A LEADERSHIP REFLECTION
For Australia, it is heading towards the end of the school year. Year 12 exams are done, and there is another cohort of students now ‘out in the wild of the world’, feeling that blend of awe and excitement that freedom brings. This time of year is also a season of transition for school professional communities. New educators step into roles for the first time, and others step away, moving on to new opportunities or personal paths. These comings and goings are a natural rhythm, but how we as leaders handle them sets the tone for our culture and our legacy.
Recently, I have worked with a number of leadership teams reflecting on their year and resetting for 2025, both strategically and culturally. In these spaces, I’ve seen the gift of gracious transitions at play. When incoming leaders spend time with their future teams before formally starting, it’s not just about understanding systems or strategy. It’s about connection – building trust, sharing experiences, and laying the foundation for belonging.
The school principals that have let their leaders spend time in their new school before the end of the year show the essence of Ferocious Warmth leadership: supporting the growth and capacity of leadership in others with grace not resentment when they leave.
CELEBRATING STRENGTHS
As we let people go, pausing and acknowledging what they brought to the team expands us as leaders. This is easy for those who we love and are genuinely sad to see leave. For others it may be that it is a positive move for both sides of the equation! This is where our grace as leaders steps up. We choose to see their strengths when perhaps for a while we have only been focussing on their shadows. Even those who leave amidst challenges or misalignment have contributed to the school’s journey. A simple, sincere gesture – a handwritten note, a personal conversation, or public recognition of their strengths – can transform departures from painful transitions into moments of mutual respect and learning.
BUILDING LEADERS WHO LEAVE WELL
Developing leaders is central to the role. But here’s the paradox: doing it well often means our best people will leave. When schools are known as places where leaders grow and thrive, it creates a magnetic pull – attracting talent and ensuring that those who leave do so with a sense of gratitude and readiness to contribute even more deeply elsewhere. I hear stories repeated across the country and beyond of leaders who pay tribute to those who helped them professionally grow during their career.
Our responsibility doesn’t end when we learn of them leaving. It extends to how we say goodbye. How do we ensure that those moving on do so with dignity, confidence, and a sense of being valued? Ferocious Warmth leaders know the answer lies in the “both/and” of clarity and care: being clear about the importance of their contributions and caring enough to ensure their exit is as meaningful as their entry.
THE RIPPLE EFFECT OF GRACEFUL GOODBYES
People remember how they were treated at the end of their journey with you. Whether they leave feeling small or celebrated doesn’t just reflect on them – it echoes through your entire culture.
When we let people go with love, we create ripples of respect, strengthening the social fabric of our school and, by extension, the broader education system.
So, as this school year winds down and transitions loom, consider: How will you let people go? Will you celebrate their strengths and learn from their shadows? Will you send them off with a heartfelt sense of love for what they gave and excitement for what lies ahead?
I am constantly inspired by the Ferocious Warmth leaders who can breathe deeply, and step into compassion, grace and excitement when one of their team leaves the nest.
I hope the end of the year allows you to step back and see the positive impact you have had, whatever your role. Enjoy the break and treat yourself to many joyful moments.
