Hawker Brownlow Thinking and Learning Conference- Melbourne 2019

Hi all.

Having just returned from Melbourne, I again find myself pretty enthusiastic after a lot of new learning.  The Hawker Brownlow conference ran from Thursday -Sunday and had an amazing range of quality presenters.  What was also impressive was the personal touch, I was able to meet and talk more with presenters, which I did when the opportunity arose. Tables were also set up that allowed conversation rather than the class, long line stadium seating approach.

The conference was set up so that you could either attend full days with presenters for a more in-depth opportunity of learning or you could move around to cover multiple topics but obviously more briefly.

I ended up spending a significant amount of time with Tony Swainston, who spoke about Emotional intelligence for leadership and also professional growth coaching.  I am very excited and inspired by the benefits of coaching and intend to try some of this out and look further into.  Massive companies such as KPMG and Price Waterhouse use a lot of coaching and reap 4:1 Return on their investment due to it, this can't be ignored.  When Tony took us through the process, I could see how empowering it could be for staff if delivered authentically, which is one of its challenges.

http://tonyswainston.com/


4MAT system- When you are learning anything- Bernice McCarthy
People need to understand :
Why
What
How
If- What if…. Creative, New, Unique

EI also develops KASH
K- Knowledge
A- Attitude
S-Skills
H-Habits

Emotional intelligence may be the best predictor of success in life itself, redefining what it means to be smart.

EI supports…
Self-actualisation, getting a buzz from what we are doing, satisfaction
Optimism
Stress tolerance
Happiness
Assertiveness

It is a cultural change

Defensive culture v Constructive culture
Makes an enormous difference, 4 times higher when constructive v defensive.

	Defensive culture	Constructive culture
Income	166%	682%
Share price	74%	901%
Profit	1%	756%

EI is about awareness and taking action


Dr Daniel Goleman says that an individuals success depends 20% on IQ and 80% on EQ.
EQ v IQ = 4:1

Schools focus too much on IQ, IQ is your ticket, need it for jobs, Uni etc… Will this change?  Why does society continue to measure this way? I hope this changes over time.

"We often count everything that is easy to count but not everything that can be counted, counts and not everything that counts, can be counted".  Einstein.

Well being rubrix to be assessed against… Set up as part of 2019 strategic plan perhaps! Key competencies, developing EI in students/staff, What does this mean for secondary schools and Higher education institutes?

What are the four biggest actions of great leaders? Admired leaders *Kouzes and Posner*
Honest
Forward-looking
Inspiring
Competent

Tweaks for transformation, not the next big thing!


Ask ourselves, what have I done today that has contributed towards the values of this school/organisation?


Leading a team requires a powerful vision!   We MUST settle on our vision. Why do we have it?  What is our purpose? What will we do with the vision, once it is determined?
Pathway to success
Pathway to greatness
Refresh, learn, grow, along the pathway to success- What does it mean? Unpack Refresh, learn, grow.

What is important is that we are all working towards the vision, we don’t have to do it the same way necessarily...  Ship analogy, can’t travel in a linear line, elements of steps forward then backwards etc…

“The only thing more contagious than enthusiasm is the lack of it” Focus on the positives.

Daniel Pink describes 3 critical conditions for an intrinsic motivational environment
Autonomy, let them decide how to do it, be in control, time used, tasks, techniques
Mastery- opportunity to master their work and make progress through deliberate practice(trying to get better, every time we do something)
Purpose- sense of purpose in their work, understand the why.
Also by being given the big picture

Motivation through coaching can be a great help in motivating colleagues.


The second speaker I listened to was Kathy Perez- Dynamic differentiation: One size does not fit all   St Marys College California.

Classic start, high paced, music playing, great vibes, reminded me of our music in place of the bell.

“If the bum is numb, the brain is the same”

Activity bank
Hi 5, 3-5 people, state how you are feeling from a bank of choice - passionate, awesome, walking dead, glorious etc…
Fair is not always equal
Slow down to go faster
Brain break/state change are essential- Reflect, connect, relax.

Learning menus, everyone does the entree, choice of mains,  side dishes, dessert for early finishes.

Snowball fight with thoughts/ideas was a lot of fun, could see our students enjoying it, would need to be used immediately before a break time!

Martha Kaufeldt- Growing even smarter brains - How everyone can increase their intelligence?

The brain is the most important organ in the body, why don’t we focus more about how it works?
Growth mindset- One’s ability is mallaeble and can be increased with effort and learning
“My ability and confidence grow with my effort”

Fixed mindset- static, Growth- can be developed

Carol Dweck- Research #1 
Students take IQ test ½ got praised for intelligence- you’re really smart

½ praised for efforts, you tried really hard

#2 choice
What do you want to do today? Easy like the first or harder and you’ll learn a lot
Effort students chose the hard one 90%
IQ- 80% chose easier

Growth mindset- “With time and effort I can get better at whatever I put my mind to…”
Fixed mindset- “Even with effort, this isn’t going to change so why try…”
Teach this to students.

Neural plasticity
Born with over 100 billion neurons in your brain
Changing, structure, function and organisation in relation to new experiences.
Multisensory experiences in enriched environments can stimulate brain growth and development, this supports the learnings around PBL, we are already noticing benefits from this.

Our brains change with time and experience

Provide a supportive , take a risk environment with opportunities to “do over” try again, revisit.

