I once heard or read an idea from Léo Fraiman in which he said that “our profession is almost like our last name”—and isn’t that exactly right! What we do is like a second skin; it’s what gives us a professional identity, and it’s often blurred with our personal identity. Have you ever thought about that?

In an ever-changing world where self-management, interpersonal skills, an entrepreneurial spirit, and lifelong learning are essential qualities, social-emotional skills are what truly set us apart.

Faced with so many challenges and the need for us, as managers, to ensure that we serve as positive role models in interpersonal relationships, it is essential that we learn to practice self-care so that we can manage our teams efficiently and assertively. I would even go so far as to say that we need to empower managers beyond the role they hold, but rather empower them in their personal and professional identities.

And how can we do that at the start of the second semester, a time that demands so much of us?

We need to help managers become more self-aware so they can develop a new perspective on themselves, reevaluating their intrinsic and extrinsic motivations and their true purposes. They must also value their ongoing professional development, since our work is often very solitary and we need to continually recharge ourselves; After all, to paraphrase Gilberto Gil, “no one can give what they don’t have.” It is also urgent that we remain attentive to the development of their social-emotional skills and a collective institutional consciousness.

When considering the importance of developing a new perspective on oneself, managers should remain mindful of how they view the world and various situations—whether with optimism or pessimism—how they recognize their strengths and weaknesses through a process of self-awareness, and how they approach hard skills (academic and specialized knowledge, technological proficiency, broadening one’s worldview —culture) and soft skills (social-emotional competencies, interpersonal relationships, time management). 

See also:

Healthy Relationships: How to Combat Violence in Schools

The Challenge of Schoolwork in Restoring Learning

How Neuroscience Can Contribute to Education Today

In this context as well, it is essential to reflect on how to approach life and the reality of the workplace. Ideally, one should approach daily life with optimism, demonstrating persistence, energy, and flexibility, and seeking to highlight the quality of employees’ work—but always with transparency and honesty.

From this optimistic perspective, management views mistakes as occasional and resulting from a specific factor, while also fostering trust among its employees through constructive feedback. It is therefore essential to move away from pessimism, where everything is viewed as a problem rather than as a challenge for personal and organizational growth. This fosters self-confidence and team trust. Still on this first point, intrinsic motivation is a key ally, as it mobilizes the personal desire to move forward, grow, and develop along a path charted based on one’s own goals.

The second factor that helps drive investment in oneself is the manager’s ongoing professional development. The manager should view learning as a value and not merely as a duty. With this perspective in mind, the manager should:

• Set short-term goals for your ongoing professional development —what I need to improve and how I’ll go about it. You should view challenges as a source of motivation to analyze causes and revise strategies;
• Don't let fear paralyze you; move forward with confidence in your preparation and take advantage of various opportunities to blaze new trails together with your team;
• Commit to personal and institutional goals, take on responsibilities, stay true to plans and objectives, and monitor day-to-day work so you feel confident making the necessary notes;
• Put individual talents to work for the team, recognize oneself as a complementary part of the process, and view success as dependent on building collective awareness.

Regarding the third aspect, which concerns the development of social-emotional skills, you must recognize that we grow in this area through interaction, reflection, and sharing. This is how we develop empathy, resilience, and respect. You should continually reflect on your strengths and limitations and seek ways to overcome your challenges so that you can move toward personal well-being and institutional success.

It’s also important for managers to reflect on their moments of stress: are they occasional or chronic? We all go through phases when we’re under greater pressure, but when excessive demands become constant, we need to sound the alarm to prevent physical and emotional fatigue from turning into burnout. So, make time for self-care (reflection, leisure, sleep, and exercise).

When it comes to developing a collective institutional consciousness, it is essential to align the entire team with the institutional purpose and make it clear to everyone, thereby ensuring that management and staff are working in unison toward achieving the objectives. This greatly helps reduce stress for both management and staff.

In this way, we ensure that our actions are best aligned with the development of the PPP and help build a team that functions as a support network. Shared goals, clear and objective communication, and respectful monitoring with constructive feedback create healthier work environments where everyone grows both personally and professionally.

And you, as a manager, are you ready for this new phase? Have you taken the time to assess your work profile and your mental health? 

About the author:

Share on social media: