The ART of Management

The "ART" of Management: Attitude, Resources and Team

The 21^st century is the era when we all should understand that you have only one time to get it right; and that is the first time. The old adage that says that you only have one time to be make a good impression, applies to more than just personal encounters; it applies to everything in the business and education world (which by the way is a business).

While it is hard to remember the time when we did not have the ubiquitous internet and You Tube, as leaders and managers we had better not forget that they exist and people use them to expose organizational weaknesses. Long lines are no longer tolerated. Just ask the university who did not have its ducks in order and ended up having 7,000 students standing in line for days trying to register. Someone who was hot, tired, thirsty and hungry sent the picture of the mayhem to the local news. The press arrived promptly and reported what they saw to thousands more.

But long lines is not just the measurement of good customer service. People who don't know how to treat people well, or choose not to, are finding themselves on the other side of the employment line because someone sent a negative image through the airwaves to expose the poor treatment. Technology, as we all know, has given people a voice like we've never had before.

What then do we need to do? It is imperative that we understand and ensure that we have the "ART" extant. It may mean that people need to be moved to behind the scenes positions. It may mean that resources need to be reallocated in order to ensure that what matters most receives the financial support that it needs; and it may definitely mean that an attitude adjustment is made by all one or all members of the team.

The Attitude questions are 2 simple ones: Do the people who engage with the public, create policy or implement policy understand and embrace the best practices of customer service, the golden rule or the value of genuine courtesy? And if they don't, what are you going to do about it? Ignoring them is not an option.

TheResource questions are more complex: Are you willing to invest in what needs more attention in order to better ensure that the interactions that your customers have are positive? If funds are limited and they generally are, how will you redirect funding? Are you willing to make decisions about what can go away or be reduced without crippling another side of the organization or business? But keep in mind, without customers, you do not have a business.

The "T" in team stands for together, which is not an original thought, but is darn hard to find. In teams that are left on their own without being held accountable for how they act as a team, are often times bogged down by somebody's unchecked ego.

Do you have the right team with the right attitude who knows how to effectively and efficiently utilize the human and financial resources that they have available to them? Has the team received the time and attention it needs to work optimally? Do you have the right members on the team? If the answer is "no" to one or all of the above, what are you willing to do about it?

Today, requires a kind of hands-on leadership that the guru Oprah, and I'm sure, others attribute to their success. Micromanagement? Maybe it is. But the end goal is clear: Have positive press everyday. Imposssible you say, then you're not whom I'm looking for to serve on my team. Think ART- Attitude, Resources and Team. That's Cecilia's Way

Urban Education: A Trillion Dollar Business

I read Diane Ravitch's most recent book last weekend in one sitting; it was just that compelling. As I read it, I could not help but think of the many teachers and administrators with whom I have spoken over the past 8 years who have just been lamenting about the damage done to our kids. They were not complaining because they were simply resisting the NCLB reform agenda. Their concerns were bonafide. They and I see NCLB as a dumbing down of students who attend public schools in this country. Others who are more in tune with history and politics see it as a strategy to end public schools in this country.

Diane Ravitch is a scholar, which is why I don't understand why it took her so long to get it. And, yet I do understand. You see, the students who were the victims of this so-called accountability system were not her children and grandchildren. They don't attend the schools where children don't have access to the best in curriculum and instruction. She and her children would not allow it. However, when you make decisions for "other people's children" you don't see through the same lens nor do you share the same level of urgency as the others do. In a recent leadership role I had to explain to those who were making decisions about empowerment for others that they could not establish a different standard for empowerment for other people. What is empowerment for them, the leaders, had to be the same for the program participants.

The real travesty in all of this is that the African American scholars voices were silent or silenced in the national dialogue about NCLB. Rod Paige, unfortunately, is not the person who could have brought the kind of leadership that was needed while Secretary of Education. His experiences in the Texas School System simply did not prepare him for the depth and breadth of understanding of curriculum and instruction that was needed. The wake-up call is that those of us who may not be considered as scholars must still take on those who are. Clearly, when they are wrong, there errors are deadly.

The NCLB legislation requires the annual assessment of all students on standardized tests. Because the stakes are so high, when they're not being tested, teachers are preparing them for the test. The test is primarily fill in the blank. They are not similar to the New York State Regents exams that were based on the curriculum that was to be taught at particular grade levels for specific subjects. These tests are low level and the teaching that leads up to them is low level as well. Students are rebelling in various ways because they intuitively understand that what they are being "trained" to do is not education at all; and it is preparing them for a life of burgers and low-paid service job.

If you wonder why African American, Latino and poor white students are unable to write and read well. Well, wonder no more. They are not required to produce essays and research papers to demonstrate how well they have learned required information, unless they are in accelerated programs.

