Lessons from Shakespeare
One of the best training days I ever received about the importance of a supportive work culture
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A few weeks ago I was talking with a friend who is searching for a new job. Having been quietly unhappy for some time, she explained that a lot of her frustrations stemmed from some of the organisational decisions that were shared from management. They flipped-flopped, or didn’t make any sort of decision, which would leave her, and everyone else working there on the back foot, and often picking up the mess. In short, she described feeling disenchanted with the management team, but also felt that the wider workplace culture was unhealthy.
When we met, she had taken a few informal interviews with different companies, but one conversation stood out. In this, a female leader said to her: ‘I only want to appoint kind and supportive people going forward.’ (And to be clear - my friend is both of these things!).
The conversation with my friend led me to think more about leadership and workplace culture, and how integral they can be for our wellbeing. Then I was reminded me of some training that I attended a few years ago that was all about this area.
Seven years ago I participated in a workshop that led me to have an experience that I can only describe as existential. A dramatic statement I know, but it was the most useful training I ever had while working in education1, and it also helped to kick-start a conversation I needed to have with myself about my career.
The training was presented as a leadership course, and it was aimed at the ‘average classroom teacher’ - in other words, it wasn’t pitched at staff within the higher echelons of management. Teachers are leaders of a sort in their classroom and the organiser wanted us to reflect on our own leadership skills, and to see how we could link some of the work by Shakespeare to our roles.
I was skeptical at first and naively, and I thought, what could Shakespeare possibly teach us about how to improve our leadership skills in the classroom? At the time, my only other experience of reading much of Shakespeare’s work had been for my GCSE English Literature exam, when Macbeth was one of the set texts. And we all probably know what happened to him in the end…
Well, it turned out (surprise, surprise) that Shakespeare and the man running the workshop could teach us, or me quite a lot.
Learning about Henry V
At the beginning of the day and for the uninitiated, like myself, who didn’t know a huge amount about the story of Henry V, the organiser shared a synopsis, and gave some of the staff extracts to read. One of the most notable parts of the play was also highlighted in the St. Crispin’s Day speech, where Henry motivates his soldiers on the morning of the Battle of Agincourt. The rousing speech along with Henry’s evident clear direction of goals is believed to have helped the English defeat the French despite being vastly outnumbered. But the purpose of the training wasn’t to provide a history lesson, although that was an added bonus, rather it was to illustrate how some of the themes Shakespeare used in his depiction of the story of Henry V could be utilised inside and outside the classroom, and in particular, the importance of how effective leaders can inspire the troops2.
Application
Much like with any type of training day, we were give tasks to complete at various points. At first, most of these involved discussions in small groups about the play itself and to a degree, analysing the text (evoking memories of those GCSE days…). Then, the organiser wanted us to put the play into context for us in our roles now. He described how the English troops in the play were like the students we taught. And a key message that was emphasised throughout was that despite what the government, the media and some members of school management might say, the kids were not the most important part of a school. It was the teachers. Always. If the teachers were largely happy, confident and felt supported in their roles, then this would translate into their job of actually teaching, hopefully leading to happy, confident students who felt supported in their learning.
Beyond this, the organiser stressed the importance of a supportive work culture that must begin at the top. At one point he illustrated this using Henry V’s St Crispin’s Day speech, which he read in its entirety without prompts/a script. Unfortunately, I couldn’t describe the school I was working in at the time as having a terribly supportive culture. There were shades of it for sure, and I certainly don’t want to give the impression that all of the school management were unsupportive, but I learnt quickly that to speak up about something was akin to branding yourself on the forehead. And those who stood out generally didn’t last very long.
This was what I always found a bit disconcerting about some of the schools I worked during my teaching career, and now that I have left a permanent, full-time role, it is something that I have been able to reflect on more. As educators, we want to foster a supportive environment in the classroom, and encourage our students in the hope that they will be inspired to think about the content they learn and ask questions. But, it felt odd that when I was working as a teacher, the same levels of support did not always seem to apply. (And speaking to friends who work in a whole range of different areas, negative workplace cultures are certainly not isolated to those working in education).
I am not sure where one would start in attempting to ‘fix’ a negative workplace culture, and that’s assuming that there is some momentum for it to be fixed in the first place. Different organisations act like mini-ecosystems, and have so many moving parts, including plenty of external factors related to various stakeholders. But I do believe that the culture of a workplace, and how this is felt across an organisation begins at the very top.
Some Reflections
I look back at the session with fondness and in awe for the way in which the organiser managed to pull a range of threads together related to Shakespeare’s work - how to be an effective leader, and how to develop a supportive workplace culture in an organisation. And, it was just a fantastic masterclass of his acting ability! The workshop also led me to question a whole heap of things related to my career, what I wanted to do and achieve, and where I wanted to be.
In the end, I made the choice to leave the school one year after attending the Shakespearian workshop. It felt like little had changed in the way of the workplace culture, and if anything, my experiences in the training shifted my perspective to such a degree that I knew that I couldn’t stay!
Finally, the workshop helped me recognise that a healthy workplace culture is paramount when it comes to being supported and having the ability to ask for help. This is something that I have been giving a lot more thought to as I explore new career paths while I take a sabbatical. And I guess that I partly have Henry V to thank for providing some perspective on this.
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Thank you for taking the time to read it,
Sarah xx
And on a slightly different but related note, the month of November marked the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s first folio publication. Well done Shakespeare!
It was a low bar and that’s in 16 years!
However, what is overlooked in the play is that following the battle at Agincourt, Henry V then ordered the execution of the prisoners… Not particularly inspirational behaviour.
How funny that it was the training that led to you leaving the job!
They really shot themselves in the foot. 😂
It's good to hear that you've experienced a memorable training session in your time as a teacher. Reading this, I can only really remember the truly terrible ones. There was one in particular where we had to throw balls of paper across the room and the trainer was suggesting this as a technique to be used in the classroom (I can't fully remember the context). Suffice to say, I never did.
I hope your friend got the job with the leader who only wanted to appoint kind and supportive people. That sounds like an excellent basis for a positive work environment!