A good start

Headnote

New leaders enjoy a "honeymoon "phase during which good will abounds, say the authors. What leaders do during this critical period sets the stage for how their relationships will evolve and how effectively they will be able to lead in years to come.

FEW PROFESSIONAL experiences can be as exhilarating as beginning a new leadership position. New people, new circumstances, and new challenges present opportunities to form new relationships, influence the lives of students and adults, and experience personal growth. But appointment to a new job does not ensure success in it. Extending the good will and benefits of the "honeymoon" period into long-term gains requires a smooth entry that lays a foundation for continued success. There are no simple strategies for accomplishing successful transitions, but we do know a great deal about how to get off to a good start.

What You See Is What You Get

Too often candidates make the mistake of "selling" themselves into positions that are a poor fit. Once the application has been completed, the initial interview has been arranged, and the competitive juices begin to flow, there is a natural tendency to focus on winning the job rather than on studying the position and considering whether pursuing it further makes sense. Thus it is important, when thinking about applying for a new position, to clarify and sharpen one's message, one's values, and one's stance as an educator and leader.

The art of interviewing involves figuring out (through research on the position and on the leadership qualities being sought) how to tell people what they want to hear. But it is not a good idea to practice this art if it requires concealing who one is and how one will behave once on the job. Of course, this is easier said than done, because the publicity attending most candidate searches makes rave reviews for job interviews as highly valued as those for new Broadway plays. Nonetheless, candidates should judge theirjob interviews by how successfully they convey who they are and what they value, not by how well they might have been received. A "bad review" could mean nothing more than that the fit between candidate and job is not good.

In this period of unprecedented change and heightened...