I have a theory. It is based only on anecdote and idealism, not hard evidence. When in control of their work, many people would thrive on about four hours of intense and productive work a day…
Category: Focus
If something doesn’t work
It is a statement that is stunning both for the fact that it is blatantly true and for the fact that we usually do the complete opposite…
Making rules
Organisations live down to their rules, so it comes to look like those rules are necessary. It takes a leap of faith to conclude that behaviour could improve as a result of reducing rather than increasing regulations…
Owning the downside
You can only measure an organisation’s commitment to a strategy or principle by the pain it is willing endure and the price it is willing to pay for its choice…
Gatekeeping
As a leader you are actively policing the boundary of your organisation. Keeping out the toxins and distractions, seeking out the assets and the insights…
Priorities
Here are some tactics for reducing your priorities to a manageable number and sharpening your focus, in the face of limitless opportunities, innumerable threats and rampant uncertainty…
The pace of change
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a business article must begin by declaring the unprecedented and accelerating pace of change in our global hyperconnected era…
Undelegation
It can be gratifying to have people working for us. The reality is that they should be working for something greater than us…
Strong and stable
This was my final article, I think, while at the NAHT, published with TES in June 2017. It captured many of my conclusions about effective leadership and the sometimes toxic relationship between politics and the profession. “Strong and stable leadership? School bosses embody it “It’s time for a different approach to leadership, says Russell Hobby […]
Workload
“This is good, let’s do more,” sounds sensible but I think we should rather say: “This is good, how little of it can we get away with?”…
Note to self 