Here is the thing…investment doesn’t always mean costing you a bazillion dollars to put towards something. I am talking about investment in a few different ways. I want to explore ways that you can invest in your leadership with and without costing you money. Because, if you are not investing in your leadership or your passion…then you just might be missing out on something that will re-ignite your momentum and it could be the key to you enjoying your career and life again.
I want to dig into some ideas and areas that I really feel are important to invest in as a leader professionally and personally. Let’s face it, you sometimes feel alone or isolated because you are in a leadership position. Sometimes you might feel in over your head, confused, frustrated, elated, passionate, not passionate or anything in between. Heck, I can feel these emotions all in one hour! It is quite incredible how my emotions can be on a roller coaster that never seems to make sense if I don’t figure out my pathway and where I want to spend my time. When I am talking about investment, I want to look into where we should invest our time so that we can get off that rollercoaster and onto the clarity course instead. So let’s get to it!
Area #1: Invest in a Mastermind Community of Like-Minded Leaders. When I was first starting out in a leadership position, I was scared to ask for help or guidance because I felt like it meant that I didn’t know what I was doing. So I kept quiet, worked hard, and tried to do it all myself. Cue burnout, frustration, and many hours of wasted time. It wasn’t until I looked for a community of leaders to help me, that I finally started to gain confidence and clarity. Not only that, I realized I had some great ideas to contribute to the group as well! So for me, I invested money in a mastermind group to start with and then I found some really great free communities that I could bounce ideas off of and learn from. It doesn’t have to cost you money, you may have a mastermind community within your school or your division as well. However, I did both and I still to the this day, invest in a mastermind group because it has given me so much clarity. I can’t stress enough how incredibly important it is to find a group of people that will build you up and, when necessary, pick you up and support you and really, also, call you out when you need to be called out. We all have great friends that do that for us already, but it is so important to also find people who are in your niche and who really get the business side of the support you need that will really make an impact.
If you’re feeling stressed, getting into a group of people that can help you, especially when things get tough, is everything. And so that’s why I wanted to encourage you to get into a DIY or peer-ran mastermind. It will not only help you professionally but personally as well. There really is nothing like a community of like-minded people who can pull apart the layers and get to some clarity. All it is, is an accountability group, a group that will help you when you’re stuck, that will give you resources when you need it, and will listen to you when you’re having a rough time. If you are looking for a community to invest in, my School Administrator’s Academy digital course is a great place to start. Inside of it, you will learn systems to solve problems and boost productivity and efficiency and you get to be a part of a live community that has a private facebook and weekly mastermind sessions. The doors open to enroll in February. I also am in the process of creating a membership course for school leader mamas who want to build systems to be more productive and efficient in order to find passion, purpose, and balance in their leader lives and personal lives. If you are interested in learning more about this Inspire membership, email me at jacealynh@gmail.com.
Area #2: Invest in Yourself. This one is so important in order for you to find your passion and purpose again. So often, we forget about ourselves because we are trying to do it all. I learned that is a one way ticket to burnout. So I learned effective ways to invest in myself. I enrolled in supportive online courses that helped me to set up systems in my business, personal life, and leadership. I invested in items that would help me organize my life in my home and my school. I invested in memberships so that I could have that mastermind community at my fingertips. I’ve gone to the trainings and the conferences. I think that’s really important, and I really do believe you should be investing in your leadership growth, probably more so than you are right now, so take a look at that. I’ve always surrounded myself with people that are doing something similar to me, and they have resources and insights and intel that is incredibly valuable to me, and I have the same that I can share with them. Surrounding yourself with people that are doing something similar and they are go-getters and they’re serious about building their business and they want to do big things will infuse a surge of momentum and energy into your life. It is always good to surround yourself with people like that. Invest in learning that will light you up and help you to finally implement and take action with more clarity.
Area #3: Invest Your Time Into Setting Up Systems So That You Can Automate, Delegate, and Outsource to Be More Productive and Efficient. This one is super important. Look at ways that you can set up templates or system operating procedures that you are not re-inventing the wheel every year. So for me, I set up systems by starting a dashboard. Each month when a big task came up I wrote it on my dashboard and then did the work of creating a step by step system for it on how I did it. I then hyperlinked it to my dashboard so that the following year, I didn’t have to search for it or try to remember how I did it. I just clicked on the link and all the work was there. It also meant that I could delegate if needed because I had a step by step how to system, so that I could spend my time where it really mattered. Some systems that I have set up are a time tabling system for teacher schedules, a start up and shut down system for setting up my day to be more productive and efficient (click here of a free download of that), an automated bank of replies for my most common. emails, most commonly asked questions template, systems for assessment and team teaching, etc. Systems are a huge investment that soon turn into automation so it is worth every second of your time to start setting those up.
Area #4: Invest in the People Within Your Business or School. This can look however you want it to, but consider ways that you can validate the work that they do and motivate them. This may be through setting up professional development opportunities or giving them more structured time to work together instead of meeting all of the time. Perhaps you want to invest in setting up monthly fun activities to validate the work that they are doing. You might want to leave a few of their favorite things on their desk or a note to thank them for the work that they do. Maybe it is some money as a bonus or for them to spend it on resources that they need. However you choose, I believe it is so important to invest in the people you are working with so that it brings them some passion and purpose too.
So there you have it! A guide to help you to decide where you will invest time so that you can start to build momentum and gain the clarity that you have been looking for. Here are your action steps: In each area of the four areas, choose one thing that you would like to start implementing right away. For example, in area one, make a list of four to five people that you might like to start a mastermind group with or look for one that you can enroll in. If you are feeling isolated, unclear, overwhelmed, and not sure how to start to build momentum, then think about investing in these areas and I promise you will start to take steps forward.
We also have a private facebook group called Principals and Leadership that you can be a part of to help with setting up your mastermind groups! Click here to join and you will also get a free guide to workshop your meetings.
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