We need to go slower to go faster…

Teach about failure!

Zone of proximal development- if you are not struggling you are not learning.

Fuji kindergarten -Ted Talk- Has trees growing through the buildings and deliberate uneven grass and banks all around it so that students learn how to develop certain muscles and muscle groups quickly.

POWER OF YET
I can’t do this….yet
This doesn’t work...yet
I don’t know….yet
I’m not good at this ...yet.

Growth mindset feedback is important- avoid you’re so smart, praise more of what they can do. Persistence, strategies, effort etc...

Carol Dweck -Ted talk

Anthony Muhammad spoke about the transformational skills of leaders.
https://www.hbe.com.au/anthony-muhammad.html

Anthony Muhammad- The four skills of transformational leaders

Transformational leadership is a leadership approach that causes change in individuals. It enhances motivation, morale and performance.

What qualities must a leader posses to transform behaviour and build consensus?

Trustworthy, relationship builder, visionary, active listener, integrity, competent, model

No one person is fully qualified to become a transformational leader

Reliability v Likeability - You can like someone you don’t trust and trust someone you don’t like.

Healthy cultures are two-way streets, support v accountability

The four critical behaviours :

1) Communication- (Why? Cognitive)  If someone doesn’t understand why they are doing something, they are unlikely to buy in.

Communicate what- Purpose for change - facts/data- stimulate a commitment to a cause bigger than self

Identify starting point for improvement

Stimulate ownership and intrinsic commitment

“Change is inconvenient”

Rationale for purpose - Persuasion

Context- How has this idea been helpful to others in our situation?

Expect resistance - What arguments should I anticipate?

Details - How will this idea be practically implemented in our environment?

You need to do your homework and dig deep into what you want others to do.

2) Building trust- (Who? Emotional)

Trump example- Over 65 million people trust him!  That is the concern,  not him, himself!

EI- Is the ability to identify, assess and control the emotions of oneself, of others and groups. It can be divided into ability EI and trait EI.

Openness to experience- Empathy

Conscientiousness

Extraversion- Have an advantage

Agreeableness- pick and choose my battles

Neuroticism- Sweat the details, organisation

Empathy does not mean that I agree with you, it means that I am listening. Virgin Australia example.

Genuine concern

If you don’t give empathy you can’t receive it.

Listening without rebuttal

3) Support/capacity building - (How? Functional)

What type of support will people need to achieve this? Some people will need more help than others.

Don’t move to accountability until all of the first 3 have been given.

4) Accountability- (Do, Return On Investment)

Develop a system to measure the implementation.

"Come to jesus meeting" lol, face to face discussion if not stepping up

You can’t make a withdrawal until you have made an investment.

Tony Swainston - Outstanding coaching in schools 

 ILM is the UK’s largest body for leadership and management.

https://www.i-l-m.com/learning-and-development/coaching-and-mentoring-qualifications

Tony offers courses to degree and masters level.

What coaching is….and is not.

Coaching and mentoring are different, there are overlaps but also distinct differences.

Coaching	Mentoring
Belief that individuals hold the answers	Support person has expert knowldge
Advice is not given	Deficit model
Solution focused	Can promote dependence upon the support person
Commitment to spceifc actions	Direction given
Non judgemental	Goal set by support person
Generic helping skills	Specific advice given
Strengths focused model	May be solution focused
Non directive model	Mentor may be judgemental
Goal set by coachee	Support person has the “real” answers
Promotes high degress of independence	May/May not result in specific actions
Both use the skills of questioning, clarifying, reflecting, observing and giving feedback

An inexperienced teacher could be a great coach and a 20-year principal could be hopeless.

KPMG get a 4:1 return on investment due to coaching….  One of the top two effective leadership styles but is one of the least used.

If people are told what to do, they will do it the same way as the leader, it puts a ceiling on it, we want growth, individuality.

Four things you are NOT required to do as a coach :

Giving advice

Offering opinions

Giving instructions

Managing

Leading through coaching but not in a certain direction.

Four things you are not required to be as a coach :

Be an expert

Know the right answers

Be in control

Be the one that will fix it

What do you plan to do with the coaching?

Professional discussions?

Share with leadership team originally

Possible training

Research more about the benefits and impact

Offer it to staff?

Chinese character for listening -

I listen with my ears 

I listen with my eyes

I listen with my heart

I listen and with undivided attention

Requirements for coaching to work :

A clear understanding of how benefits will be assessed

A coherent plan of how coaching is going to operate is created

A developmental culture is adopted

Confidentiality maintained

Internal coaches need to be fully trained and/or external coaches carefully chosen

Rooms allocated to coaching sessions - Privacy, avoid interruptions

Senior leaders carrying out coaching and being coached themselves

Senior leaders themselves being trained in coaching

Time allocated for coaching 

Benefits of coaching :

Students :

A good friend

Better at goal setting

A growth mindset

Better decision maker

More motivated

More resilience

Aware of potential

Positive beliefs

Adults from being coached :

Understanding myself better

Improve my job satisfaction

Solution-focused

Understanding colleagues better

Improve as a teacher

Feel happier

More motivated

Adults from being a coach :

Being a better leader

Better at my job

Learning how to communicate better

More satisfaction

Learning how others solve problems

Better Listener.

If you are interested or want to know more about any of the above, feel free to sing out!