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School principals at all levels are consistently recognized for their ability to lead effectively , contributing to the success of their staff, students, and families. A typical day in the life of a school principal is filled with emergencies , last-minute decisions, and countless other challenges that often arise before most people even wake up. The job can sometimes be thankless, but principals persevere with a common goal: to ensure that the children in their care receive the best possible education. Below, we summarize the top 10 skills every school principal should possess to manage a school effectively.
A manager’s job can quickly spiral out of control, but skilled leaders around the world share some common traits.
1 0 ) Evaluate and manage risks
Principals must make split-second decisions while weighing the costs and benefits of their actions. They have to calculate different scenarios and possible outcomes. Successful principals are always looking ahead, trying to anticipate both the risks and opportunities that affect their schools.
9) Mastering the art of listening
Mastering the art of listening means being able to see beyond your own perspective and verify your understanding. Successful directors intentionally focus on listening and understanding things from another person’s point of view. Active listening is one of the best skills a director can cultivate and use.
8) Manage your priorities
It’s easy to spend a lot of time and energy on unimportant tasks if you don’t have clear priorities. The better a principal can prioritize what needs to be done, the better they can focus their efforts on what matters most to their students and teachers.
7) Empower others
Successful principals see greatness in others and do what they can to nurture it. Teachers and staff grow as leaders when they take ownership of their decisions, are accountable for the choices they make and the resulting outcomes, and experience firsthand the consequences of their actions. Ask any strong principal, and they will tell you that it is part of their job as a leader to help their people become the best they can be.
6) Delegate tasks
By nature, strong leaders tend to lead by example, often wanting to do things themselves, but it’s important to learn how to delegate. The benefits of delegation include better workload management, developing your staff’s core skills, and enabling your team to achieve goals faster, produce better results, and accomplish more than you could on your own.
5) Act decisively
Effective managers take the time to ensure they fully understand the problems they face and respond by taking firm, decisive action without overthinking. This skill can be achieved by balancing the impulses that stem from impatience (or reacting without thinking) with overthinking and delaying action.
4) Motivate change
The quickest way to create a school where teachers and staff are stagnant is by fostering an environment based on the idea of ”If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” A key role in a principal’s life is to be persistent in constantly motivating change. This means change for the school, the staff, the students, the parents, and the surrounding communities.
3) Communicate clearly
Nothing hurts performance more than unclear communication. Whether it’s a staff member, a group of teachers, a parent, or a student, the audience won’t be able to do what’s needed if they don’t know what you’re trying to communicate. Strong communication is one of the fundamental elements of being a successful leader.
2) Promote their vision
The principal’s primary role is to guide the school environment. To do this, they must clearly communicate their vision, not only to staff, parents, and students, but also to themselves. Creating and promoting a clear and defined vision of where they want the school to go, along with constant reminders of these goals, leads to everyone involved embracing this objective and planning tasks to achieve it. When this is accomplished, not only is everyone more motivated, but they are also more effective, as their responsibilities remain aligned with the strategic goals and the overall vision.
1) Educator first / Director second
It’s easy to get caught up in career goals, daily responsibilities, school budgets, and so much more. As a principal, you’re responsible for many things, but 
you can’t forget that every school leader is, by nature, first and foremost an educator. Successful principals keep their focus on the success of their students. The success of the family and the community depends on this fundamental work. You can’t become a strong principal if you don’t focus on your students.
A great leader isn’t necessarily the one who does great things, but rather the one who empowers others to do them. By cultivating and remembering these 10 skills at every step , any manager will be assured of success. Being a good leader means constantly reviewing one’s actions and setting goals to improve every day. The success and future of our society depend on it.