The insidious tracking of students continues. We know that it is not good education. We know that the effects have a long-term impact on students' lives and yet school systems continue to engage in a practice that we know not only leaves children behind, it pushes them behind.

I do not understand how this country can permit the misuse of billions of taxpayers dollars with the substandard education that millions of children are receiving. We are losing our students because of this NCLB era. This is occurring about a decade after the failure of the whole language movement, which resulted in a generation of students who have no word analysis skills and very poor writing skills. The experimentation with our students must stop. It is criminal. We know how to teach all students; we simply do not have the will to do it. We know how to hold teachers accountable; we just do not hold principals accountable for doing their jobs: professional development, coaching and evaluations.

Asa Hilliard's and Barbara Sizemore's voices are no longer audible because they have passed on. I refuse to allow their legacy to die with them. I have been quiet too long. It is time for my voice to be heard. I am an educator who has served at every level; and I have shared successes with great teachers, administrators and parents for our students.

I am committed to doing all that I can to save public schools because our children need them. I am searching for others who will challenge the powers that be to turn this ship around. Urban schools must be improved by those that understand and live urban education. They cannot be improved by those who simply read about them. Doctors donot learn how to perform heart surgery by simply reading a manual. Politicians cannot fix the heart of urban education that way either.

Why Aren't Women Sleeping

Talk to any women and you'll find that they're not sleeping very much these days. Age may have something to do with it; but I'm not so certain that it does. What I do know is that there are millions of working women, in particular, who are not sleeping the recommended 7-8 hours a night. Other than that they're healthy, energetic and bright. So, what's going on here. Well, if you mention it to a doctor, they want to prescribe something because it's something that has to be cured right? In some cases it may, especially if alertness is a critical part of your job such as surgery or driving a truck.

But, hey we still don't know why we're not sleeping. I have a couple of theories. I believe that there is a level of energy that we are not expending that is craving to be released. Perhaps it's a book that needs to be written or a song that needs to be sung. It may be a soliloquy that has yet to be recited.

That's it-- unexpended, bottled up energy. Or it may be an unfulfilled dream that won't let you rest until it has expression in your life--a business that you've always wanted to have, the trip around the world or the missionary work in your own neighborhood or in Africa. It may be as simple or as difficult as the conversation you have been trying to have with your significant other for over ten years. Wake him up and make him hear it; and don't let him interrupt you. Stop being so darned submissive...is that it? Or is passive a better word?

Paul Lawrence Dunbar wrote about the dream deferred, but I believe there are more women that live that poem than men, regardless of race! We're so busy trying to make a smooth path for our children and not bruise the male ego that women are too often putting themselves last. It's noble, but it is absolutely unhealthy. Look at the obituaries. They say that women outlive men, but boy are they going through hell just to stay on earth. Too many young women are being treated for stress related disease (of course the majority of diseases are stress-related). But that is for another blog.

Women, before you start taking sleep inducing medicines, spend some time listening to that inner voice that won't let you sleep. And then try to give it what it wants and needs. If your doctor doesn't ask you that question before prescribing something for you, then politely accept the prescription and tuck it away, until you find one who does.

Spring Followed Fall and Then What?

It's March and spring has sprung. In some geographic areas flowers are in full bloom and in others, the big thaw is just beginning, but it is spring nonetheless. There are some things in life, actually many things that we can predict; but it's the unpredictable that gets us. Listen, no condition is permanent; and the only thing that is constant is change.

Eventhough, we consciously know that what I've said is true, emotionally, people tend to resist change, which is to be expected. But just because resistance is expected, doesn't mean that it's healthy. I've seen a sign published a couple of times: Change or die. If it sounds dramatic, it is; but dramatic or not, it is the absolute truth.

When you are in a state of resistance, your muscles restrict. Restricted muscles and bones break and sprain more easily. Tension around your heart is absolutely not good. I've read that more men have heart attacks after the loss of a job either through unemployment or retirement than any other time. Why? It's because they have not accepted the change. Is change difficult; it can be. But it's not the change that's the problem; it's our reaction to it; that's the problem.

Do self-assessments to see how you're really feeling' about things. Do some self-talk like: change is good; I can handle this; everything works together for good and finally--Thank you for this change in my life; I know that it is good for me.

Say these things when you wake up, when you shower, when you go to bed, when you're driving your car. Take deep breaths and do somethings differently that you don't have to do, like walking backwards in a safe place of course. Try reading left to right, while holding a poster up to the mirror. There is nothing more natural than change; and yet it's killing too many of our friends and family members. Don't kid yourself. The accident didnot have to happen; you just weren't paying attention. You were still lamenting about something that was in the past. Let it go!!

We can do this. You can do this. Just wait a little while, this will go away and some other change will come in its place. Go ahead, put on your left sock first. I dare you!