Programme 378, Michael Moriarty on Leadership in Education (6-11-19)

Presented and produced by Seán Delaney

This week on the podcast I speak to Michael Moriarty, who has been leading in education and other sectors for a number of decades, as a teacher, a principal, Head of Education and Training Boards Ireland and as CEO of a local radio station. His new book, Every Leader's Reality Guide: Strategies to Release Your True Leadership Potential has been released and it distills the lessons about leading that Michael learned through mentorship, training and self-reflection on his various roles. Among the topics we discuss on the podcast are the following:

• How leadership begins with self-awareness and self-reflection.


• How leadership in education differs to other leadership roles


• The source of authority


• How he looked to leaders he admired for inspiration


• Power comes from respect rather than position


• His experience of being bullied in post-primary school and how he learned the importance of standing up for himself


• Being isolated in his professional role


• The importance of allies and alliances


• Building a media profile


• Establishing credibility as a leader and the ability to communicate


• The importance of having mentors


• How a leader shows they value people


• Reading leadership books and biographies (e.g. Boris Johnson’s book on Churchill)


• Leadership and influence


• The stance he took in a job interview for a leadership position


• Why you should hire people who are better than you


• Why leaders need to be able to say “sorry”


• Learning leadership through union politics


• How he came to head up a radio station


• His ongoing pursuit of challenges in his work

Michael mentioned a number of inspirational resources during the interview, including the following:

Senator Ted Kennedy’s 1980 Convention speech

Stephen R. Covey The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Dale Carnegie How to Win Friends and Influence People

John C Maxwell Talent is Never Enough

Search for the Hero by M People