The artistry of communication: no vision is out of reach when a school leader commits to understanding the power of skillful, poetic communication

Leadership, March-April, 2004 by Phyllis A. Hensley, LaVern Burmeister

When we ask aspiring administrators to describe the attributes of effective leaders from their own experience, they often say the leader must be a "great communicator." When we probe further and ask them to describe great communicators, they tell us they are not only good writers and good speakers, they are honest, trustworthy and credible individuals who have good listening skills and good interpersonal skills.

Our combined 60-plus years experience as K-12 educators from the classroom to the superintendency and our current work in higher education confirm that these are, in fact, characteristics of great communicators. Our experience also tells us that in addition to being skilled, great communicators are artists. We have met and worked with many leaders who were good writers and good speakers, but lacked the artistry. In this article, we explore the skill and art of communicating.

Good communication is a complex, idiosyncratic and sometimes subtle human process, that of sending and receiving meaningful messages to and from one another. The success of this process depends on the clear connections that can be established between the sender's beliefs, attitudes, style, language choices, perspective and non-verbal cues; the content of the message; the channels selected for transmitting the message; and the receiver's beliefs, attitudes and perspective. Hence, we set ourselves up for failure as communicators if we fail to develop all elements of the process. It is a combination of the skill and the poetry of communicating that defines the effective communicator, the leader who is most likely to shape a school culture to achieve a shared vision.

According to Deal and Peterson (1994), effective school leaders are poets who use language to reinforce values and to sustain the school's best image. The true artists are the poets who inspire others through their use of language.

Language is powerful. Our spoken language, written language and body language can serve as great motivating forces that positively shape a school's culture. Language can inspire people to be the best that they can possibly be. Language is the primary tool for changing and drawing together the elements of the school culture so that the reason for existing emerges and solidifies with every stakeholder committed to its achievement.

Everyone wants to work in a productive environment that encourages and enables them to succeed. "All human beings strive to experience psychological success" (Seyfarth, 1996). Nobody wakes up each day and says, "I don't want to be successful today." A leader's effective use of language can create environments where employees can be successful.

Unfortunately, if language is used negatively it can cause great concern, frustration and even alienation or isolation; it can actually decrease the likelihood that employees will experience success.

What effective leaders know about communication

When we think about effective leaders who are skilled in language, we think about those administrators who clearly understand the importance and impact of positive language. These administrators know that what they say and do communicates images of who they are, what they believe in and what they value. They know that their language determines their success or failure. Effective leaders say good things about their employees, their school, their students, their parents and their community. They don't pit employees against one another. They encourage collaboration and cooperation. Effective leaders turn weaknesses into successes and focus on the positive. They celebrate the successes of their faculty, staff and students; they praise them for their accomplishments.

Effective leaders know that there is a close relationship between trust and effective communication. "High levels of trust go beyond medium levels of respect and compromise and promote high levels of cooperation" (Hughes & Cooper, 2000). Effective administrators know that through the effective use of language, relationships are built, trust and credibility are established, and respect is gained. Once they have garnered the trust and respect of those with whom they work, they know that they can go about the business of shaping the school's culture and crafting a shared vision with all constituents.

Effective leaders know that information has to be shared if administrators want to prevent those "parking lot faculty meetings." One student recently described this scenario: Her district was implementing a new textbook series, a huge change from the previously adopted materials. Her principal did not tell the teachers about the impending change, and the surprise had a strong, negative effect. Teachers felt they were not included in the decision. They met in the lunchroom and in the parking lot to discuss the new textbooks, and were upset and reluctant to make the mandated change.

This student said she believed that the principal could have orchestrated a significantly different outcome if she had just shared the information with the teachers.