OlavatEd

At one point in my career some years ago, I counted 50 unsuccessful job applications IN A ROW. I'd make it to the final round for top principal jobs. Some of them gruelling multi-step processes. And on hindsight 48/50 times, an older male got hired. --- At the time, I'd crucify myself. Blame the hesitation in my first answer. Tell myself it was my example in Q2/4...etc. etc. Over time, life experience shifted my perspective I went from reactionary to 'it is what it is' to strategic. I'd grow, sometime.... painfully. But the wisdom came... (...it's still downloading... 🤭) --- I used to be embarrassed to talk about my experiences. Then I started to see others are often in the same boat. I then actively started conversations. With everyone. To learn from the experiences of others. Knowing I'm not alone. --- To my point: --- If you're a woman aspiring for senior/executive leadership. -> You need to understand the leadership landscape. -> You need to appreciate what's going on. -> Be ready for the push and pull. -> Get the heads up. -> Strengthen. ---- A formidable group of women leaders joined forces to organise the Women in Educational Leadership Summit at Hartland School on 28th Sept: Leisa Grace Wilson, Hannah Wilson FCCT FRSA ACC, Fiona Cottam FCCT, Lauren Brennan, Rebecca Annand, Paola Wingrove, Emma Downie, Tracy Moxley, Suzanne Watson. The line-up of talent, expertise and lived experience: Keynotes: Fatma Belrehif, CEO of the DSIB Professor Yusra Mouzughi Provost, Uni of B'ham, Dubai Some presenters: Anita Stewart, Ola ElKhatib, Victoria Hopkin FRSA FCCT, Dr. Catherine O'Farrell, Rachael Wilding, Abigail Fishbourne, Kate Bradley FCCT, Rola Said, Nabila Bashir, Hannah Cunningham, Sanam Yaqub, Jenna Sheehan, MEd, NPQSL, Priya Mitchell, Berna Bouwer, Kemi Oluyinka, Rebecca Graves, Michelle Hinds, Emma Shanahan, Emily Konstantas, Abhilasha, Mansurah Arowosekila, Hazel Govender, Nalini Cook...and me! --- And men, if you're reading this, your allyship is important. 🙌🏼 --- #womeninleadership #UAE #schoolleaders #failure #educationalleadership #strength #inspiration #aspiration #success #strongertogether --- 🙏🏼 Thank you Leisa Grace Wilson for your kind post. I look forward to honouring you and all these wonderful ladies on 28th Sept 👏🏼

I had the BEST TIME speaking to fellow leaders and educators on and off camera at the Teach Middle East Magazine Educators Teaching and Learning conference yesterday. 🗣🎥 A full-house on Friday afternoon?! YUP! 😃 Here's an overview of my conversations: 🏫🏆 James Pastore and I discussed (offline) the impact of the changing inspection landscape on teaching and learning standards amidst the current pause to KHDA inspections for academic year 2024/2025. On camera, we talked about the joy of connecting, and the positive impact of intentionally building professional capacity. 📚📖 Matthew Santaspirt gave me insights on value of bringing in tailored resources and the K12 curriculum design expertise that go into developing tailored resources. Offline we talked about the importance of cooperation and allyship in professional relationships. 🔥🪜 Shumaila Shahzadi passionately emphasised the vital role of '1.3 learning skills' and high expectations and creativity in learning opportunities crafted by teachers. Offline we talked about the importance of cultural intelligence and respect in UAE schools. 👨🏫🔄👩🏫 Dan Roberts shared his instructional coaching implementatiom successes as personalised evidence-based professional development. Off camera we talked about the challenges that come with having a robust talent development programme. 🫶🏼💫 Shahana Salman highlighted the significance of consistently and systematically valuing students and the critical role of this in effective T+L. We talked about how effective top leadership plays a role in ensuring PD is impactful on student outcomes. 📝✍️ Emily Folorunsho outlined her innovative integration of Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) home learning recommendations for empowering parents as learning partners. Offline we talked about parents being apprehensive to teach their children the wrong methods. 🫱🏽🫲🏻 Emmanuel Awoyelu shone a light on inclusion and how teacher positive beliefs about student potential play a pivotal role in making your teaching and learning truly equitable and inclusive. Offline: we did some real-life tech fail problem-solving! 🙌🏼🫱🏻🫲🏽 Ola ElKhatib described the value of professional collaboration and being inspired by the work of colleagues. Offline: we spoke about how excited we are to be presenting at the Women in Educational Leadership Conference at the end of the month at Hartland International School. --- Lots of quick catch-ups with colleagues, new and old 🙂: Jonathan Coxall Nalini Cook Debra Forsyth Magdalene Bashir Abdallah Abdi Farzana Shaikh Roshelle Britt ---- Huge thanks to the brilliant and formidable: Leisa Grace Wilson, Christina Morris and the Teach Middle East Magazine team for bringing practitioners together! --- #Education #TeachingAndLearning #DubaiSchools #InternationalEducation #ProfessionalDevelopment #EducationalLeadership

