Michael Marland, a visionary London headteacher wrote “The Craft of the Classroom” which has had a profound effect on the development of effective teachers.
In it he wrote:
“The craft won’t work without a spirit compounded of the salesman, the Music Hall performer, the parent, the clown, the intellectual, the lover and the organiser, but the spirit won’t win through on its own either. Method matters. The more “organised” you are, the more sympathetic you can be.”
Teachers and managers are both paid to help individuals to explore and develop their potential and I think that Marland’s quote about the teaching craft probably also holds true for management.
If this is true which facets of ‘spirit’ and ‘method’ do you most urgently need to develop?