Culturally Competent Leadership Development: A Creative Balancing Act

Eryn White

School of Education and Leadership, City University of Seattle

ECC 515: Leadership & Counseling Diverse Cultures in Education

Brian Celli

June 5, 2023
 Culturally Competent Leadership Development: A Creative Balancing Act.

Watching an acrobat perform can be both exhilarating and nerve-wracking. Their lithe

bodies spinning and twirling through space are mesmeric as the audience gasps in awe knowing

that with one missed grip, they could fall to their demise. The beautiful parts of a spectacle such

as Cirque De Soliel are that they are both an act of heroism and skill. It is a performance that

relies on stability and innovation. Similar to this, for me to become more culturally competent as

a leader I must rely on my creativity and balance, Although the stakes are not as heroic or deadly

as a high-flying trapeze artist, the importance of understanding and accepting of diverse cultures

is dire in education.

Personal Worldview

Completing the Institute for Cultural Evolution (ICE) Worldview Questionnaire (2023)

revealed I am most aligned with an Integrative worldview: amalgamating a variety of

perspectives or aspects of other worldviews otherwise seen as unrelated. However, the results

from my Cultural Intelligence (CQ) Report (Cultural Intelligence Center, 2022), indicated I have

areas of growth in CQ knowledge and CQ action. These gaps in the reports illustrate that

although I am open to understanding differing perspectives and finding commonalities, I still

have deficiencies in knowing what those distinctions might be and how to act within those

contexts.

However, within my core values of creativity and balance, I am predisposed to seek out

these new understandings. Creativity is needed in unplanned situations: often our best-laid plans

fall short in unique scenarios. Furthermore, if we feel overly prepared and we run into problems,

rational functions of the prefrontal cortex are taken over by emotional centres in the amygdala.

Mike Tyson is credited for saying “Everybody has a plan until they get hit. Then, like a rat, they

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stop in fear and freeze” (Sun Sentinel, 2021 para, 4). What creativity looks like is trying out new

actions when faced with not only unique scenarios but predictable situations too.

Balance is important because we are faced with a myriad of challenges and opportunities;

our world provides endless potential. Without having a goal, and understanding we have choices

to limit situations, we feel as if we must entertain it all. Without a focus, drive, or purpose, our

work is unfulfilling – there is a high probability we will not grow. Balance looks like prioritizing

and making time for what is valued, regardless of the situation. It also gives us the grace to be

able to start over when our tasks do not get accomplished. Balance is not neglecting your

responsibilities however, which is a slippery slope toward apathy and nihilism.

Creativity and balance correlate with other values such as curiosity, growth, and

responsibility and build upon Kouzes and Posner’s (2001) Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI).

Creativity is fed from and is a catalyst for curiosity. Asking why is an important part of my

creative process. These fit into Kouzes & Posner’s (2001) Challenging the Process, a strength

identified by myself and others, and Encouraging the Heart, an area of growth noted by my

supervisor. I value pursuing growth by looking outside of a convention (Kouzes & Posner,

2001).

In turn, the constant pursuit of finding a reason feeds into a want for growth. This is

reflected in Modelling the Way (Kouzes & Posner, 2001). When challenges are viewed through

the lens of relationships then they become a place of potential. As working colleagues, educators

can address barriers in their workplace and find common ground. This means when inevitable

problems arise, they are viewed as a place to work together. Embracing a coaching model in

leadership gives me the opportunity to look at future trends affecting education (Kouzes &

Posner, 2001).

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 Taking on challenges willingly is the essence of responsibility – which supports my

practices in Enabling Others to Act (Kouzes & Posner, 2001). From being introverted I am self

reflective, contemplative and independent. Completing the LPI survey showed me others find

this as a strength – giving them the opportunity to complete tasks in incremental steps, while I

offer the opportunity to consider multiple perspectives. Kouzes and Posner (2001) claimed active

listening with an openness to differing points of view was essential to inspiring a shared vision.

Personal Leadership Style

I have experienced both autonomy in execution and expectation in delivery. While

practicing studio art, the process was self-guided practice, culminating in a project. Much of the

studio work was based on discovery learning or constructivist pedagogy. Also, the expectations

were for student artists to be both productively prolific and critically selective. We spent many

hours critiquing fellow students' work and receiving critiques. At a similar time, I was working

as a helper at a masonry business. There we were left to complete the building tasks as loosely

described, with the notion of a vague timeline. Due to this, I have adopted a blend of

transformational and laissez-faire styles of leadership, stemming from my values of creativity

and balance.

I feel it is important to look for new ideas, challenging processes existing merely because

they are practices. This does not mean every idea needs to be challenged, nor does it mean

change is good for the sake of change. This is why a transformational style is important to me. I

felt the push from influential leaders before, and the support to step out into uncharted territory.

It is empowering to be able to try new methods and pursue alternate processes, all the while

developing your own self-criticism and high standards.

