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Are S.M.A.R.T. goals stealing the joy from the profession you have dedicated your career to? I know this sounds crazy because as leaders we have been trained to write Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound goals with benchmarks and lead our staff toward meeting them. While setting a target and moving your school to a better place is the role of the principal, I want to share a formula with you that will accomplish the same outcome but enhance the way you lead and return joy to our profession. What is this formula?

Leadership + Habits = Results

A focus on combining leadership with habits will reignite your mindset and fuel sustainable improvement, leading to results.

I have been in school administration for 17 years, and for 12 of those I have served as principal of Carterville Intermediate School. I spent my early years in administration searching for the magic pixie dust, silver bullet, and best strategy to elevate learning and make the job of my teachers more efficient and enjoyable. The truth is that the holy grail of educational strategies does not exist. As you know, this job becomes more and more challenging each year, and I would contend that it is because we are focused on goals and outcomes versus processes and results.

Here are the three problems I see with S.M.A.R.T. goals:

Problem #1. All winners and losers have the same goals. Every Olympian wants to win the gold medal. Only a system of continuous, small improvements becomes the difference maker for the person who stands atop the podium and weeps to their national anthem.

Problem #2. Achieving a goal is only a momentary win. Imagine telling your child to clean their messy room and they do. Yay, home team for the win! If the same habits continue that led to the messy room, in less than a week’s time, you will be having the same conversation.

Problem #3. Goals restrict happiness. Why? Because happiness is linked to your desires. Goals create an either/or conflict—either you achieve and are happy or fail and are disappointed. The purpose of setting goals is to win the game as they are focused on outcomes. The purpose of forming habits is to continuously play the game and win the day.

Applying the Formula

Principal Tom Webb with students at Carterville Intermediate School. Webb says that the formula Leadership + Habits = Results can return joy to the profession. PHOTO COURTESY OF TOM WEBB

To apply the formula I mentioned earlier and ensure you reignite the joy within our profession, I suggest following three simple steps.

Step 1. Recognize that we are all leaders. Anyone with the ability to influence another person’s actions, desires, or feelings is a leader. Leaders also have the ability to cast a vision and provide resources and support to those who follow them. Each follower is subconsciously asking themselves, “Do I trust my leader? Do they care about me?”

As a leader, if you want all your staff to answer yes to both questions and be ready to move the school to a better place when needed, open your calendar app and create a new calendar titled, “Blessings,” then listen. As you move throughout your day, you will hear staff talking about things in their lives that are meaningful to them. They might ask for a sick day as they are getting some health tests run. They may be taking a personal day to take their oldest child to college. They may have recently lost a pet, or you may learn that their husband recently got a promotion.

When you hear about these life events, take 10 seconds and add it to your blessings calendar and set a reminder. When the reminder goes off, reach out with a text and send some positive vibes for good test results, ask about the college visit, show empathy over the loss of a pet, or ask about the new job. As leaders, we are not superhuman and cannot remember everything, but this system of leadership will not only support your staff but will make you feel blessed by ensuring your staff knows they can trust you and you care about them.

Step 2. Strengthen the daily habits of those you lead. Long ago, I realized that my time, effort, and focus were the three variables that could transform my school. As leaders, if we all put in the same time and give 100% effort, the only differentiating factor is what we are focused on. Habits are critical for sustainable improvement. They are built through consistency. Success becomes the product of our daily habits. Every new habit starts with a seed of change. Every day, a person is challenged to continue to water this seed or let it die. No one is perfect, so if you don’t water today, be sure to water tomorrow.

Focusing on good habits will ensure you win the day. To create a new habit, simply identify an area within your school you’d like to improve and select a task that will lead to your desired result that you can accomplish in five minutes. For example, if you want to elevate the climate of your school and how people feel about the work, take a Post-it note with you each time you leave the office. Look for interactions that reinforce the values of your school, write the person a note providing positive reinforcement, and give it to them. You will spread joy, elevate the climate within your building, and bless yourself in the process.

Step 3. Win the day and results will come. As educators, we excel at setting goals and staying busy with activities. We can have 100 irons in the fire at the same time and manage them. In the end, we are doing just that—managing. We need to simply pull one iron out of the fire and put it to work so we can accomplish something. Ultimately, these small changes and small wins lead to remarkable results.

Look for interactions that reinforce the values of your school, write the person a note providing positive reinforcement, and give it to them.

Focusing on results really comes down to activity versus accomplishment. When you have 15 minutes before your next meeting or are planning for an upcoming 60-minute team leader meeting, prioritize what you can accomplish in the time allowed. Forget the busy work and only focus your time and energy on tasks that can be accomplished. Many times, this approach forces leaders to make decisions—the secret sauce that nurtures the growth of our schools. Each time you accomplish something you win. Each time your team accomplishes something you win. Each time your school accomplishes something you win. Winning is contagious and it fuels motivation and inspiration to continue this journey.

Choosing Joy

It is a fact that as leaders, we can choose our mindset. We can choose joy. So, what happens when “joy stealers” attack and you get a difficult parent email or visit the first five minutes of your day? What happens when your new math series doesn’t arrive at the start of school? What happens when you get the news that your middle child has Type 1 diabetes? When life attacks, hard or soft, you need some armor to protect yourself. Strengthen your armor and maintain your inner joy when life or work attacks by telling yourself one of the following:

1.  I will live in the present.
2.  I will choose my attitude.
3.  I will only focus on what’s in my control.

Focusing on things that have happened in the past only sucks the energy out of you. They cause frustration, anger, and bitterness. The future can cause you to feel anxious or fearful and we cannot be controlled by things that haven’t happened yet. Living in the present is the only place you can control and by choosing your attitude in this space, you can maintain your joy.

When your leadership influences the habits of your staff and leads to results, you win the day. Win the day, and you’ll win the week. Routinely win the week and you’ll see results you’ve only dreamed of. Using the formula Leadership + Habits = Results will not only help you to win the day, but it is the secret to building your school’s super system that elevates learning and returns joy to our work.


Tom Webb, EdD, is the principal of Carterville Intermediate School in Carterville, IL. He is also an educational speaker and leadership coach. Learn more at boomleader.com.