Are the Best Leaders also the Best Learners?

According to Kouzes and Posner truth nine is “The best leaders are the best learners” (pg. 119). Being open to new experiences, and evaluating the experience though a reflective lens enable a leader to assess both the successes and failures of the new behavior. This reflective process enables a leader to experience growth. As the leader experiences growth, the mental model change establishing a “growth mindset…based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts” (Kouzes, & Posner, pg. 124). A leader’s “growth mindset” penetrates all aspects of their lives, whether in the classroom, an athletic endeavor or business proposition. (Kouzes, & Posner, pg. 126). Fullan refers to “pursuit of precision, not prescription” as the growth mindset, collaboration, monitoring, and making adjustments (Fullan, pg 82).

“There are five elements, enable leaders to have a growth mindset based on deliberate practice; 1) is specifically designed to improve their performance, 2)is repeated a lot, 3) feedback on the results is continuously available, 4) it is demanding mentally, and 5) it isn’t much fun” (Kouzes, & Posner, pg. 130). But is does ultimately result in the development of the skills desired.

Becoming the best, doesn’t just happen, it is cultivated. “It is estimated that it takes 10,000 hours of practice, over ten years to become an expert” (Kouzes, & Posner, pg 127). It is a thoughtful choice, which requires deliberate practice to become an effective leader. Though a “growth mindset” a leader stays open to the possibilities of opportunity of growth in leadership.


Fullen, M. (2008). The six secrets of change. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Kouzes, J. M. , & Posner, B. Z. (2010). The truth about leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Social Networking, Transparency and the Participatory Culture

Today’s middle school and high school students have been drawn to the transparent highways of social networking. According to Jenkins et al. (2006), social networking is in essence a resource of transparency in which students have the ability to explore information, publish personal thoughts, and blend ideas with one another. In the article, Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century, it states that “a resourceful student is no longer one who personally possesses a wide palette of resources and information from which to choose, but rather, one who is able to successfully navigate an already abundant an continually changing world of information” (p. 49) The theory of transparency addressed in this article is referred to as “participatory cultures” (p.3). A participatory culture is identified as one in which students possess a stream of philosophy where minimal limitations exist for creative communication where students’ personal influences make a difference to their social network affiliates such as FaceBook. I agree that in order for students to be members of a participatory culture, educators will need to collaborate to ensure that each student best comprehends how media shapes perceptions and mental models.

As said by Jenkins, research shows that although students are innovative they “may lack some of the core life experiences and basic knowledge that might help them to discriminate between accurate and inaccurate accounts” (p.45).

After reviewing this article, one question jumps out at me: via transparent social networking to communicate with one another, how might participatory cultures become productive members of a technological society in which youth are unable to differentiate between what is accurate and inaccurate when making sense of online resources?

Jenkins, H., Clinton, K., Purushotma, R., Robinson, A., & Weigel, M. (2006) Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century. Retrieved from http://digitallearning.macfound.org

Facebook...a learning tool?

"What is the potential of social networking within cooperative online education?" (Dalsgaard, & Flate Paulsen, 2009). Transparency is one of the great key strengths of Social networking (both positive and negative) and that in order for cooperative learning in virtual classrooms (the next step in high learning) to be successful, we must provide transparency so that students and teachers can have access to his or her ideas, thoughts and concerns (Dalsgaard, & Flate Paulsen, 2009). But what is the connection between social networking and online education and transparency? The authors attribute the benefits of Social networking and learning to the Social Capital Theory, the Theory of Cooperative Freedom, and Social Cultural Theory. If we have transparency, the main strength of Social Networking, infused and embedded into the online learning environments, we will have improved cooperative and collaborative learning. This actually addresses one of the largest drawback of online learning, which many see as more individualized and personal and is advertised as such. Transparency is a requirement of Cooperative learning. Students can be aware of each others activities, show interest in contributing, expressing opinions, show approval or disapproval, and have a mutual understanding of each others commitments.

Dalsgaard, A, & Flate Paulsen, M. (2009). Transparency in cooperative online education. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 10(3), Retrieved from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/671/1267%3C

Warning: Any Evidence You Post on FB Can Be Used Against You in a Court of Law

The following article is the first I have seen from a reputable law firm in California stating that any evidence posted on Facebook can be used against you in a court of law.  How does this affect transparency in social media?  Interested to hear your thoughts....

