Private School Administrators Network

Musings of a school manager (Thursday):

Every time you allow people to do as they please with you and your time, you give away a portion of your success to them.

Stop allowing people to waste your time and your resources!

Set boundaries and gently but firmly insist on your boundaries. "There is time for everything on the face of the earth....."

Friends and family who regularly come to visit you in your office or place of work are time wasters!!
Your office is not a place for endless jist or talks. They can be done on the phone, during lunch or at home.

You should stop allowing vendors into your office to display their wares or goods too. If they have a car, quickly pick what you need from their car at the car park and discharge the person to move on with their sales.
It is not professional to have bags of crayfish, dry fish and other food items littered on the floor and table in your office. Even after the sale is done, the after-smell remains.😕

There is so much to do in a school as the manager or supervisor.
*All visitors to the office should not exceed a certain amount of time unless they are August visitors.
* For parents on enquiry, 3 - 5 minutes should cover your pleasantries and sales pitch with them! Unless they have a lot of questions which weren't covered in your pitch, hand over all necessary documents and quickly get them to love your brand.
*Fix a time of the day when you make your calls, reply to letters, emails, chats, and inbox messages.
*Work with a plan and daily goals. Tick as you achieve each goal. Be conscious of your time!
*Move from class to class for supervision and monitoring.
*Check topics treated for the week, notes copied, workbooks used and if they are graded.
*Look out for errors in notes copied and correct wrong handwriting.
*Check if the class is clean and table surfaces wiped especially for Nursery and Preschool classes.
*Check their toilets, potties and water sinks or wash-hand basins. Are they clean?
*Assess and ask questions on the progress made by SEN pupils. Think of other methods to use if the current one isn't working for that particular child. Seek help from specialists and certified SEN teachers too.
*As you supervise, spend some time with each teacher to see how they manage their classes. Share best practices after each lesson with your teacher.
*Look out for any object that could cause harm in each class and fix it immediately.
*Check to make sure that every child is on task and that they are all active in class.
*Visit all official documents that should be kept by the class teachers plus the registers. Are the records up to date?
*Ensure that the classroom climate is friendly and welcoming for each child. No discrimination or neglect should be going on in the classroom.
*Say 'NO' to bullying of any form whether verbal, emotional, social, online or physical. Every child must feel safe in the school space.

There is so much to do as a school manager or supervisor.
So stop sitting at that table. Move around daily.
Even if you have CCTV cameras in classes, one visit daily would be refreshing for everyone. Find out errors before parents do. This is very important.👌

Why do you come into your office and sit there till closure? Move around. The exercise is good for you.😁

Thorough supervision is important if you wish to build an effective school system and a great school culture.
You can't get tired of it.

If you have head teachers and principals running your school, 'who is guarding the guards' then? And do you get daily feedback?

Opening a school is one thing, running a successful school is another.

Get involved daily. You must know what's happening in your business. Do not leave this to chance!

Dear school manager, manage well.
The lives and future of these lovely children in your care depend on this.❤
God bless you with grace and wisdom as you do.🙏

For the love of Education,
Melissa Chukwuma.❤❤

👇Join us for a quantum leap Rwanda!
08033130456 (WhatsApp chats only).

Dear School Owner,
Come close because I want to share something with you.

You see those monies parents pay into your account as school fees, it is not your own!

Say what???

Yes, it's not your own!!

Did I hear you say, "So whose own is it?"

I will tell you if you're ready to read to the end and promise to do something with what I will share with you.

You see, the school fees paid into your account are monies paid for services that you're supposed to render to your students and their parents (your customers).

The school fees paid are for the following plus more:
*Purchase of study materials for students and teaching materials for teachers.
*Rent and maintenance. Even if you're in your building, you ought to pay rent to yourself.
*Payment of extracurricular services and items for it.
*Payment of salaries. I have said it severally, if you own a school, pay yourself. Choose what is ideal for you based on your revenue and receive that salary every month. Then ensure you keep to your salary. Stop dipping hands into the school account for personal needs.
*Government bills, taxes and revenues. These should be paid promptly.
*Utilities and general business running costs.

