The Principal's Handbook

The Importance of Ongoing Professional Development for Principals with John Mihalyo
[00:00:00] Welcome to the Principal's Handbook, your go to resource for principals looking to revamp their leadership approach and prioritize self care. I'm Barb Flowers, a certified life coach with eight years of experience as an elementary principal. Tune in each week as we delve into strategies for boosting mental resilience, managing time effectively, and nurturing overall wellness.
From tackling daily challenges to maintaining a healthy work life balance, I'm Barb Flowers. We'll navigate the complexities of school leadership together. Join me in fostering your sense of purpose as a principal and reigniting your passion for the job. Welcome to a podcast where your wellbeing is the top priority.
Hi everyone. Welcome. I'm excited to be here today with our guest, John Mahalio. He's the founder and president of Elementary advancement solutions and the host of the Catholic school leaders podcast. He works with Catholic school leaders to improve their schools.
And John has 25 years of experience in [00:01:00] education with the last 20 years being in administrative roles. He served as a principal of three different Catholic schools. He's helped each school he worked with increase enrollment, their funds and strategic marketing efforts. He's led fundraising efforts to raise 1.
8 million and directed a capital campaign. to oversee a 5. 5 million high school renovation project. So lots of experience here for John in education and with Catholic schools. So I'm so excited to have you today. Barb, it's great to see you. We're going to be talking about masterminds, which is something that John hosts a lot of.
So if you just want to kind of start by talking to us about what is a mastermind group and how does it benefit people? Yeah, so the concept was actually something that was introduced by a person by the name of Napoleon Hill and basically his thought process when he researched all the great leaders of the world back in the 1900s, [00:02:00] he found that one of the things they had in common was collaborating with other leaders.
And he found that that was something that really benefited them to kind of hear what others were doing and learn from other people. So this concept behind the masterminds is really to give Catholic and faith based school principals the opportunity to come together. With other leaders who are in that same role on a bi weekly basis.
We do it twice a month. And it gives them the opportunity to come together for an hour and just discuss issues that are relevant to their roles as Catholic school leaders. One of the masterminds revolves around principals. Other ones around fundraising officers or aspiring principals. And we can get into those later.
But it's basically the opportunity to come together with people that are in the same role as you to talk about issues or topics that are important to you in real time. And I can say I have personally been in a mastermind group and it was so beneficial. I loved it because I got to know people all over the country.
[00:03:00] So it was a really cool experience to be on Zoom and meeting, I remember there was somebody in Missouri and somebody else in Nevada and I'm in Ohio. So we're all in different time zones, very different school settings, but also so many of the same issues. All the same perspective. Yes, it's and that's I think what's interesting about it is we all have those colleagues that we work in the same school district or diocese or city with.
But I always just found that, when we get together and we want to talk about what was going on, everybody would just kind of hold their cards back a little bit because we might be competing for the same fundraising dollars or the same students with enrollment or whatever the case might be.
Yeah. So I think there's only some so much that you can put on the table. Whereas in this environment, as you just pointed out, you're meeting with somebody from a different state or a different country and you come together, you can kind of let your guard down because it's a safe space. It's a judgment free zone where you can just discuss what's on [00:04:00] your mind.
And it's not a, you know, it, it's not a gripe session. It's not a, let's come in and talk about the, you know, how this is not doing. It's a place where you can come together and say, Hey, I'm having a problem with this. And I'm wondering if anybody else has had this similar issue. And as you know, when you bring up a topic that you think is so unique to you, you usually have two or three others in the group who are like, yep, I had that happen to me.
And this is what I was able to do with it to give you some advice and some perspective to help you navigate through what might be a really, really time sensitive challenge at your school. Yeah, and I love that because I think that that's why I'm so passionate about coaching and consulting and education in general with principals, because I think there's not a lot of opportunities for that.
I know as a principal myself, I just had a conversation with my superintendent that I feel like that's an area that is lacking. You know, there's not a lot of groups [00:05:00] in the area necessarily that I can go with. Just be truly open with and have a conversation and vent about what's going on and get feedback about what I can do to be better because the job of a principal, it's such a tough job and then there's so many expectations and things we have to do.
Yeah, and I think , in the Catholic schools, for example, you know, what a lot of people don't realize, and I've been a very blessed to be able to be in a public school for 10 years, I've been in a Catholic school for 15 years, served as an administrator in, in both capacities. So I recognize the challenges that come with, with a public school administrator.
So my comments should not be seen as putting that down. It's a different set of challenges that you're dealing with as when you're running a Catholic school. You have to not only be the person that's responsible for the curriculum and, and what's happening in the classrooms, but you're also responsible for your, you know, a lot of your HR work.
