Leadership Lessons From Mr. Hart
Bruce Hart was a 7th & 8th grade teacher at Fieldbrook Elementary (K-8) for many years. While I never personally had him as my teacher, he still made a profound impact on me.
When I was in 7th grade, the world was spinning around my existence. Did my Justin Bieber haircut look good? Was I a popular kid at school and on my sports teams? These were my priorities at the time.
Unfortunately, around this time, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. I didn’t understand the magnitude because I was living in my middle school world.
Planting a Seed For Me
Every morning when I got to school, Mr. Hart would say good morning to me and ask about my mom. He genuinely cared about the state of her health.
At the time, I didn’t think much of it, but these daily interactions planted a seed in my mind of how I will end up developing my leadership skills.
Fortunately, my mom beat breast cancer and changed her outlook on life—story for another day.
Mr. Hart’s Impact
Mr. Hart’s genuine care for my mom and me is an excellent example of what great leaders do. I believe it is a must for leaders to have empathy and compassion for their teams. In this case, we were on team Fieldbrook Elementary.
To build on that, we must get to know our team members, whether learning what type of ice cream they like or discovering intricate family details that shape their behavior.
All it starts with is a hello, and how are you? Not the “how are you” that we unconsciously ask every person we come across.
The “how are you?” showing genuine compassion for the other human.
Leadership is All About Relationship Building
Being an impactful leader isn’t about how effectively you can work behind the desk. It’s about how you can build meaningful relationships and develop each team member to be the best individuals they can be.
Mr. Hart developed trust with me over the years by getting to know me and my interests. His trust permitted him to ask personal questions about my mom’s health.
As leaders, it’s our responsibility to get to know our team and the people we serve to create a significant impact.
