On a hot August afternoon, I was running the last few miles of a half ironman, dubbed the Atomic Man. The Atomic Man was a 70 mile triathlon, including swimming, biking and running, through the hills of Tennessee. This race is known for a brutal mega climb called Crybaby Hill that racers had to endure twice. This hill is difficult for the most experienced riders and can crush the soul of a novice cyclist. In those last few miles, I witnessed an event that has stuck with me for years and has been an inspiration for how I view life and leadership. I heard a woman crying in the distance. Concerned, I kept a look out as I ran. Around the bend, there she was, about ten feet off the road in a person’s front yard. She looked terrible. She was squatting and had removed her one piece race suit. There, naked, crying, and squatting, she was for the world and home owners to see. She was pooping in the front yard. As our eyes met, the only thing she could say was, “I’m so sorry!” I gave her the nod to show her I understood and soldiered on. I knew what had happened. The woman had gone too hard and hit the wall. There was nothing I could do for her except hope she had some toilet paper, a wet wipe, or a leaf.
One of the toughest lessons I have learned in racing is the importance of pacing. This is an essential skill to any endurance athlete. The ability to know how fast and hard you can go over a given distance before you hit the wall. Let me assure all readers the wall is very real and painful. Your body will shake. You may get dizzy and disoriented. Any food in your gut will make a b-line to the nearest exit, whether you are ready or not. Once you get to this point, finishing becomes about mental toughness but there is no escaping the pain moving forward.
Experienced athletes know that if you begin a marathon running like a dog is chasing you while you are wear meat scented underwear, you are destined to hit the wall at about mile 18 as hard as Mike Tyson hit Glass Joe in Punch-Out. You are doomed. Leading a school towards change involves as much pacing as long distance racing. If you don’t consider the pace at which you need to move, you may find yourself flat on your back or hiding out in a porta-john (or a random front yard). Luckily, I have had plenty of experience with this in racing and leadership. I have hit the wall so many time that my face can be seen in the mortar. Hopefully, you can learn from my epic failures and embarrassing moments and it may save you some pain in implementing change in your school.
I have developed three steps to avoid hitting the wall:
Step #1
Know the course
Having knowledge of the course sounds so simple but is always over looked by new athletes. You can’t complete the race if you don’t know where you are going. Several times, I have ridden 20+extra miles in a race because I missed a turn. Twenty miles is a long way no matter how you cover it. The energy expended over that distance always punched my ticket for the pain train. Many times, people rely on others to keep them on course. This is very dangerous. You can’t assume that anyone else knows where they are going either. If a person is ahead of you, it means they are faster, not smarter. If you are ever lucky to be in the lead, how will you know where to go when there is no one to follow? You don’t have to know every turn but be familiar with the course enough to maximize your efforts. Take advantage of the downhills. Understand where you can go fast and where you need to play it safe.
In leadership, leaders must understand the change they actually want and what it looks like. Many school leaders want high scores, low truancy, or zero bus problems. The problem is most don’t know how to get to those goals. If you just start making changes without having a good idea of how to accomplish the task or what the end result should look like, you will likely find yourself and your staff way off course. Take the time to look at what you really want to accomplish, the data you have, and how to get there. Look at potential pitfalls or barriers that will slow your progress. Good leaders know the course and understand the signs of being off track. They know when to proceed with caution and when to work quickly. As with racing, you don’t have to know every turn, but having a good idea of what is ahead of will make the journey much easier. You may have to adjust but as long as you know where the finish line is you are likely to arrive where you planned.
Step #2
Know the distance
Anyone who knows me well, knows I love stupid distances. I am the guy that enjoys riding my bike until everyone else is on the ride is complaining. I kind of like when people ask, “How far did you run?” and getting the response “why?!?” when I tell them. We do it because we can and because the distance is out there. In racing though, it is crucial to know how far you have to go. You must know how much water and calories are required to cover the distance. In a short race you can run like a scalded dog and be ok. In a marathon, you probably want to conserve you energy. In an Ironman, the goal for many is to keep moving forward. Understanding the distance prepares your mind for what lies ahead. Many will mentally divide up the distance into chunks and only focus on each piece one at a time.
In change, leaders must know how length of time it will take to implement their shift. Is it a change that will take a year or a month? The process and the effect on the school will look completely different between the two. As school leaders, we must consider the amount of time invested towards the outcome. We must prepare ourselves, our students, and staff mentally for the long haul. If they don’t understand that a process is long, they may give up early when they don’t see the results they want.
Rule 3
Know your “fitness” level
All good athletes know where they realistically are in their fitness goals. They should understand how fast they can run without going completely off the rails or injuring themselves. This knowledge comes from hours spent training and learning how their body reacts to stress. These athletes plan for races that play to their strengths. Their knowledge of their fitness allows them to plan how to attack the race that maximizes their effort and reduces the chances of disaster.
I am, unfortunately, not a “good” athlete. I frequently sign up for races that I have not trained enough for. We are not talking about 5k’s or a turkey trot. I have run more than one marathon with little or no training. Afterward, I would joke how I probably should have spent more time training. When I train, my friends joke about how I would always start our rides and runs at a red line pace and have to grind out the final miles. This is how I became so familiar with the wall.
When looking at change in your school, think about your school’s “fitness” level. Be honest with yourself. How prepared is the group for the change ahead? Think about how much training they have had or will need to be successful. Many schools are in need of changes but the group isn’t prepared to tackle the challenge. If you choose to move forward without considering the level of preparedness of the organization, you are on track for a painful journey. Not only will the group suffer through the change, you may find that you have lost the confidence of individuals within the group. If the group has a largely negative experience, this will likely have an impact on their willingness or “buy-in” for future changes.
Some issues must be addressed, no matter if the group is ready or not. This is when you should follow the idea of “going slower to get faster”. Plan to implement the changes as slowly as possible and with more support than you think is needed. This will help the group through the pain of the shifts. Going slow will also allow you to adjust for problems that arise and potential misunderstandings. While you may feel the need to get it done, rushing increases the likelihood of mistakes and misconceptions. The end result may wind up different than expected. You may create a bigger issue by rushing and lose the support of the group to start over.
The nature of schools require consistent change to address the needs of the community and students. We as leaders have no choice in the fact that our schools must adapt and change to meet these needs. Leaders do, however, have the ability to plot out how the changes will occur. Understanding the pace at which your organization can move is the key to success. Proper pacing will make the experience a positive one and not a death march towards your goal. The process doesn’t have to be a grind. Planning, pace, and flexibility may strengthen the group as they move through the process. While there is some pride that comes with being the tough guy who welcomes hitting the wall, I have found it is much less painful to avoid the wall than trying to go head first through it.
Next week, I will look at some personal examples of hitting the wall in leadership and what to do “When Sh#% Goes Sideways”.
Have a great week
Stay Sharp
Dr.S