A Note from the Director
Five months ago I got a new job. No longer am I "just" a study abroad advisor, I am now a Director. After seven years of experience in international education it wasn't really a question of whether I could do it (though I still doubt myself occasionally). I figured I would be able to work it out, but I am truly surprised at the constancy of having to think at a strategic level. More often that not, I find myself staring into space, wrinkle-brow in full crease, considering the many options of my potential actions. And non-actions. It's exhausting. Just check out this clip and I think you'll understand what I mean.
Being a director doesn't mean I get to "direct" a lot. If anything, I would prefer not to direct at all. I would much rather have a staff that takes our goals and goes to town without much nudging. But by far, the most challenging part of working at this level are the nuances of faculty/staff and inter-faculty politics, and charting the treacherous waters of, shall we call it, territorialism. And no amount of directing would be appreciated by these players.
This is a useless post. I have no answers for how to play this game. I just had this insight today, and I think I need to remind myself of it in times of waiting. I'm a puppet-master without strings and puppets. All I can control, to some degree, is the environment in which the game gets played. Website changes, events, publications...the advising model, study abroad philosophy, marketing strategy. And then hopefully, with success, the players will come over to our side. Since we already have the sides established and all...
I am grateful for this job, and for the opportunities it presents. And I am grateful for my phenomenal new employee. It's a fun little adventure we're on...even though we're really not in control of much of anything.
Being a director doesn't mean I get to "direct" a lot. If anything, I would prefer not to direct at all. I would much rather have a staff that takes our goals and goes to town without much nudging. But by far, the most challenging part of working at this level are the nuances of faculty/staff and inter-faculty politics, and charting the treacherous waters of, shall we call it, territorialism. And no amount of directing would be appreciated by these players.
This is a useless post. I have no answers for how to play this game. I just had this insight today, and I think I need to remind myself of it in times of waiting. I'm a puppet-master without strings and puppets. All I can control, to some degree, is the environment in which the game gets played. Website changes, events, publications...the advising model, study abroad philosophy, marketing strategy. And then hopefully, with success, the players will come over to our side. Since we already have the sides established and all...
I am grateful for this job, and for the opportunities it presents. And I am grateful for my phenomenal new employee. It's a fun little adventure we're on...even though we're really not in control of much of anything.
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