Adapted from “Ten Great Ways to Crush Creativity” by Paul Sloane
1. Criticize
“When you hear a new idea criticize it. Show how smart you are by pointing out some of the weaknesses and flaws which will hold it back. The more experienced you are, the easier it is to find fault with other people’s ideas.
“Furthermore, every time somebody comes to you with an idea which you criticize, it discourages the person from wasting your time with more suggestions. It sends a message that new ideas are not welcome and that anyone who volunteers them is risking criticism or ridicule. This is a sure fire way to crush the creative spirit in your staff.”
You’re the principal. You get paid to know more than teachers do anyways. It is important that they see you as true leader, one with all the good ideas. Criticizing their ideas keeps them in their proper place and ensures they view you as the true leader.
2. Ban brainstorms
“Treat brainstorming as old-fashioned and passé. All that brainstorms do is throw up lots of new ideas that then have to be rejected. If your organization is not holding frequent brainstorm sessions to find creative solutions then you are not wasting time on new ideas. Instead you are sending a message to staff that their input is not required. If people insist on brainstorm meetings then make them long, rambling and unfocused with lots of criticism of radical ideas.”
After all, you get paid the big buck to come up with ideas on your own. They need not worry their little minds with ideas. Just keep them focused on teaching.
3. Hoard problems
“Strategic issues are too complicated and high-level for the ordinary staff. After all, if people at the grass-roots knew the strategic challenges the organization faces then they would feel insecure and threatened. Don’t involve staff in serious issues, don’t tell them the big picture and above all don’t challenge them to come up with solutions.”
You are paid to be a problem solver. All problems are yours to solve.
4. Focus on efficiency not innovation
“If we concentrate on making the current system work better then we will not waste time on looking for different systems.
“After all, if the makers of horse drawn carriages had improved quality they could have stopped automobiles taking their markets. The same principle applied with makers of slide rules, LP records, typewriters and gas lights.”
Change is hard. The current system has worked pretty well for the last century and a half. Why change what has and is working so well.
5. Overwork
“Establish a culture of long hours and hard work. Encourage the belief that hard work alone will solve the problem. We do not need to find a different way of solving a problem – rather we must just work harder at the old way of doing things. Make sure that the working day has no time for learning, fun, lateral thinking, wild ideas or testing of new initiatives.”
Hard work is key to success. If you have a problem, you just need to work harder and longer. Don’t worry about new ways of doing things, research, and new strategies. Just work longer and harder, everything will work out.
6. Adhere to the plan
“Plan in great detail and then do not deviate from the plan regardless of circumstances. ‘We cannot try that idea because it is not in the plan and we have no budget for it.’ Keep to the vision that was in the plan and ignore fads like market changes and customer fashions – they will pass.”
Why would you change the plan after you spent so much of your own time coming up with it? Changing the plan might show weakness on your part.
7. Punish mistakes
“If someone tries an entrepreneurial idea that fails then blame and retribution must follow. Reward success and punish failure. That way we will reinforce the existing way of doing things and discourage dangerous experiments.”
Students get punished when they make mistakes. They get detention for behavior mistakes or bad grades for mistakes on tests. Why should teachers be any different? They should be punished for their mistakes too, to teach them a lesson, and show that you are being consistent with students and teachers.
8. Don’t look outside
“Other industries are fundamentally different and just because something works there does not mean it will work here. Consultants are generally over-priced and tell you things you could have figured out anyway. We need to find the solutions inside the business by working harder.”
Just because other industries are focused on data, creating great ideas, innovation, connecting with the public, and customer service does not mean those idea will work in your school. Just stick with what you know.
9. Don’t waste money on training
“Talent cannot be taught. It is it a rare thing possessed by a handful of gifted individuals. So why waste money trying to turn ducks into swans? Hire our kind of people and let them learn our system. Work them hard, keep them focused on our business model and do not allow them to fool around with crazy experiments. Workshops, budgets and time allocated to creativity and innovation are all wasteful extravagances. We know what we need to succeed so let’s just get on with it.”