The Scariest Place to Be is the Same Place as Last Year 1️⃣ Stagnation = Missed Growth Staying in the same place means missing out on opportunities for growth, both personally and professionally. Did you know? 70% of people who push themselves out of their comfort zone report improved career satisfaction (Source: Forbes, 2019). 2️⃣ Risk of Falling Behind The world moves forward, whether we do or not. 85% of the jobs that will exist in 2030 haven’t been invented yet (Source: Institute for the Future, Dell Technologies Report, 2017). If you're not learning new skills, you're falling behind. 3️⃣ Mental Health Consequences Stagnation can impact mental well-being. 83% of people who feel stagnant report symptoms of anxiety or depression (Source: American Psychological Association, 2020). 4️⃣ Growth = Happiness Pushing boundaries leads to increased happiness and fulfillment. 92% of people who pursue new challenges feel happier and more accomplished (Source: Harvard Business Review, 2021). 5️⃣ Comfort Zone = False Security Staying comfortable might feel safe, but it creates long-term risks. 61% of people who don’t take risks in their career regret it later in life (Source: Psychology Today, 2018). Taking action now means fewer regrets in the future. Source graphic: visualsbymelody

8 BIG career mistakes I made so that you don’t have to: ------------- 📌 Thriving at work is possible. Join the waitlist for my group program https://lnkd.in/dYgWqu37

This 👇🏿👇🏿👇🏿 How can more men be allies for women? It doesn’t start at our conference room tables. This work starts at our kitchen tables. I am honored to be surrounded by a husband, brother, brother-in-law, cousin-in-laws and friends who all show up for the empowered women in their lives. Consistently. Even when it’s difficult. Because many of us were raised with cultural values that are at odds with how we want to live & show up. When society continues to question the role women vs. men should play both at home and at work. There’s a lot of unlearning to do. In our home, we are focused on ensuring both our daughter & son dream BIG. And I have to stop & catch myself on the cultural biases I was raised with. What are you unlearning when it comes to biases you were raised with? #inclusion #culture #leadership #MitaMallick

If we’re teaching kids about Climate Change in the walls of a sterile classroom… We’re doing something fundamentally wrong. Some of my favorite words have been spoken by Barna Barath: “We protect what we love.” If we are truly interested in empowering young people to carry on the difficult challenge of protecting our planet and combating Climate Change, our schools must be grounded in nature. If we are immersed, we can be inspired. If we are inspired, we can connect. If we connect, we can love. And if we love, we can truly protect. What could possibly be more important right now? 🌱 #pbl #projectbasedlearning

𝐎𝐨𝐩𝐬! 🤭🤭 Does your inner critic force you to keep focusing on your flaws, imperfections, and weaknesses? Here are 3 quick tips to boost your confidence! 1. 𝐁𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟! Fail. Mess up. Try harder. Get back up again. Fail again. Embarrass yourself to death! Yup! There you go! Surprise! A much stronger version of yourself is born! 2. 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐭𝐨 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐞. 𝐋𝐞𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐠𝐨 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐧! Share your voice. Nobody listens? Fine. Try another approach. People ignore you again in the most insulting ways? Good. The next time, you'll tune into your truth even more. Your voice breaks the silence. You have so much to share! 3. 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩. 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐧𝐨𝐰. Apply for that promotion. Hear the 'No.' Hear it again. Sleep with it. Go to the gym, dance, run, practice some boxing, read a book, go to bed. Good morning, try again! This time, someone is bound to listen attentively! 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭! 😁😁 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐲𝐨𝐮! ❓️ What’s the biggest challenge you've faced when trying to boost your confidence? ❓️ How do you usually respond when you feel ignored or unheard? ❓️ Have you ever surprised yourself by succeeding after multiple failures? ❓️ What’s one action you can take today to push past your comfort zone? ❓️ How do you silence your inner critic when it’s the loudest? #Confidence #Boost #Fear #Control #GrowthMindset #PersonalDevelopment #FailForward #Tips #Mindset #Resilience #SelfImprovement #MentalHealth #Wellbeing #Growth #Leadership #Coach #Coaching #OlavatEd

2 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐬: 1. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤! Just by being present and staying true to your authentic self, even with a little effort, you can make all the difference! As an extrovert who thrives on social connections, I've found that my most influential friends are all introverts. 2. 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫! Making eye contact, observing body language, listening attentively, smiling, and offering small gestures like compliments or humor are all much easier when planned and intentional. ❓️ What's your plan for socializing at work tomorrow morning? ❓️ What vibes are you bringing to your workspace? ❓️ How do you recharge after a social event? ❓️ What tips would you like to share as well? Have a fantastic week ahead! ✨️💜 #Introvert #Power #Mindfulness #Work #Workplace #Vibes #Social #Energy #Wellbeing #MentalHealth #SelfCare #Coach #Coaching #PositiveVibes #OlavatEd