But these bumps are opportunities for growth. By equipping yourself and your team with two powerful tools – self-awareness and critical thinking – you can confidently navigate these situations and turn them into positive experiences. 

Self-Awareness: Knowing Your Superpower 

Self-awareness is like having a backstage pass to your own mind.  It allows you to recognise your emotional responses and understand how they might impact your communication with others.  For example, are you feeling overwhelmed and prone to snapping at colleagues?  Identifying that trigger allows you to take a step back and manage your emotions before they derail a conversation. 

Here are some ways to cultivate self-awareness: 

• Mindfulness: Taking a few minutes to breathe deeply and centre yourself before a stressful meeting can make a world of difference.  
• Journaling: Reflecting on your thoughts and feelings in writing can provide valuable insights into your emotional patterns. 
• Feedback Loop: Actively seek constructive feedback from colleagues you trust. This can be especially helpful in identifying blind spots you might have. 

Critical Thinking: From Assumptions to Solutions 

Critical thinking is the art of questioning and analysing information before jumping to conclusions.  It allows you to separate fact from fiction and identify potential biases in your own thinking.   

Here’s how to sharpen your critical thinking skills: 

• Questioning Assumptions: Don’t take things at face value. Ask yourself (and encourage your team to do the same): “Is this based on fact or just a feeling?” 
• Considering Multiple Perspectives: See things from different angles. Understanding where others are coming from can foster empathy and bridge communication gaps. 
• Brainstorming Solutions: Shift the focus from dwelling on the problem to finding creative solutions. Encourage your team to think outside the box. 

The “We” Factor: Building a Stronger Team 

Remember, self-awareness and critical thinking are not solo endeavours. When everyone on your team hones these skills, it creates a powerful synergy. You’ll find communication improves, collaboration flourishes, and even challenging situations become opportunities for growth. 

Feeling Stuck? 

Just For Schools can help!  Our training programs and workshops provide a fun and interactive environment for teams to develop self-awareness, critical thinking, and communication skills. 

Through interactive exercises and collaborative learning, we can help your team: 

• Identify and understand individual strengths and weaknesses 
• Develop strategies for effective communication and active listening 
• Foster a culture of critical thinking and problem-solving 
• Build a more positive and productive work environment 

Invest in Your Team’s Success! Contact us today to learn more about our training to empower your team to reach their full potential. 

The post The Superpower You Didn’t Know You Had: Self-Awareness and Critical Thinking for a Thriving Team appeared first on Just For Schools.

• Staff members don’t get along or morale is low

• Customer complaints are on the rise

• Staff have become complacent about providing consistently excellent service

This gives your Education Support Staff the impression that training is only provided when they are performing poorly or doing things wrong.  It’s difficult to get positive engagement or a change in behaviour when employees enter a training environment with a negative perception of why they are there.

DIY Solutions

Mix it up

Incorporate a range of learning options under the heading of PD, i.e.:

1. There are hundreds of Podcasts dedicated to teamwork, emotional intelligence and understanding human behaviours. Go to your favourite Podcast provider (ie: Spotify is free) and search those keywords.

2. Industry conferences/events provide the opportunity for your ESS to see the bigger picture and learn from peers.

3. Confirm the value of external and informal learning your ESS undertake and how it adds skills to your team, i.e. coaching a sports team, position on a committee, household management.

Be available

Provide professional and confidential meeting options, so employees are comfortable advising issues that may or may not be work related that are making it difficult for them to meet your service standards. Asking questions may confirm that the issue does not require training – it requires listening. Allowing your ESS to vent and share can inspire positivity and eliminate many concerns.

How Just For Schools Can Help…

Our Onsite Training provides you with everything you need to educate and motivate your ESS and you as their leader.

By Cate Schreck – Author of “The A- Z of Service Excellence”

The post The Biggest Mistake School Business Managers Make (Includes DIY Solutions) appeared first on Just For Schools.

Frontline staff have a vaccine to help protect them, and although it won’t stop them from being infected by the Coronavirus, it can vaccinate against fear, anger and all the negative emotions that, if left undetected or unaddressed, can lead to serious mental health issues.

The vaccine is called Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and we can and should all access it now.

What is EQ?

Much has been written about emotional intelligence – and more specifically its value in the workplace – but the concept of emotional intelligence is not new. Years of research and testing have shown that our human brains are hardwired to give emotions the upper hand. The limbic system (the emotional brain) reacts to events first, before we have the opportunity to engage the rational brain (cortex).

Example: A parent arrives at your school in a negative mood and raises their voice and blames you for having to wait to speak to someone. Your first response will be emotional – you will feel something. You may feel shocked, annoyed or even angry, and unless you have the ability to regulate those emotions, your response to the challenging parent may be unprofessional.

Unprofessional communication leads to higher levels of anxiety and stress, and if the interaction continues with both staff and the parent communicating negatively, the parent may leave looking for somewhere to put all that negativity ie: tell others in the School community via social media.

Staff are often left having to ‘hold in’ how they feel until they get a break and a chance to vent.

To help us understand what EQ is, I’m sharing with you a definition influenced by a few theories, and mainly popularised by Daniel Goleman’s 1995 book Emotional Intelligence. Daniel Goleman, considered one of the world’s leading authorities on the subject, explains emotional intelligence as having five components:

1. Self-Awareness

The ability to recognise and understand your personal moods, emotions and motivations, as well as their effect on others. Self-awareness depends on your ability to monitor your own emotional state and to correctly identify and name your emotions.

2. Self-Regulation

The ability to control or redirect disruptive impulses and moods, and the propensity to suspend judgement and to think before acting.

3. Internal Motivation

A passion to work for internal reasons that go beyond external rewards such as money and status.

4. Empathy

The ability to understand the emotional makeup of other people and treat people according to their emotional reactions.

5. Social Skills

The proficiency to manage relationships, build networks, find common ground, and build rapport.

As seen by Daniel’s Five Components, Emotional Intelligence is a part of us that impacts every aspect of our life.

When working on developing your EQ, remembering that your emotions are not the ‘enemy’ is important. Your emotions contain valuable information that, if used properly, can help you make sound decisions and keep you out of harm’s way. The aim is not to stop negative emotions, it’s to understand them and manage them according to the environment.

Much is still to be learned about the human brain and how it works, but for now, for frontline ESS to ride the wave of COVID-19, or for you to lead a frontline team of ESS during COVID-19, remember that emotional intelligence is the vaccine that will strengthen and protect us all from a pandemic of negativity.

By Cate Schreck – Author of “The A- Z of Service Excellence”

The post The Vaccine Your Education Support Staff Must Use Now appeared first on Just For Schools.