However, there are challenges existing within creativity. Firstly, there needs to be space

and support for creative endeavours. These are both very critical pieces in the work-life of

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educators as there is an ever-persistent feeling of being overwhelmed. Moreover, creativity is not

everyone’s self-identified mode of thinking. Many people claim they are not creative thinkers

and rely on routine, habit, and tradition. Both lead to the final point that creativity lives in

ambiguity and operating in unknown circumstances can be stressful.

This is why balance is of value as well. My hope is to inspire a group to take on new and

challenging situations without overload while understanding there is always new work to be

done. Providing autonomy and supporting individual pursuits gives me the opportunity to focus

on coaching a process rather than critiquing a product. I find that this is needed to ask the

question of why while allowing time to return to a challenge – which is the heart of discovery

and play. This stance, however, leads to blind spots and bias. Valuing this work can lead to

neglecting individual support. With a personal lens on how I received limited direct coaching, I

can erroneously conclude that others work in a similar manner. Further to this, being too

removed can paint a picture of a disengaged leader who lacks empathy.

As a school leader, understanding the diversity in our learning community is important.

Different perspectives matter when individuals are provided the opportunity to pursue their own

goals. If a leader were to presume a path of development for a teacher in their professional

growth plan, then they would not be honouring their individual pursuit. By bolstering individual

professional efficacy, a leader can build on group goals through the alignment of core values and

individual pursuits. LQS 3 – Embodying Visionary Leadership has the indicator that leaders

excel when “recognizing the school community’s values and aspirations and demonstrating an

appreciation for diversity” (Alberta Education, 2020, pg. 3). Further, “creating an inclusive

learning environment in which diversity is embraced, a sense of belonging is emphasized, and all

students and staff are welcomed, cared for, respected and safe” (pg. 3,4) is detailed under LQS 4

– Leading a Learning Community. Diversity is a key element of school leadership.

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 Currently, I feel competent in engaging with teachers while focusing on supporting

everyone. Many conversations rely heavily on listening and understanding individual goals and

desires and coaching teachers to articulate their own paths toward achieving those goals. My

work comes in holding them responsible by providing timelines and further check-ins. LQS 1 –

Fostering Effective Relationships elaborated “a leader builds positive working relationships”

(Alberta Education, 2020, pg. 3), which is illustrated in listening conversations. One aspect

posing an issue in listening to coach is that there are differences in how individuals interpret

phrases: the same words mean different things to different people. This is where repetition and

asking for clarity are important.

While modelling being open to taking risks, my work moves toward LQS 3 – Embodying

Visionary Leadership. Many indicators of school climate surveys including Our School and the

annual AERR results point to high metrics of anxiety and depression in our middle school

students, especially the female population. In discussion with our school council members and

staff alike, we feel a course of action is to personify resilience and this “shared vision for student

success” (Alberta Education, 2020, pg. 3) starts with leadership.

Goal Setting

Goals developed to enhance practices in place are powerful. To stay true to my strengths

and foster growth, a focus on supporting others to help them find their way through challenges

aligns with my transformational leadership style. This will follow with the understanding that,

through a process, intelligence can be found in a room. Being open to many perspectives is a part

of the cyclical pattern existing in the Hero’s Journey, a narrative pattern reflective of the process

that when we lean into challenges and seek out opportunity through struggle, we will often find

what we are in the most need of.

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 What this indicates is that as a leader there is an optimal point to become part of the

process of discovery for others. In reference to the ladder of inference, individuals bring forward

one piece of what they hold as true, often as an unconscious bias. For a leader, there is an

opportunity to interject a disruption in an otherwise automatic system. A leader can provide a

learning environment to help the team focus on particular aspects of an experience. As a simple

example, looking toward successes rather than failures provides the opportunity to see growth.

Another piece to examine when goal setting is possible barriers. Creativity while being open to

diverse perspectives can lead to a lengthy process. Although discussion is healthy, and

individuals thrive when they are provided the opportunity to share their voice, most matters

come to a decision, and certain individuals will not get their way. More complicated is the

inference that through group discussion, there is an equal weight to every stakeholder opinion.

For example, it is indicated that a school council must be provided the opportunity to council,

and does not dictate final decisions made in a school. I have been present in several school

council meetings where the sentiment was if it was important to certain individuals in the group,

then it must be executed by the school.

Adopting a laissez-faire approach to leadership provides individual autonomy and more

freedom for teachers to execute practices suited to their personal style. LQS 7 – Developing

Leadership Capacity is refined by indicator a.: “demonstrating consultative and collaborative

decision-making that is informed by open dialogue and multiple perspectives;” (Alberta

Education, 2020, pg. 4).