So you see, if you're in the habit of rejoicing beginning of the term because you feel that money is coming😃or so that you can buy whatever you need or go shopping, STOP IT!!😕

Some school owners start spending school fees before these fees begin to drop into the account.😢

You need to stop buying things just because there is money in your school account and delete all those online shopping sites if you can't resist the urge to shop.🎯

Do you want to tell yourself the hard truth or not?

If you want to, then know from today that:
*It's not every new phone upgrade that comes out that you must buy.
*It's not everything you don't have that you must purchase. Buy only what you need and the things you can't do without.
*It is not every party that demands 'asoebi' that you must attend.
*You don't have to buy another brand-new car if the one you have is fully functional.
*You should stop people or friends who bring stuff to your office for sales. Your school is not a sales ground!
*You do not run any charity work with students' school fees. If you must do charity, use your salary for it and if you use it up, you know that you have to wait till the end of the next month to get another money.😌
*Do not lend anyone money from school fees paid. Lend people money from your salary unless you put aside certain money for such purpose every term.
*School fees are not there for you to travel abroad unless you have taken care of all school needs and set aside staff salaries for the whole term. You can only decide to travel using your profit.
*Every term, you should keep a certain percentage of your profit as savings. From your savings, you can begin to think of other types of investments. Invest in things that will make you money even while you sleep and in other business ideas.
*Find reasonable suppliers and if you can, outsource any area of school service which doesn't necessarily need your presence.
*Stop borrowing money from Microfinance banks. Their interests are cut-throat!!
*Spend only when necessary. You're in business to make a profit. So, cut down on the costs of running your business.
*Get involved in the management of your school business. You don't need to be there physically though especially if you have competent hands, but you should know what is going on in your business and receive feedback from management staff. If your business is young, you may not be able to stay away from it.
*Take care of yourself, and your health. Find time for your family.❤

When we consult for school owners, I usually notice some key areas neglected and some gaps in their school business. You need to lead with a plan and great strategies.

So, I ask again, what is stopping you from achieving your desired growth or level of success?

Tell yourself the truth today. Write them down, go to work on each and get help from Consultants or Coaches if you need it.👌

For the love of the Education Sector,❤
Melissa. Chukwuma. 27.08.23.

SEVEN INDICATORS THAT YOU WILL BECOME SUCCESSFUL OR RICH AS AN EDUCATOR:

*You love your work and you are passionate about children and how they learn.
*You are a good role model and mentor to your students and other teachers. You understand the ethics of this profession.
*You are a good manager of time, resources and relationships.
*You are always learning, attending trainings, reading up stuff about your career online and quite teachable.
*You understand what investment means. You save money monthly and invest into yourself plus your side hustles (if any).
*You find mentors in experienced Teachers who are achievers, in excellent school managers and successful school owners. You follow these people and develop a relationship with a few to grow capacity and understand teaching, trends and school business.
*You understand the importance of effective planning for your lessons, activities, goals and for your life. You set goals for the next 5 to 10 years of your life and you go to great work to achieve them.

Dear teacher/educator, there are so many leadership and money making opportunities in the field of education. But you can only achieve these when you've grown the capacity and achieved soft skills.

Stop looking at people who are unwilling to grow and who maintain the status quo as teachers - those who are unwilling to improve on themselves.
Look up to fellow educators who are succeeding and are successful. Find out how they made it and why they are successful. Ask questions, read everyday and learn from the best.

People have this negative notion that teaching means 'poverty and lack'.🙁 This isn't true in the 21st century.❌

Opportunities abound in the educational field and I hope to find time one day to share about these opportunities.

If you are a poor teacher today, you have yourself to blame!!

Melissa Chukwuma. 07.04.2023.