Reflection

=Troy Rickard= There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things. Because the innovator has for enemies all those who have done well under the old conditions, and lukewarm defenders in those who may do well under the new. — Machiavelli,  The Prince  , 1532 It would seem the nature of leadership has not changed since the days of the 1500's. The challenges of leading an organisation in the 21st century are similar to those experienced by dynamic leaders for centuries.
 * This space provides the opportunity to reflect on what the project has meant for us...**

The leaders I most admire are visionaries, risk takers, good collaborators and communicators, mentors, and people with un­common passion and persistence. They have personal integrity, they are assertive and ambitious for their organizations, they are optimists even in bad times, they think broadly and keep learn­ing, and they build relationships and communities. They bring energy and a sense of fun to their work, they are opportunistic and flexible, and they are not easily deterred. Leaders want to change the status quo. They do not seek change for its own sake, but rather to improve or create some­thing. Leaders continually evaluate and assess their organizations with an eye toward improving them. While many administrators advance their organizations by tweaking a few things here and there, leaders aim for substantive change that introduces some­thing entirely new or vastly improves a service or product. In short, leaders are dissatisfied with the current situation and are motivated to change it. What differentiates a leader from a dissatisfied individual is that the leader has learned and honed skills that allow him or her to move from dissatisfaction to effective action. This project has required me to push the boundaries of my thinking about leadership. It has required me to reflect deeply about what it means to lead and about the attributes I personally value in a leader. My thinking about Leadership has been stretched beyond recognition. I am no longer the leader I was.

=Steve Higham= Troy, trust you to use such a relevant Machiavellian quote and write at length! I did enjoy your thoughts and I'll try to weave in some quotes myself. Here goes....

Leadership is not a gift to receive. It is not an endowment that favourable genetics or the grace of God has imparted. It is a continual work in progress that is shaped by exposure to all the relationships that have impacted upon you within your environment. It can elevate you and humble you almost in the same breath. Yet for all the qualities that we articulate that leaders are, rarely do true leaders 'fit this flawless bill'. Leaders are genuinely on a continual journey of self improvement yearning to serve and be accepted for their worth. Ironically, this journey in essence reveals such dispositions as perseverance, optimism, confidence, decisiveness, courage, resilience, enthusiasm, etc. that
 * 1) are acknowledged by onlookers and potential followers; and
 * 2) are the very qualities of that leaders aspire towards.

Chuck Gallozzi coined the following quote regarding this pursuit. // "We have an innate desire to endlessly learn, grow, and develop. We want to become more than what we already are. Once we yield to this inclination for continuous and never-ending improvement, we lead a life of endless accomplishments and satisfaction." //  This leads me to reflect on what we set out to achieve. On our home page we established that //' **Leadership** often involves opportunities to interact with information (including data) about your work, trying to make sense of it, then being receptive to necessary change'//. To address this postulate we posed questions about the St Mary's program and thought the students were in one of the best positions to help answer them. Ideally, believing that teachers were also in the best place to evaluate the student responses. We envisaged these pages would be the conduit for teachers and potential leaders to interact with the data and help effect change. We still believe this to be the case and in reality, need more time. The forum we have instigated has become powerful as the discussions are still being held over the data but not as richly on these pages. People still want human interaction to judge emotions and reactions to such comments.

Acknowledging this about our work in progress, Fullan (2001:9) is right to suggest that //'the litmus test of all leadership is whether it mobilises people's commitment to putting their energy into actions designed to improve things. It is individual commitment, but above all it is collective mobilisation//'. Troy, Pru and myself have revealed the individual commitment and are currently trying to mobilise others via this Wiki as writing accounts and reflecting on the experience is an affective avenue for professional learning (Leadership in Catholic Schools, 2005:7).