Yeah, there might be an HR office at the diocese, but most of the [00:06:00] time, you know, You know, what's happening at your school level is your responsibility. You're your chief fundraising officer. You are probably the the person that is going to influence the most of what you know dollars are coming into your school if they're happy with your leadership they're happy with the vision that you're putting out more Fundraising dollars are going to come in.
You're responsible for your enrollment at your school And you know when we talk about accountability in schools You know, if your tuition, I'm just going to use a number to keep it round, is 10, 000 a year and 20 families leave, that's a big bite out of your budget that you have to try to recoup. And so, you know, as a principal of a Catholic school, you're responsible for making sure that budget comes out in the black and not in the red.
You know, so, so there's a lot of responsibilities that come. As a Catholic school principal that you are undertaking, you're more serving as like a CEO of, of a school. And, there are diocese out there that operate as a school system, but there's a lot of them out there that [00:07:00] operate as a system of schools.
Whereas your, you know, your HR policies through the diocese may, you know, be overarching, but what's happening in your particular school in terms of the vision, the mission that you're setting out and how you're accomplishing that. is up to you. And so it's important because it can be a lonely job.
And as you just pointed out, not having that support, you can feel overwhelmed this opportunity. And this is something that the folks that are in my mastermind groups tell me is they say, it's something I look forward to. It's something that I look forward to being able to come together to collaborate.
And kind of get that shot in the arm that shot of vitamin C for the next two weeks, to come together and and talk about what's happening and hear about what's happening in other schools and just collaborate. It's a great opportunity. Yeah, and I think when you know that you are in a mastermind and you know you're going to be meeting on this certain day of the month, you can bring whatever, problems you've had in that time period or questions [00:08:00] that you have to that group and have that conversation.
I always felt so alone as a principal when something would happen, but then I'd come to this group, this mastermind and. They'd be like, Oh yeah, somebody in the group has experienced something similar that they can relate to and give me advice and feedback that was always beneficial. And sometimes you're going to be the person who is teaching.
And sometimes you might hear something and go, yeah, that's something I'm kind of dealing with right now, too. I want to listen in on this a little bit more and maybe ask some follow up questions. So, I think that's the big thing is, it's not, you know, we always say iron sharpens iron. And so when you come together with a group of like minded leaders who are all looking to grow and get better at their professions, , I have people in my mastermind groups that have been in their roles for multiple years, 20 plus years.
I have others who have been in their role for two or three. And they're all learning from each other and they're all getting better from each other. And [00:09:00] that's actually a nice thing to have those different levels of experience because, you know, it's great to have a lot of experience and there's a lot of things you can share, but there is something to that perspective of someone who's fresh and new to the job too.
So I think that having that mixture of years of experience is really beneficial. Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Just a different perspective. And, you know, it's funny because. I have schools in my mastermind where, you know, both parents drive up in a Tesla or a, you know, fancy car. And I have others where that's not the case.
And as you pointed out, no matter where you're coming from in the country, or what your school is like 98 percent of the things that we're going to talk about are the same, no matter where your school is and what the parents are driving up in or whatever the case might be. The issues that we're going to talk about are the topics that come up are pretty universal, no matter where your school is located.
I hear this a [00:10:00] lot from principals that it's so hard, you know, to find the time. We're all busy people. We're busy during school. We're busy outside of school. So how do you tell people the importance to make the time to join something like this, so that they can get their own professional learning and growth?
So I think when you look at it, you know, each of us, we've all seen a thing where he says, well, we get so many hours in a week and what are we going to do with them? Okay. We get so many hours in a day and what are we going to do with them? What we're talking about is two hours a month. And one of the things that I believe very passionately about is, you know, a lot of us have responsibilities and vocations outside of school.
Our, our job, our role as a, as a leader in our school, it's just part of who we are. A lot of us are spouses, we are parents, we are sons, daughters. And so there are responsibilities that are happening outside of school that are our primary responsibilities in life. Okay? And so one of the things [00:11:00] that I make sure that we do with our mastermind groups is to find time during the school day so that people can attend these during their work day.
And I think if you say to your faculty, or you say to your office, crew, Hey, on Tuesdays at one o'clock. I'm going to close my door for an hour because I'm attending a professional development with other school leaders from across the country. So I'm going to shut my door and I'll put a, you know, in a meeting for an hour, a virtual meeting, whatever the case may be, on, on my door.
I don't think there's anybody in your school that's going to say anything about that. If anything, I think that would raise the morale in your school to see, wow, my principal, my advancement director, my, you know, assistant principal, Is taking time to invest in themselves. So I'm going to feel better about doing the same thing.
