“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” —Margaret Mead

The "Leader in Me" Workshop is a whole-school transformation model and process developed in partnership with educators and aims to empower students with the leadership and life skills they need to thrive in the 21st century. It is based on principles and practices of personal, interpersonal and organizational effectiveness, and upon the powerful premise that every child possesses unique strengths and has the ability to be a leader. This programme involves an aligned framework where curriculum, teaching, learning & assessment are closely aligned.

With an aim of rethinking known concepts of leadership, an intensive hand-on training session and workshop was conducted for the teachers from April 16, 2022 till April 20, 2022 by Dr. Kannan Gireesh, established Psychiatrist, Founder & CEO of Live Life Education Private Limited, who stressed on fostering a value-based education system that transforms the lives of kids and empowers them to lead. The primary objective of the training session was to depict how introducing ‘Leader in Me’ within the school curriculum can help students learn to become self-reliant, take initiative, plan ahead, set and track goals, do their homework, prioritize their time, manage their emotions, be considerate of others, express their viewpoint persuasively, resolve conflicts, find creative solutions, value differences, and live a balanced life. This process would help students develop the skills and self-confidence they need to lead their lives and succeed in school and beyond. The training workshops were organized for teachers at SAI International for 4 days with each training session emphasizing on an imperative core value and outcome associated with the ‘Leader In Me’ Program.

On the very first day the teachers were introduced to intriguing topics such as ,how to break barriers, how to unlock the potential, how to bring in a habitual change within & how to sustain the transformation. We relooked at the roots of effectiveness; the maturity Continuum, & understood about the 7 Habits talking about Private Victory & Public Victory. These 7 habits aim at transforming an individual in the best possible way & the process to achieve that starts in the formative years of the kid. 

On the second day the session was on Habit 3,4 & 5 - Put the first things first, Think win-win & Seek first to understand & then be understood. The workshop spoke about Carrying your own weather, about the Highly effective practices and about Proactive & Reactive Language. Teachers learnt to distinguish between the Circle of concern & Circle of Influence.

The Third Day dealt with Habit 6 & 7 - To synergise & to sharpen the saw.The teachers indulged in a couple of informative activities denoting the significance of inculcating seven habits in daily school hours. To commemorate life skills and build leadership in students, they watched a fun filled video of world leaders.

On the last day there was an extensive hands-on learning on how to implement the same in the classroom teaching. The purpose of the program was to equip teachers to enable students discover & build the Leaders in them so that they can:

• Create a culture of trust and engagement
• Empower students to lead their own lives, and make a difference with others
• Provide students tools to better achieve goals
• Develop student voice
• Encourage students to be unapologetically themselves

The Framework discussed in this workshop provides a unique approach to integrating highly effective practices throughout a school’s culture. Instead of focusing on academic measures alone, Leader in Me embodies a holistic approach to education, redefining how schools measure success. This approach empowers educators with effective practices and tools to:

• teach Leadership to every student,
• create a Culture of student empowerment,
• and align systems to drive results in Academics.

Certainly, a new way to define leadership, this workshop has helped teachers and educators see leadership in a different light. Many people equate leadership with a formal position of authority. But if we see in terms of the ‘Leader In me’ program, anyone can be a leader by intentionally leading one’s own life (leading self) and working well with and encouraging the greatness in others—whether family, friends, neighbours, or colleagues (leading others).