Timeout for Leadership-your one-minute leadership idea

Tip Sheet #56

Are you entitled?

Entitlements?  Hell yes, I deserve them and they are mine!!

People that feel this way will always end up disappointed.  And those that do not get what they feel they are entitled to, will not only be disappointed, they will also be unhappy.  This unhappiness will corrupt the culture and climate of your workplace.

So, let’s take a look at some entitlements you find in our schools.  This sense of entitlement has baffled me and yet still lives on.  Take a look at the following and see if they resonate with you.  And while you are at it, do a little reflection and see if this is how you feel:

• I have been in the department or the school the longest and hence I deserve to teach the best classes and courses in my curricular area of expertise. You feel this way even though you are not qualified and do not possess the skill set to teach these classes or the highly driven students.  Those classes are mine.  I am entitled to have them.
• Room #3 is my classroom. I have been there for 15 years and I deserve to stay there the rest of my career.  You could care about the needs of the school.  You see, you are entitled.
• I expect to have the last period free from teaching. Yes, I am the football coach and the school and the courses can be damned.  I need to get ready for practice.  Don’t you know, I am entitled.
• That Vice Principal’s job is mine. I have been here the longest.  The kids are afraid of me and I will restore things the way they used to be.  It doesn’t matter that I have not stayed current intellectually, or have lost my energy. I could care less about relationships with my colleagues or the students.  It is my turn to lead.  I have put in my time.  I am entitled to that position.
• I am the first person to arrive for work in the morning. I should get the parking space of my choice.  I come early to get my coffee and beat the traffic.  It also gives me an opportunity to shoot the bull with my friends.  I better have the space reserved because you see, that I am entitled.

I could go on and on.  I am having some fun thinking about all of these things that I had to deal with as a result of an entitlement belief when I was a principal.  Most of these items seem ridiculous now.  Yet when they were happening, for those involved, it seemed like life and death.

How does this sense of entitlement get reinforced in our school?  Were things always done this way?  Sadly, for whatever reason, people develop this sense of entitlement.  Perhaps it is just a smokescreen for being lazy or unqualified. Qualifications or the personal fit for the school mean nothing.   If the notion of being satisfactory is the standard and the present culture of the school supports the entitlement philosophy, I hate to inform you, that your culture is doomed.  Your school’s culture in this state will never support excellence.

Additionally, when your faculty and staff get emotionally let down because they realize that they are not entitled, they will be on the road to becoming one of your school’s most prized malcontents.  Good luck in working with them.

It is imperative that you coach your staff as if they are part of a team.   They are.  They need to be on your team! They must internalize that they do not teach in a classroom, or an individual school.  They are part of the district and sometimes they will have to do things that are best for the team, not personal gains. Promotions are earned based upon effort and attitude.  Those that work hard and have a great attitude and can get along with people are the people that will be first in line when a promotional opportunity exists.  It sounds so simple.  Then why is it so hard.

So, the next time that you are feeling entitled at work, run and get your playbook and read Tip Sheet #56.  It should bring you back to reality.