Successful education leaders are charismatic, which inspires devotion in others. This charisma can be hard to learn, as it usually requires most educators to go outside of their comfort zone by becoming more sociable as well as learning how to command the attention of and speak to a group of any size.

Charisma is not my strong suit

Luckily, charisma is a skill that can be learned. If you are an introvert, it might be hard for you to come out of your shell, but I believe that inside of every person is a beautiful peacock waiting to get out. All it takes is for you to get used to showing your feathers in front of small and large audiences.

How can you accomplish this? Most introverts are not introverts in front of family and close friends. Even the biggest introvert, like me, has a group of people who know the real them, that they would not dare show to other people. Just practice extending this side of your personality to the people in your school. Once you establish relationships with enough people, with their support, you will feel comfortable and empowered enough to show your true self to the rest of the staff. That’s how you turn an introvert into a charismatic peacock.

Charisma is very important, but it can only take you so far. To be an effective leader, the style has to be paired with substance. I have known plenty of charismatic leaders who were all style and no substance. They talked a good game, never met a stranger, and endeared themselves to the school community.

One, in particular, created a false reality concerning our school’s academic progress, and when our annual test scores were released, the school community found out that our students were not progressing academically; they were regressing. I knew that this would happen because I looked at the data for myself and posited that we were headed for this result. I tried to warn the school board, but my warnings fell on deaf ears.