As I said, iron sharpens iron. And so it's an opportunity for our principals to take that one hour out [00:12:00] of their day. Every two weeks to just stop what they're doing. And, and treat that as a meeting that is, on your calendar. And I'm not going to schedule anything else on top of it. Now.
Hey, are there times where two minutes before, , the mastermind session, somebody gets pulled into a situation that's happening? Well, sure. , and when that happens, we understand that. And, and the other members understand that. We, we keep you in our prayers and, but we're going to continue going forward.
And so if there's, you know, four people in a, in a group or there's eight people there that day, we're gonna work , with who can attend and who's able to be there based upon, you know, what's happening at their school, but it's one of those things that I find, as I said, the, the principals that are in the group, for example, that's something they really look forward to.
It's a time where they really, the feedback that, they gave me recently was it's, it's an opportunity to come together. In a faith based setting where if I say something about the faith, we don't get looked at like, Oh my gosh, you can't say that we can't talk about that. And that's a thing that [00:13:00] there's a, there's a big difference between running a school, that's a Catholic school and running a public school.
, there are things that, that we can do in a, in a Catholic school that did, you can't do in a public school. And that's why people have chosen that path. It's, it's important to them. So we're actually being able to talk about issues that are important to catholic school leaders and and when we start with with that aspect of it, you know, only good things can happen.
Yeah. And I love that, you know, you have that scheduled during the day. And I know if I take that time to do professional development, like you said, you have to close your door. You do have to take time away, but people do respect that. And I think that also, I show up so much better as a leader, you know, and I even show up so much better when I go home as a wife and as a mom, because I'm taking that time for myself.
A hundred percent. Well, , and I always hear the story, , I'm sure many of our leaders have where, they say, you know, if you're, when we're on the airplane, they, the, the flight attendant always says, you know, if [00:14:00] you, if in the event that the oxygen masks drop, put your oxygen mask on first and then help other people. and I heard a really interesting perspective once, and the person said, One, you can't help other people if you're not wearing your oxygen mask, okay, but two, if you don't put your oxygen mask on first, you become an obstacle for others. Okay. Because, okay. And I thought about that and it's like, wow, as, leaders, we want to be there to support, you know, our students, our faculty, our families.
And certainly don't want to be an obstacle to them, , accomplishing what it is that they want to do in the, in the mission that you set out. And so I think that it does two things. cause I think you hit that right in the head when we leave our meetings, it's like that shot in the arm of like, all right, now I can, I got this, Hey, something that I needed to talk about or something that I heard or something that.
I was able to contribute to others. , it makes you feel good and you leave refreshed and rejuvenated. And I think the nice thing about this too, [00:15:00] is it's ongoing. So, you know, we all know that we go to a conference and. We just absorbed so much of that conference and we get back to our schools and what happens?
The world returns, right? And you get back with that red light on your phone saying that you have 27 messages and this has happened in your school and we have to deal with, with this situation that's been waiting for you to get back. And it's overwhelming and everything, all that momentum that you gained from that conference kind of gets put.
on the bookshelf and we'll get back to it when we get back to it and sometimes we do and sometimes we don't. The nice thing about this is it's not a one and done. It's ongoing and so it's something that you can look forward to doing twice a month. A group that you can come together with, have that group that's going to hold you accountable.
That's one of the things we start with is, tell me, you know, we start with a prayer. We start with, okay, last week, , you said that one of your goals [00:16:00] for the next two weeks was to do this. How did it go? Okay. And if you know that you're going to have a group of leaders who, you know, not that they're going to punish you if you didn't get it done, because sometimes hey, life happens.
You know, my kid got sick, whatever the case might be. And I, it just didn't, didn't happen. But to be able to come back and go, yes, I said I was going to do this and I did it and it went really well or hey, and I had some challenges with it and that's something I want to talk about a little bit later on.
And then at the end, we end the meeting with, tell me something that you're going to be working through for the next two weeks that is your goal. And , you know it as well as I do, if you write it down or if you put it out into the universe so that others can hear , it's a lot more likelihood that, that it's going to happen.
Yeah, and I've had a couple different conversations on the podcast lately about instructional coaches and the importance of them for teachers, and I've related that a lot to the principal, just a lot to what the principals need because it's that same idea, right? Instructional coaching is so good for [00:17:00] teachers because it's ongoing professional development.
That's the same thing with the coaching and the masterminds is you're giving this ongoing professional development that it's not like you go learn eight great things, but you can't even implement them all. You just take this bite size of information each time that you can try different things.