1. Criticize
“When you hear a new idea criticize it. Show how smart you are by pointing out some of the weaknesses and flaws which will hold it back. The more experienced you are, the easier it is to find fault with other people’s ideas.
“Furthermore, every time somebody comes to you with an idea which you criticize, it discourages the person from wasting your time with more suggestions. It sends a message that new ideas are not welcome and that anyone who volunteers them is risking criticism or ridicule. This is a sure fire way to crush the creative spirit in your staff.”
You’re the principal. You get paid to know more than teachers do anyways. It is important that they see you as true leader, one with all the good ideas. Criticizing their ideas keeps them in their proper place and ensures they view you as the true leader.
2. Ban brainstorms
“Treat brainstorming as old-fashioned and passé. All that brainstorms do is throw up lots of new ideas that then have to be rejected. If your organization is not holding frequent brainstorm sessions to find creative solutions then you are not wasting time on new ideas. Instead you are sending a message to staff that their input is not required. If people insist on brainstorm meetings then make them long, rambling and unfocused with lots of criticism of radical ideas.”
After all, you get paid the big buck to come up with ideas on your own. They need not worry their little minds with ideas. Just keep them focused on teaching.
3. Hoard problems
“Strategic issues are too complicated and high-level for the ordinary staff. After all, if people at the grass-roots knew the strategic challenges the organization faces then they would feel insecure and threatened. Don’t involve staff in serious issues, don’t tell them the big picture and above all don’t challenge them to come up with solutions.”
You are paid to be a problem solver. All problems are yours to solve.
4. Focus on efficiency not innovation
“If we concentrate on making the current system work better then we will not waste time on looking for different systems.
“After all, if the makers of horse drawn carriages had improved quality they could have stopped automobiles taking their markets. The same principle applied with makers of slide rules, LP records, typewriters and gas lights.”
Change is hard. The current system has worked pretty well for the last century and a half. Why change what has and is working so well.
5. Overwork
“Establish a culture of long hours and hard work. Encourage the belief that hard work alone will solve the problem. We do not need to find a different way of solving a problem – rather we must just work harder at the old way of doing things. Make sure that the working day has no time for learning, fun, lateral thinking, wild ideas or testing of new initiatives.”
Hard work is key to success. If you have a problem, you just need to work harder and longer. Don’t worry about new ways of doing things, research, and new strategies. Just work longer and harder, everything will work out.
6. Adhere to the plan
“Plan in great detail and then do not deviate from the plan regardless of circumstances. ‘We cannot try that idea because it is not in the plan and we have no budget for it.’ Keep to the vision that was in the plan and ignore fads like market changes and customer fashions – they will pass.”
Why would you change the plan after you spent so much of your own time coming up with it? Changing the plan might show weakness on your part.
7. Punish mistakes
“If someone tries an entrepreneurial idea that fails then blame and retribution must follow. Reward success and punish failure. That way we will reinforce the existing way of doing things and discourage dangerous experiments.”
Students get punished when they make mistakes. They get detention for behavior mistakes or bad grades for mistakes on tests. Why should teachers be any different? They should be punished for their mistakes too, to teach them a lesson, and show that you are being consistent with students and teachers.
8. Don’t look outside
“Other industries are fundamentally different and just because something works there does not mean it will work here. Consultants are generally over-priced and tell you things you could have figured out anyway. We need to find the solutions inside the business by working harder.”
Just because other industries are focused on data, creating great ideas, innovation, connecting with the public, and customer service does not mean those idea will work in your school. Just stick with what you know.
9. Don’t waste money on training
“Talent cannot be taught. It is it a rare thing possessed by a handful of gifted individuals. So why waste money trying to turn ducks into swans? Hire our kind of people and let them learn our system. Work them hard, keep them focused on our business model and do not allow them to fool around with crazy experiments. Workshops, budgets and time allocated to creativity and innovation are all wasteful extravagances. We know what we need to succeed so let’s just get on with it.”
Some teachers are going to learn what they need on their own, and others will not. Spending money to train teachers is just a waste. They can learn it on their own, if they are going to be able to learn it all. Let them figure it out. You have better things to spend your money on than helping teachers to get better.
:-)
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