School Leaders Beware the Curse of the Serial Entrepreneur

School leaders meet sharks, Guy Kawasaki, entrepreneurs, No Child Left Behind, and change in the Education Innovation blender.

Educational leaders want success and after a year in which the test scores go up the temptation for educational leaders is to do more of the same. It is natural to think that what worked last year will work this year. It is natural to think, “I got this thing figured out.”

What happens when the rules change and last year’s ideas and methods don’t cut. No Child Left Behind assumes that scores will go up each year. How do you improve each year doing the same thing from year to year?

_{by sujathafan}

Now principals aren’t exactly entrepreneurs, but some principles apply to both. Guy Kawasaki in his new book Reality Check calls entrepreneurs who rely on what they have always done to succeed Serial Entrepreneurs. And principals, you might want to pay attention. Serial Entrepreneurs fail for a number of reasons.

Serial entrepreneurs try to prove that their first success wasn’t a fluke
Principals too try to prove their success last year wasn’t a fluke. The rub is that the goal keeps moving. Hitting the target one year is great, but what happens when the target moves farther away the next year. Do you still do the same thing?

Serial entrepreneurs cannot distinguish between causation and correlation
What if last year’s scores where just a fluke, dumb luck. If you based your instructional program for the next year around a fluke then you are in trouble. Each year the students change, the target changes, the curriculum might change, and your staff might change. Are you sure you know why your test scores went up? Are you willing to do it all again the same way?

Serial entrepreneurs use the same method again.
If is worked once it must work again right? Right?

Serial entrepreneurs use the same people again
Are you sure these are the right people THIS YEAR for THESE KIDS?

Serial entrepreneurs don’t (or can’t) work as hard as before
Unless you can overcome human nature, you have already proven you can be successful so it is only natural to not work as hard. You can rely on the systems, methods, programs people, etc. that you put into place last year. Right?

Serial entrepreneurs don’t get smacked around enough
Why should you get smacked around when the scores went up? You are doing it right, getting it done. People should be asking you how you did it. Right? No need for questions or a devil’s advocate, you know what you are doing.

Serial entrepreneurs fill new roles in their next companies
Principals get promoted to directors, assistant superintendents, coordinators, managers, or superintendents. You have proven you know what you are doing, right up until you are no longer doing what you are good at and doing what you are not good at. Oops! Now what?

Educational leaders need to be like sharks. You see a shark has to keep moving or it will die. If you don’t keep moving, your school and your scores might “die.” Keep moving. Doing the same things, in the same way, with the same people, is going to get you the same results.

_{by Jeff Kubina}

Can you afford to get the same results?

Comments

[Mike Wills, Jr.]

Awesome comparison! Principals must adapt to their students. It will never work the other way around.