You're held accountable, because everybody's going to try to meet their goal. If they know that somebody is going to ask them about it, versus if they just tell themselves they're going to do it. 100%. And I would say this just to kind of circle back to the question you asked about the time. If you can't designate two hours a month to make yourself a better leader, then I would say you definitely need to think about a mastermind group because it probably says that your schedule is overloaded.
Maybe you're not doing a good job delegating. There's just too much and even more the reason that you would probably need to. Get that kind of support and get that kind of collaboration with other leaders. To help yourself. So again, we're talking [00:18:00] about two hours a month.
and when you talk about how many hours a day We all know there's not a principal out there that works 40 hours a week. I mean that just doesn't happen That's that's a fairy tale. You know, so when we talk about all the things that we're doing If you designate two hours a month I'll bet you that on the back end, you're going to save yourself some time because it's going to give you that support that you need to not feel stressed and overwhelmed.
It's like going to the gym for your mind. Right, right. It's, it's so worth it to set the tone for the rest of the day, the rest of the week. 100%. So what is the cost of these versus the value? Yeah. So, so when I looked at this, one of the things that I really wanted to make sure is that anybody. Who wants to do this is able to do it.
Okay. We see all the times. I mean, there's not a Catholic school out there that says, yeah, I've got too much money. I don't know what to do with all this money. Okay. That just doesn't exist. Okay. And so. I know that there's, [00:19:00] mastermind groups out there that will literally cost you thousands upon thousands of dollars or, or a couple thousand dollars a month or whatever the case might be.
And so I really wanted to make sure that this was something that is affordable and that any leader of a Catholic school, whether it be a principal or advancement director, an aspiring, leader who's, who is aspiring to be a principal in the future, or a person who's responsible for enrollment and marketing.
could join this without it being something that hinders their school. And so most of the groups that I run are between 1, 500 and 2, 000 for the whole year. And when you think about what you get for that cost versus value, you're going to get that back in terms of What you gain from it, and what you take away from it just for that support level.
I mean, you think about it, if you go to , a national conference these days, you know, it's, it's 1, 000, 2, 000 just to get in the door. Okay. and once you factor in your travel, once you factor in your hotel accommodations, once you factor [00:20:00] in any food that you have to do, , you know, to attend something for just a couple of days is several thousand dollars.
And so what I've tried to do is to create something that is, an investment, because if I say, okay, it's a hundred dollars for a person to attend, you're not invested. Right. If I go, I go, if I don't, I don't. So there does need to be some skin in the game on the part of the person who is attending. , and I think that's the thing too, is, is that.
You're going to be in a group with other leaders who have made this a priority. Other leaders who are choosing to invest in themselves and their school and other leaders who are interested in making you better. And so when you think about that, because how many times we go to a conference and the topic or the keynote speakers like, eh, it really wasn't, didn't really appeal to me or none of the sessions really, really spoke to me.
And so I attended this one and it was okay. But it really wasn't what I was looking for. You as a member of the group are going to lead and guide the discussions. And so, [00:21:00] you know, I, I charge in that area so that there's enough of an investment on the school's part to make sure that, that it's important to them, but also so that it's affordable so that schools can, , attend.
And what I tend to do is if, if, you know, a school, says, Hey, we want to have three people join a different site. Okay. Then let's look at what kind of, we can work with you to. Make sure that the, the cost is, is affordable and, and, and schools are even able to use title two money for this, to, because it is professional development.
So, I think that's something that's really important so that there is a cost that goes with it because, you know, obviously I'm, I'm running a business, but I also want to make sure that it's something that's accessible to schools and something that they can afford to be in and not something that when they look at they go, I can't afford that.
I'm out on that. So. I think it's, I think it's a fair number. I really did a lot of research on that to see where that sweet spot was that would make schools able and affordable to attend. And, and so that [00:22:00] it's something that all schools could attend, , no matter how big or small you are.
If, if it's something you want to be part of, it gives you the opportunity to come together. And when you look at it, the, the opportunity to come together, you know, I've, I've talked a lot about the principal masterminds. You know, think about it. If you're a, excuse me, if you're a development director or an advancement director at your school, the opportunity to come together with other advancement or development directors from across the country twice a month.
to talk about what your fundraising efforts are doing. Hey, I'm doing an annual fund and, this is a part right now where I'm kind of hitting a little roadblock or hey, I'm trying to, get in touch with more of my alumni, but I'm having a hard time. How are you, how did you do that? Hey, I'm, I'm having this special event and, and we're, we're a little slow in this area.
