The Mindset Flip: How to Truly Become the Leader You Want to Be

have you ever received leadership coaching? If not, I’d highly recommend finding yourself a coach or a mentor who can help you grow towards your goals. For the past 2 years, I’ve been fortunate enough to have direct coaching from some fantastic individuals and today, I’d like to share one piece that I learned from them that has the potential to transform educational leadership: The Be, Do, Have model.

If you feel like you’re a bit stuck – like you know what you want but you just can’t seem to get there – this model may help you unlock that door. It certainly did for me.

What is the Be, Do, Have Model?

I learned the Be, Do, Have model from my coaches Jim Fortin and James Wedmore. Both focus on mindset and reaching your full potential. In the Be, Do, Have model, we’re taking our traditional focus on what we want or our goal and flipping it on its head.

Here’s what I mean. Normally, we set a goal first. And then we focus all of our energy on achieving that goal. In the Be, Do, Have Model, the goal is the “have” – it’s what we want. But look at the two other steps that have to come first: “do” and “be”.

Basically, the premise is in order to have what you want, you must first be the person who would have those things and think about what that person would do in order to achieve their outcome. You shift the focus from achieving to being.

Examples of the Be, Do, Have Model

Think about something you’d like to have, like maybe a new leadership position in your school. In this Be, Do, Have model, you’d consider who you would need to BE in order to be successful in that new leadership position. Would you need to be confident? Supportive? A good listener? A problem solver?

Once you’ve figured out the qualities a successful leader embodies, then consider what successful leaders do. Do they collaborate and model with teachers? Do they take courses or coaching to become even better? Do they embrace challenges or shy away from them?

The power of the Be, Do, Have model is that provides you with a roadmap towards becoming the person you need to be in order to have what you want.

What are some things you want? Consider:

Your profession

Personal goals or aspirations

Family and relationships

Mental and physical health

Try creating a list of what you want from each of these categories. Then, pick one to use this model with and see who you’ll need to become in order to achieve these goals.

Being Over Achieving

We live in a world – especially in education – where achievement is highly valued. This is dangerous. We are human beings, not human doings. Our value is not in what we achieve, but rather in who we are. I know for me, this has always been a struggle. If I can get the “A” and do all the things, then I am showing my worth. But that’s all backwards. The only way we can achieve our goals is by becoming the person we were meant to be. Our focus is on the wrong things.

You can have anything you want – you just have to have the courage to be that person first.