah, February 12-14, 2025, let Jen know as she’s speaking at the Utah Association of Elementary School Principals.
Will is scheduled in Miami, Florida, January 15-18, 2024, at the SAM’s National Conference, and also at two Assistant Principal conferences with CLAS on January 22 and January 28, 2025, in Alabama.
Below are some further thoughts from Will’s notes he and Jen discussed in the show:
From Will Parker:
Impact vs Impression
The other day, I returned from an education conference, and I felt unsettled. The conference was enjoyable, and my presentation was well-received. Afterwards, I talked to many principals who told me they were encouraged my presentation from my book Pause. Breathe. Flourish.: Living Your Best Life as an Educator. I took lots of photos with leaders who asked me to sign their books.
In some ways, the experience was everything I could have hoped for. The room was interactive, engaged, and friendly. The learning was collaborative. At the end of the event, however, I was left wondering: did I make an impact?
Later in the week, I was talking to fellow podcaster, and former principal John Mihaylo, a guest on my podcast. At the end of the recording, we were reflecting on our individual work as coaches and consultants.
He was talking about a conversation he had with a guest, Jason Kurtis, who had a talent for attracting volunteers. His lesson was inviting volunteers as ‘ambassadors’ for your school versus volunteers for your school. As a result, he said that Jason never ran short of people willing to jump to help at any school activity or fundraiser.
While John and I were talking, I was reflecting on the unique contrast between the terms volunteer and ambassador.
The first emphasizes a sacrifice while the latter emphasizes an invested contribution or identity. That led us to talk about the difference between ‘involvement’ and ‘engagement’. Involvement describes being present. Engagement describes being all-in or actively investing in the moment.
For some reason, the light bulb came on for me as I thought about feedback from leaders with whom I work. Their feedback is often helpful in knowing the impression I’ve made. What is harder to measure is my impact.
Whatever season you are in as a leader, my guess is that you sometimes wonder the same: Am I really making an impact?
I often tell educators who are interviewing for a new position to think of themselves as a consultant rather than a candidate. A candidate is trying to win a competition. A consultant is trying to add value and help someone else grow through their contributions.
The same can be said in the work we do as leaders. Anyone can make a good impression with enough practice. We should care about treating others with politeness, professionalism, and excellence. Those qualities, however, are not a substitute for helping others reflect, grow, and improve.
If making a meaningful impact versus a good impression is important to you, keep the following in mind:
- Discover what needs or challenges someone is wrestling with, and try to understand that challenge with open-ended questions.
Ask follow-ups like: What is the real challenge here for you? If you could have what you want, what would that look like?
- Reframe the challenges others are having with powerful paraphrasing.
Repeating back to someone what they are saying allows you to show deeper understanding, and it helps the listener to clarify any of your misunderstandings.
- Ask permission to provide feedback before offering any.
Saying, “How can I help?” is a powerful way to give the person an opportunity to invite your input in a way that may really be beneficial. A few weeks ago, I reached out to a younger leader who was new in his building but experienced in leadership elsewhere.
I wanted him to know I was rooting for him in his new position, and I asked, “How can I help?”
He responded with, “When can you come visit?”
I used the visit as an opportunity to learn more about him and his school, and as a result, we have scheduled some follow-up complimentary coaching sessions.
- Invite others to think about the value exchange is saying yes.
Because meaningful impact requires strategic action, leaders must be willing to say ‘no’ while also saying ‘yes.’ This important mindset is important for scheduling your time for areas that match your strengths and thus make the most impact.
Often we become trapped in actions leading to no impact because we are not willing to say ‘no’ to commitments that are taking us away from our highest impact. For instance, principals know they make the most impact by direct interactions with students and teachers in learning environments.
If that is the case, what meetings, reports, travel, or supervision activities could be handed to someone else – or taken off your list – to free you up to say yes to more time in classrooms?
Let’s Wrap This Up
A few days after my conversation with John Mihaylo about Impact vs Impression, I talked to Principal, Dr. Amanda Austin, who attended my presentation at the conference in Baton Rouge. She had been named the 2025 State Principal of the Year for Louisiana, and I had invited her as a guest on my podcast.
At the end of the conversation, I asked her what I was really curious to know: what impacted her the most from the session I presented?