Anybody, have you, have you had this problem? It's an opportunity to come together in real time with what it is that you're working on to talk with other leaders in that same field, in that same profession, to get their ideas. And it's that ongoing collaboration. [00:23:00] So, beyond just principals, we have, the development directors , that come together.
And that's a mastermind we're just starting up.
You know, in the fall, we'll start one for our recruitment and marketing. to learn new strategies of what are you doing to attract students to your school to boost your enrollment. That's an area that a lot of schools are struggling with right now, is to get that enrollment up.
You know, for our, for our people that want to be administrators or, or who are assistant principals right now, excuse me, who want to step into that Principal role. Eventually, this gives you that opportunity to kind of build that network now so that when you do get into the principal's chair, you've been discussing with others real responsibilities because that tends to happen with assistant principals.
You know, we get the things that The principal didn't really feel like dealing with today and then when they step into the role, there's that, whoa, that splash of cold water because nobody prepared you to do a budget. Nobody told you about the importance of the development role in [00:24:00] your school.
Nobody told you about how much, the marketing piece of things plays in or what their role is on tours or whatever the case might be. There's a lot of really is that the thing I always use to describe is we, we move from manager to leader. The manager at a McDonald's doesn't set the hamburger prices.
They don't choose the Happy Meal toys. They don't choose, how big, how many chicken McNuggets you get in your, in your meal. The leader is the one setting forth that vision. And so we really help our aspiring principals move from managers to leaders, to help them get ready , to lead that school forward over the coming years.
One of the other things that I'm going to be starting in the fall is we all know that there's a lot of new openings for principals all across the country. It's a job that a lot of new people are coming in and maybe it's your first time in the principal role. You're moving from the classroom.
Maybe you're moving from public school. to the Catholic school for the first time. And so one of the other nice mastermind groups that I'm going to be [00:25:00] starting in the fall is for those first time Catholic school principals. Because as you know, there's a lot of difference between a public school and a Catholic school principal.
So even those administrators who have 20 years experience in a public school, moving to the Catholic school. It's a , different circumstance that you're walking into. And sometimes those things can catch people by surprise. So having that support group for our new administrators who are new to Catholic schools, , for the first time, that's going to be another group that we're going to be starting in the fall as well.
So if that's something people are interested in, if that's the job that you're walking into, feel free to reach out to us because love to have you be part of that. And I think one of the other things too, that I want to point out is All of our groups, are the sizes of them. It's six to 10. That's the ideal sweet spot for these groups.
So it's not a group of 25 people where it's more of a lecture. It is six to 10 people so that you're coming together. You have that opportunity to share with other people. You're going to get the, the opportunity , to connect. Connected to collaborate and share [00:26:00] and participate in the discussions. As opposed to going, I really wanted to say that, but I didn't get the chance to.
, so the group sizes are, six to 10 is the ideal sweet spot for them. I won't go any higher than that. If we hit that number, then , we, we split it into two so that it benefits everybody. Well, how can people sign up if they're interested in joining one? And do you have any that will be going on over the summer? , my website is www.elementaryadvancement.com. , and that is a great way to see everything , that I'm doing as a, a company. And there is a link on there for the mastermind groups.
I am on LinkedIn, , as you and I know, we, connected on LinkedIn with each other and so. I know my last name might be tricky to spell, but if you look at the title, it'll, it'll be in there, but if you search for me on LinkedIn, , as at Elementary Advancement Solutions, that's a great way to, to connect with me and send me a message on there.
But if you go to the website, there's a link on there, there's a calendar for you to schedule a time with me to learn more about it. To make sure that it [00:27:00] fits what your needs are, that it fits what questions you might have. , and, it's great because we have people in our masterminds, from the United States, from Canada, and from Australia.
And so we're able to make that time work for everybody. To make sure it's something that everybody can be part of and, and everybody can join and grow in. So, love to sit and talk with you, to answer any questions you might have, to make sure that. What it is, is what you're looking for as well as to make sure that, you know, we answer any questions for you.
And we'll also make sure to put links in the show notes as well. So you can check the show notes for more information if you're interested in joining, but John, it was great talking to you today and. Again, if you want to reach out to him about a mastermind, feel free to do that.
And I hope that, everybody got something from the podcast, even if you're not a Catholic school leader, just the importance of doing the PD of getting some sort of coaching and mastermind and making sure that you are taking the time for yourself to continue growing so that [00:28:00] you're able to be the best version of you for those that you serve.
So Thanks again, John, for being here. And I hope everyone enjoyed this episode of the Principal's Handbook. Barb, thanks so much for your time. It was great to be here with you.
Music