The Work No One Sees
Join Claire and I’s webinar series on May 26-28 that prepare Aspiring, New and Returning Middle Leaders for next year. To learn more and register, click here.
At this point in the school year, many people are tired.
They have attended the meetings. They have joined the committees. They have given feedback, collected evidence, written notes, tested ideas, and tried to contribute to something that still feels unfinished.
And sometimes, that is the hardest part.
We often celebrate work when it reaches the stage where it is visible. A new programme. A published report. A photo of smiling colleagues. A successful event. A clear outcome.
But much of the work that improves schools happens long before that. It happens in conversations that go in circles. It happens when someone expresses frustration. It happens when a team member says, in one way or another, “I am not sure this is working.”
In a recent Jennifer Abrams article, I was reminded that some of the most important school work is private, messy, emotionally demanding, and not something anyone can easily gain a sense of accomplishment from, let alone celebrate. Her article made me think about a Strategic Planning Task Force I am advising and the hard work they are doing, but do not yet have anything obvious to celebrate.
We are in what I would describe as the storming stage. Progress is being made. Patterns are becoming clearer. The groups are beginning to understand their purpose. But this is also the stage where people start to question the process. They wonder if there was a better way. They wonder whether their time has been used well. They wonder what all of this work has contributed to.
In one meeting, a team member expressed deep frustration. He seemed close to losing hope in the process. I listened. I paraphrased. I asked how he might summarise what he had learned from the experience and what that learning could contribute to improving the work.
At first, we went in circles.
He wanted to do something that was not possible. We discussed a similar approach the school already uses: an annual survey. But that survey often receives low response rates. As we talked, he began to name something important. If we ask people for feedback, we need to make the purpose clear. We need to define terms carefully. We need to make sure people understand why their response matters.
These were the same principles he had been working through in his own evidence gathering. At times, he had felt that work was a waste of time. But through the conversation, it became clear that his frustration was not wasted. It was data. It helped us understand what others might experience if we launched a school wide survey without enough clarity.
That was the contribution.
He helped us see what needed to be improved before the stakes became higher.
For middle leaders, this is an important responsibility. We need to help people see what their effort is teaching the team, especially when the work is not finished. Appreciation is not only saying thank you. It is helping someone understand the difference their contribution has made.
At the end of the year, your team may not need a celebration. They may need a conversation.
Try asking:
What have we learned that we did not understand before?
What frustration helped us see the work more clearly?
What will we do differently next time because of what this team experienced?
Whose unseen effort helped us avoid a future mistake?
Middle leadership is often about making learning visible before success is visible. When we do that well, people can begin to see that their effort has not been wasted, even when the work is still incomplete.
This is also a good way to begin preparing for next year. Unfinished work can feel discouraging, but it can also show us where our leadership is needed most. If you are ending the year knowing your team has further to go, My colleague and I will be hosting three webinars this week to help you think that through. Join me on May 26 if you are not yet a leader but want to positively influence your team’s progress, on May 27 if you are a new middle leader continuing the work of an established team, or join Claire Peet on May 28 if you are a returning leader who wants to prioritize what matters most to furthering your team’s progress.
