1. Quality Leadership in Changing Times
Expectations, Opportunities and Outcomes
Cheryl Priest, Ed.D. Central Michigan University
cell
In these complex and evolving times, it’s become more important than ever for early childhood programs to model high-quality services, impact and outcomes. Working in this environment requires all Head Start leaders to operate with strength, compassion and astuteness.  Cheryl Priest, CMU’s Associate Professor of Early Childhood Development and Learning, addresses the leadership skills, habits, and dispositions needed by HeadStart directors today with a keynote address that promises to inspire and challenge. Besides working as an educator with CMU’s Department of Human Environmental Studies, Priest’s professional focus areas include Leadership and Positive Psychology.

2. Thank You!!! YOU: Offer Encouragement and Opportunity
Speak Up for What is Right
Care for Others

3. Whole Leadership Leadership Essentials Administrative Leadership
Reflective Practice
Communication
Relationship Building
Administrative Leadership
Maximizing Team Capacity
Service Outside of Organization
Pedagogical Leadership
Complexity of Teaching and Learning in EC Settings

4. Having the Right Conversation
Look for people’s strengths
Develop people’s strengths
Give strengths-based feedback
Photo links to character/strengths survey
1. Look for people’s strengths
Look for the moments when people are more engaged, energized and enjoying what they’re talking about or doing. Often their bodies will start to lean into the conversation, body language may become more animated and the tone of voice and pace of speech tend to be uplifted. Can you see their curiosity, creativity, humor, honesty or perseverance in action? If you’re not sure, ask your people to complete the free, 10-minute strengths survey at viacharacter.org and have a discussion about the results.
2. Develop people’s strengths:
Give employees the opportunity to develop their strengths as they go about their job each day. Help them to use their strengths intelligently by showing them where they might be underplaying, overplaying or getting their strengths just right. Being strengths-focused doesn’t mean you have to ignore weaknesses or poor performance. What it does mean is that you have other tools, like looking for ways to dial an existing strength up or down to make performances a little easier and more effective and enjoyable.
3. Give strengths-based feedback:
We all share a deep psychological need to be respected, valued and appreciated. So instead of just saying “Thanks,” and leaving someone wondering what they did right, try to tell them which strengths you saw them using and why you valued what they did so they feel confident to replicate the behavior again. For example, “Thanks for your curiosity (one of the 24 character strengths) in that meeting; the questions you asked helped us to have a more robust conversation.”

5. Psychological Language on Twitter Predicts County-level Heart Disease Mortality
Click on Title to show resource.

6. Getting Stuck in the Negative
Click on link to show TedTalk video.
Medical procedure

7. Think Differently
Recap governor of state introducing new job program

8. Think Differently

9. We Have to Work Harder to Think Positively
How’s It Going?

10. We Spend 1/3 of Our Life at Work!
Happiness at Work
We Spend 1/3 of Our Life at Work!
Click on title to link to Work section of Live Happy.

11. Having the Right Conversation
Look for people’s strengths
Develop people’s strengths
Give strengths-based feedback
Photo links to character/strengths survey
1. Look for people’s strengths
Look for the moments when people are more engaged, energized and enjoying what they’re talking about or doing. Often their bodies will start to lean into the conversation, body language may become more animated and the tone of voice and pace of speech tend to be uplifted. Can you see their curiosity, creativity, humor, honesty or perseverance in action? If you’re not sure, ask your people to complete the free, 10-minute strengths survey at viacharacter.org and have a discussion about the results.
2. Develop people’s strengths:
Give employees the opportunity to develop their strengths as they go about their job each day. Help them to use their strengths intelligently by showing them where they might be underplaying, overplaying or getting their strengths just right. Being strengths-focused doesn’t mean you have to ignore weaknesses or poor performance. What it does mean is that you have other tools, like looking for ways to dial an existing strength up or down to make performances a little easier and more effective and enjoyable.
3. Give strengths-based feedback:
We all share a deep psychological need to be respected, valued and appreciated. So instead of just saying “Thanks,” and leaving someone wondering what they did right, try to tell them which strengths you saw them using and why you valued what they did so they feel confident to replicate the behavior again. For example, “Thanks for your curiosity (one of the 24 character strengths) in that meeting; the questions you asked helped us to have a more robust conversation.”

12. This is Me!! So let’s get back to that positive!
My results page is hyperlinked to the results image.

13. All Children Belong Here
Do your colleagues and staff feel that you believe this about them as well?

14. Making others happier is the primary way we can create and sustain real meaning and happiness for ourselves
A positive brain can increase your energy by 31%, triple your creativity, significantly boost your intelligence, and improve your health!

15. Cut complaining and gossip Feed staff/colleagues positive messages
Feed families positive messages
Encourage YOURSELF
Affirmation Statements
Go over different “Ways to Spark Joy at Work”. Have the small groups go through the list (maybe next slide) and select one that they are going to commit to for the Month of April!!

16. The Pursuit of Happiness
“It’s not something you pursue,
it’s something you do!”
Click Title to link to “It’s a Beautiful Life” video. Talk about that experience.

17. Yes, we WELCOME transfer students!!
Online Major, ZS Endorsement or Full Degree Questions:
Hyperlink in picture
Yes, we WELCOME transfer students!!