Warning: Any Evidence You Post on Facebook Can Be Used Against You in a Court of Law

New Media Literacy Blog

Blog Discussion focused on New Media Literacy (Social Media) in Education.  Very interesting:-)

New Media Literacy (Education)

Seventh Generation Speaks Out About Radical Transparency

The nation’s leading brand of household and personal care products that help protect human health and the environment is working to create a culture of transparency. The founder of Seventh Generation tell us that sharing and being open can actually have a real impact on the bottom line.  Tell us what you think?

A Business Perspective

"How is social media changing the face of your business(es)?"

"The Social Media such as FB, twitter, YouTube, etc., has not changed the face of our business, as being a law firm, everything is strictly confidential. Though, I have clients that are friends of mine on FB etc., my interaction with them is strictly just social."

"I would add, that internet itself "email" in particular has changed our communication with our clients greatly. We now almost completely communicate via email and try to scan and attach documents via email rather than typical old "snail mail". Not only does it save in postage, which has gone up significantly, but our clients seem to... prefer this communication, as it is more efficient and timely. "

"On another note..I have a side business as a mobile notary, which I have advertised on FB, that has brought some extra business my way, and I feel that when people need a notary, it will probably trigger in their thoughts that they saw me advertise on FB! But, I believe that will only work for the locals of course."

---Response by Stacey Lee Mack, Paralegal and Notary

"To be or not to be"

Theorist William Bridges book, "Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change" talks about transparency in terms of leading people through the Neutral Zone. The neutral zone is when...you enter a state of affairs in which neither the old ways nor the new ways work satisfactorily. People are caught between demands of conflicting systems and end up immobilized, like Hamlet, trying to decided whether "to be or not to be" (Bridges,pg39)

In my opinion, Bridges "Neutral Zone" reflects the place most Generation X and Baby Boomers are in terms of embracing social media. In K-12 public schools, there are administrators and teachers that want to be creative and proactive by changing their teaching methodologies to integrate various social media such as Facebook and YouTube. But they don't feel comfortable "going there" because of the chance of lawsuits. There is this real sense of being "caught between demands of conflicting systems" - meeting the learning expectations of the government and parents and trying to find current, cutting edge methods in which to keep this generation of students engaged through the learning experience.

Giving Up Control to Lead

Leaders today must be willing to give up control.  As Charlene Li points out in “Open Leadership” business leaders are terrified about the power of social technologies, but they are also intrigued and excited about the opportunities.  Leaders today must get proactive in giving up control because by doing so, you can actually regain some semblance of control.  It may seem counterintuitive, but the act of engaging with people, of accepting they have power, can actually put you in a position to counter negative behavior.  In fact, it’s really the only chance you have of being able to influence the outcome.  As James Kouzes and Barry Posner, the authors of The Leadership Challenge, write, “Leadership is the relationship between those who aspire to lead and those who chose to follow.”  Personal relationship and business relationships are similar in regards of letter go.  In our personal relationships we don’t dictate the terms and expect the other person to follow us blindly.  These relationships take time and hard work to endure many trials to grow and develop.   So do relationships between a leader and the people she is leading.

Charlene Li provides five New Rules of Open Leadership:

Respect that your customers and employees have power.  Without this mindset, leaders continue to think of them as replaceable resources and treat them as such.  Don’t think they have control, then check out the power of customer and employees on such sites as Radian6.

Share constantly to build trust.   The cost of sharing is cheap.  This blog you’re reading right now, can create a repeated interchange of people sharing their thoughts, activities, and concerns, resulting in stronger relationships.  After all, the core of any relationship is trust.

Nurture curiosity and humility.  Sharing isn’t about messaging; it’s about give and take.  By showing you care about something someone is doing keeps sharing grounded and focused.  This curiosity grows to humility, which gives you the intellectual integrity to acknowledge that you still have a lot to learn, and also admit when you are wrong. 

Hold openness accountable.   Relationships are about expectations and the consequences if they are not met.  Leaders can no longer avoid problems with products or services.  They must apologize and figure out how to fix the problem. 

Forgive failure.  A big part of accountability is forgiveness.  Relationships have problems and the strong ones move on from them.  Accept failure.  Acknowledge it and understand it. 

Find out how other people answered these questions, by going to Open Leadership.