The SecEd Podcast: How to be a calm school leader

What is “calm leadership” and how can this philosophy help middle and senior leaders in schools to be effective and inspiring in their roles?

In this podcast, we chat to Patrick Cozier, the long-serving headteacher of Highgate Wood School in London, about his philosophy of calm leadership.

In a nine-article SecEd series last year, Patrick described his calm leadership approach, discussing what being a calm leader looks like in practice and the many elements involved, including empathy, listening, honesty, integrity, humility, trust, and so much more.

The series is now being turned into a new book and in this episode of the podcast we chat to Patrick to get practical insights into what calm leadership involves and how we can all aspire to be “calmer” in our leadership approaches in schools.

We discuss the challenges of leadership and how to deal with them in a calm and reasoned way, including the paranoia of leadership, imposter syndrome, when doubt sets in, handling difficult moments, and difficult conversations.

We also talk about how to keep calm in challenging situations, keeping a sense of perspective, staying optimistic, and working with colleagues to make good decisions.

We consider how to lead people effectively, including building trust, empowering colleagues, listening properly, and being kind. And we ask how we can nurture other key elements such as humility, empathy, integrity and more. And we discuss coping with the emotional rollercoaster that is school leadership.