My Next Giant: Frank Wagner

“When the student is ready the teacher will appear”

Tao Te Ching

This has never been truer than in my life…being blessed by GIANTS who show up at just the right time! Nearly ten years ago, I read a book by Marshall Goldsmith titled, ‘What Got You Here Won’t Get You There’Fortunately, while getting my PhD, I was required by the University of Minnesota to pay for forty-five credit hours. Having already taken most of the education courses, I ended up going to the Business School and got a minor in Industrial Relations. This opened my knowledge and experience to theories of leadership and organizational development that I didn’t know existed.

“The hallmark of expertise is no longer how much you know. It’s how well you synthesize.
Information scarcity rewarded knowledge acquisition.

Information abundance requires pattern recognition.
It’s not enough to collect facts. The future belongs to those who connect dots.”

Adam Grant

After reading Goldsmith’s book, I said, “Who is this guy? Never heard of him before!”  I couldn’t believe what I was reading.  I learned he was voted the #1 business coach ten years in a row.  He was right, what got us here (in education) won’t get us to  the future.

“No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it. “

Albert Einstein

Being either courageous or ignorant, I emailed Marshall.  Two days later he called and said, ‘I have 30 minutes, what do you want to talk about?’  Yikes! He was direct, accurate, and his message was, ‘let’s not waste time.’  Marshall suggested I take Stakeholder Centered Coaching (SCC) for leaders. Always looking to expand my repertoire, I signed up, paid the fee, and traveled to California.  Frank Wagner was the trainer and the co-developer of SCC.

Frank and Marshall were business professors at UCLA.  Their process was already being used by thousands of business coaches. Very few educators knew about, nor had been trained to use the process. What a model: getting feedback from those who are receiving your leadership, focusing on one or two goals, and getting assessments from those the leader chooses and trusts. Frank modeled what we, in professional development (PD), have always promoted.  High quality PD had specific goals, active participation, case studies, high standards, and assessment.

I started using SCC with educational leaders, and the results were positive.  90% assessed by staff the leader trusted said there was improvement.  Marshall and Frank were getting 95% growth with business leaders.

These results required three prerequisites:

1. Courage – to confront real data from stakeholders
2. Humility – the desire to elevate their own leadership
3. Discipline – to follow through

I call it CHaD, an acronym, so I can remember.

When I had questions about the knowledge, skills, or application, Frank was always available to take my questions and provide possibilities.  When Frank was retiring from being an adjunct at UCLA, he invited me to two summer institutes he was leading:

1. Situational Leadership
2. Leading when you are not in charge

Again, this opportunity ignited and re-ignited my energy and provided me with new knowledge and skills to make a difference.

After writing a book with Diane Zimmerman titled 9 Conversations to Change Schools, I was playing with a dashboard model to apply to professional learning with skills to increase learning.  Frank, his wife Karen, and I spend a week every year or two in Kauai; I get deep and reflective conversations with Frank while looking at the Pacific Ocean.  As I was playing on a napkin with the dashboard used in 9 Conversations and telling Frank what I was thinking for my next book, Creating Talent Density, Frank asked me a question, ‘If you don’t assess where leaders and staff are, how will you know what to recommend?’ Yikes!

“Prescription Without Diagnosis is Malpractice”

James Muir

Applying Situational Leadership to the many strategies I had on the napkin produced a book with twenty-five ways to extend learning in an organization. The organizer becomes a quadrant.  I even added a 5^th quadrant for the Learning Omnivores who love and continue their learning.

In our conversations, Frank suggests books that add to my knowledge and skillset; I am on a continual journey of learning because of Frank.  Taking me under his wing, Frank continues to provide me with ongoing learning that nourishes my soul, keeps me contributing to education, and helps me to be hopeful in turbulent times.  I remain grateful.  Namaste’ my friend.

“When an old person dies,

A library burns”

African Proverb

Thank you to my giants . My library has not burned yet and thank you for continuing to stoke the fire for learning.  I am truly fortunate