Become a Transformational Leader in Education

If you’re an educator stepping into leadership, or even considering it, you probably did not choose this path because you wanted power or status. You chose it because you care: about students, colleagues, learning, and the future of education.

You’re likely skilled at building relationships. You know how to collaborate, support others, and get things done. You think strategically, solve problems, and follow through. These are not small things; they’re the backbone of effective schools. Yet, many educators find themselves hitting a frustrating wall when they move into leadership roles.

They’re asked to lead change, but struggle to bring others with them.
They have ideas, but feel resistance instead of momentum.
They care deeply, but aren’t sure how to influence without overstepping, pushing, or burning bridges.

If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone.

The Leadership Strength Many Educators Undervalue

Research from Gallup identifies four core leadership strength domains:

• Strategic Thinking
• Relationship-Building
• Executing
• Influencing

When educators take leadership assessments like CliftonStrengths®, a consistent pattern shows up: teachers and instructional leaders tend to score very high in relationship-building, executing, and strategic thinking—and much lower in influencing.

This doesn’t mean educators lack influence. More often, it means influence hasn’t been developed, named, or practiced intentionally. In some school cultures, influencing can even feel uncomfortable—too political, too sales-like, or too far removed from the relational values that draw people to education in the first place.

But you cannot lead meaningful change without influence.

Influence Isn’t About Authority—It’s About Communication

Leadership isn’t defined by a title. It’s defined by your ability to help people move together toward something better.

Influence doesn’t come from positional power or persuasive speeches. It emerges from everyday communication. From how you talk about challenges, invite participation, and help others see what’s possible.

In schools, change doesn’t happen because a plan is announced. It happens when people:

• See themselves in the purpose.
• Feel safe to contribute their perspective.
• Believe the future is worth moving toward together.

All of that is shaped moment by moment through conversation.

Why Shared Vision Lives (or Dies) in Daily Dialogue

Most leadership frameworks emphasize the importance of shared vision. But vision statements alone don’t create alignment. What does? The conversations that make vision real.

Transformative leaders don’t just declare direction; they:

• Ask questions that invite ownership.
• Reframe challenges without minimizing reality.
• Talk about problems in ways that generate possibility rather than defensiveness.

This is especially important for educators, who already excel at connection but may hesitate to step fully into influencing roles.

The good news? You don’t need to become someone else to be an influential leader. You need new conversational tools that align with your values.

Learning to Influence Without Losing Yourself

Approaches like Conversations Worth Having offer simple communication practices that help educators strengthen their influencing capacity while staying grounded in care, equity, and collaboration.

Rather than teaching leaders how to “convince” others, CWH focuses on how to:

• Create shared purpose through dialogue.
• Shift conversations from problem-fixation to possibility.
• Invite people into change rather than push them toward it.

One powerful example is the Flipping technique, which helps leaders talk about real challenges in ways that engage others rather than shut them down. (I share this in part 2.)

A Final Thought

These insights come from years of working with educators in leadership preparation programs and are explored more fully in Becoming a Transformative Leader from the Inside Out.

If you’re an educator being called into leadership, the question isn’t whether you have what it takes. It’s whether your conversations are helping others see and step into the future you care about.

Shared by Renee Owen, EdD., author of Becoming a Transformative Leader from the Inside Out, a guidebook written for school administrators to become influential change-leaders. The book includes dozens of experiential learning activities I teach in the Principal Administrative Licensure program I lead at Southern Oregon University. The activities are designed to help emerging school leaders think differently about education leadership.