In the video Friedman’s Theory of Leadership Made Simple (Camp, 2010), he mentions that a “differentiated leader can take a well defined stand even when followers disagree while remaining connected in a meaningful way with others.” I immediately thought of Jon Gordon’s, The Positive Dog when he began explaining Friedman’s theory. You have to feed the positive dog each day in order to lead a positive life and positively influence others. The negative people, or those that disagree with the plan, or idea are the virus and have the ability to change the folds in the fabric of a plan with the power of their conversations. A differentiated leader sees the big picture and helps others (the viruses of an organization) see it as well through influencing others to take note of their own actions and make the necessary changes so they too become differentiated leaders.
I was well into my thirties before I felt fully comfortable with speaking up in conversations and telling others my opinions and ideas. I would usually agree silently, or just sit back and observe. I was seeing others speak to people with such ease and I always wondered what it was that allowed them to have such great conversations and speaking skills with other people. If I were to guess (from knowing these people well) it is because they are what we call a “people person”, they are confident and outgoing. It’s almost a natural ability for them to speak to others with such ease. Some of them found a way to make connections with who they are speaking to when they weren’t feeling as confident, or outgoing. Although I still occasionally observe others, I have built up the confidence to share my ideas and thoughts even though they are not always what (I think) will be taken well by others. I speak up because it is ultimately not about me and usually what I am sharing will be helpful to most parties involved. I now find ways to connect with others and locate that common ground.
Overall, I feel that I could definitely label myself as a differentiated leader and this is what will make influencing others to support and fulfill my ePortfolio initiative a whole lot easier.
The difficult part is over, my principal is on board and he is a super differentiated leader that will help me sustain support from all teachers. I have also already recruited a teacher friend that sometimes forgets to feed her positive dog and if she is on board, others will be as well!
Camp, J., Friedman’s theory of Differentiated Leadership Made Simple [Video file]. (2010). Retrieved February 17, 2021, from https://youtu.be/RgdcljNV-Ew
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