Leaders Need Food Too

If there's one upside for me during the pandemic, it's that I read more now. (Kelly Garcia would be so proud!) I'm starting a book called Leaders Eat Last. The book references the U.S. Marine Corps practice wherein the senior officers move to the back of the chow line to allow the junior Marines to eat first. It is the job of the leaders to make sure that the group is well taken care of before they take care of themselves. The theme emerges, "Good leaders sacrifice their own comfort - even their own survival - for the good of those in their care." Coming from a family with strong military ties, I can understand this concept and how it has shaped my own focus, particularly this school year. 

In some lighter reading this week, I also found an article on school leaders and self-care. The article talked about the pressures of schools right now that we all have been under and how you have to take time to recharge and take care of yourself or eventually, you lose the ability to effectively take care of others. At first, the two readings seemed opposite to me. One theory says to sacrifice yourself at all costs and the other says to take care of yourself to be more effective. So what's the answer? Well, I think you can have both. I think you NEED both.

When we think of leaders, we often think of people that are bigger than ourselves. We think of politicians, bosses, and policymakers. Did you think of yourself? If not, you should. The very first standard in your teacher evaluation is on Teacher Leadership. Students and their families look to you as leaders. You lead in your classroom. You lead colleagues that come to you for advice and support. You lead parents when they don't know how to get their child back on track. And in years like this one, those many calls to leadership have left many of us drained and hungry at the back of the chow line as we work diligently to feed others first. 

The USMC analogy says that leaders eat last, but it never said that leaders don't eat. There may be times when they eat less or eat what's left, but they still eat. Leaders need food too, both literally and metaphorically. We are almost halfway through a school year that many of us thought wouldn't last but a few weeks. In what's left, your leadership will continue to be called upon and needed in many different ways. Take time to take care of yourself, so that you can take care of others.