PEOPLE WHO FISH have to work hard to find the right spot, at the right time, to have success. To profit from a selected fishing hole, you need a combination of timing, space and climate. You also need to be skilled and committed.

To call yourself a fisherman, you need intention, a routine and a consistent set of behaviors. The same can be said of education leaders who seek successful results. Except that leadership is no hobby.

A Fleeting Fancy
I find it frustrating when school leaders go to a state conference, pat themselves on the back and act as if they have “the formula” for success all figured out, then return to their school district with a “one-hit wonder.”

To me, a one-hit wonder (a phrase borrowed from Top 40 radio) is a feeble attempt at hitting a home run with some new program for changing staff behavior or improving performance inside a fancy (but temporary) wrapper that’s intended to bowl over your staff.

Every year, wide-eyed administrators and teachers bring home one-hit wonders from their professional conferences and workshops as answers to whatever instructional issue needs to be addressed. Yet schools never change with a one-hit wonder. Every year, there is another Irene Cara, the performer best known for her one mega-hit, “Flashdance ... What a Feeling,” from the movie of the same name. Here today, gone tomorrow — but not a performance of lasting effect.

On the other hand, consider an influential musical group like U2, the Irish rock band with anthem-like sound built on the expressive vocals of their lead singer Bono. Now that’s an intentional, routine, consistent performer. Through the past four decades, you know their program and value their quality over time. They keep striking the same resonant chords.

In education, researchers such as Michael Fullan, Douglas Reeves and Eric Sheninger have provided time-tested examples for focusing on leadership that can initiate and sustain change.

Change Seeking
I admit I love Irene Cara’s song. Her message is a timeless value statement. Don’t look for one magical formula, she says — or even the one fishing hole that everyone swears by.

I’m left with these thoughts about change-seeking in K-12 education:

» Let your passion guide you as a leader.

» Commit to what fires you up the most.

» Take your leadership extremely personally.

» Teach yourself to be intentional, routine and consistent with your endeavors.

You don’t need to pursue the same themes or adopt the program vehicles everyone else does. You won’t become good at fishing by seeking a one-hit wonder. Fish for good ideas and reel in the ones that matter most to become a relentless, focused and committed leader.


KIRK KOENNECKE is superintendent of the Graham Local Schools in Saint Paris, Ohio, and executive director of the Ohio Small & Rural Collaborative. Twitter: @GLSSuperFalcon. This column is adapted from the author’s blog Planting Seeds @ Graham.