While developing goals, a serious consideration is to question if this is where I am at

currently, or if this is where I aspire to be. The honest answer is both – I feel I achieve these

points in some circumstances and not in others: I need to work on consistency. It is understood

that we can respond emotionally in stressful situations, however identifying potentially stressful

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situations and embracing that there will likely be a disconnect between personal beliefs and those

shared with others can help mitigate discomfort. Truth be told, the difference between stress and

learning is perspective: both states produce the same neurochemical responses in our brain, it is

how we frame that moment that colours our experience. Areas where I feel this discomfort are

with a few specific staff and in some school council meetings. There is a sentiment of distrust,

which leads to direct and persistent questions. The implication of this is I can feel that I am being

questioned and even attacked. This can restrict my openness and land me in the “must-be-seen-

as” box, breeding victim-like feelings and dramatically shifting my notions that the world is

there for our taking. However, making a conscious choice to endeavour to understand the reason

for the question is beneficial and helps build bridges over what is often a communication issue.

Professional Improvement

Kouzes and Posner (2001) provide key points to leadership that can be utilized as areas of

professional improvement, and aligning these with LQS provided by Alberta Education (2020), a

teacher leader in Alberta can create a robust professional growth plan. Overall, the areas

indicated by the LPI and self-reflection through the lens of diversity has provided me with an

overarching goal of developing systems thinking process that leverage transformational and

laissez-faire leadership styles alike.

A leader must encourage the heart (Kouzes & Posner, 2001). By making opportunities to

listen one can stimulate individual passions. A listening leader is not waiting to respond, rather

they are waiting to understand. As before, LQS 3 – Embodying Visionary Leadership has

indicator b. detailing that naming and understanding core beliefs in the learning community

demonstrates an openness to diversity (Alberta Education, 2020). Giving voice to those you lead

fills their personal efficacy and makes them understand their worth.

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 To enact this, I will continue with staff meeting discussions focusing our time to allow

for staff input. I can develop a system to invite conversation while being cognizant of time and

structure. An effective method could be an iterative process addressing current situations,

reviewing previous decisions, and considering future challenges: a cycle repeated in each

meeting. This fills the gaps presented to me in my CQ report, namely in knowledge leadership.

To develop my understanding of managing diverse staff, engaging in a process that considers

different styles or approaches to situations for different people makes this a lived experience

rather than a skill to develop independently.

Further to that, a practice in which I am doing rather than speaking will help me develop

my strengths in Modelling the Way (Kouzes & Posner, 2001). This ties into LQS 7 – Developing

Leadership Capacity. As a school leader I can act on this by “promoting the engagement of

parents in school council” (Alberta Education, 2020, pg. 5). With a focus on developing my CQ

Knowledge in business, I can look outward for differing methods and systems regarding

budgeting and policy (Cultural Intelligence Center, 2022). These methods can be applied to

conversations held in school council, illustrating that openness to other perspectives and inviting

dialogue around engaging in different practices. In the essence of the idea, I can also adopt the

process of considering other perspectives by bringing in conversations held with other

administrators regarding similar topics.

Developing leadership capacity is not only good for the organization, but it also helps

personal growth through reflective processes and coaching. With a focus on my lagging CQ

Action in non verbal communication (Cultural Intelligence Center, 2022), I can practice

observing and mirroring actions. Rather than assuming I should take a role of confidence with

sustained eye contact or proximity, I can reflect the actions of those I am with. This aligns with

Kouzes and Posner’s (2001) practice of enabling others to act. Letting others direct my personal

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actions embodies the idea of having the actions of others fill the spaces. Ultimately recognizing

that most of our work cannot be done alone. The example here is that effective communication

comes from working with others in the situation and reacting to their needs and expectations.

Likewise, leaning into coaching conversations will provide insight into potential champions for

areas of need within our school. This will require providing and scheduling time and space for

teacher coaching and reflection.

Conclusion

The act of working with the two forces of fostering individual potential and providing

autonomy in action can be difficult. A leader must provide the opportunity for growth and let

teachers know that failure is welcomed. This is most difficult when teachers are uncertain of

their own purpose and how they fit into the bigger picture of the learning community. A large

part of accepting failure is through professional and personal reflection. A school that builds

these into their work welcomes challenging dialogue as a way to better their practice. Accepting

and welcoming diverse perspectives and experiences is vital for healthy discussion. Areas of

creative expression must be part of the environment as well, embedded in the work so that it is a

lived experience. Finally, if a leader can model that we can work and operate in ambiguity while

still focusing on clear goals and effective timelines then the balance becomes less of an anxious,

reflexive, reaction and more of a nuanced act of creativity.

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 References

Alberta Education. (2020). Leadership Quality Standard.

Cultural Intelligence Center, (2022). CQ Report. www.cultrualQ.com.

Kouzes & Posner, (2001). Leadership Practices Inventory.

Sun Sentinel, (2001). Mike Tyson explains one of his most famous quotes. https://www.sun-

sentinel.com/2012/11/09/mike-tyson-explains-one-of-his-most-famous-quotes-3/

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