- Hillary Muhalya examines everyday leadership habits that can gradually erode teachers’ confidence and trust in school principals.
- Inconsistency, favouritism, humiliation, micromanagement and poor communication may produce compliance while quietly undermining genuine professional commitment.
- Effective school leadership, he argues, depends on fairness, listening, accountability and consistently modelling the standards expected from teachers.
A principal can have the office, the title and the authority to make decisions, yet slowly lose the most important thing in school leadership: the willingness of teachers to genuinely follow.
It rarely happens through one dramatic incident. More often, authority erodes quietly, through everyday leadership habits that may initially appear harmless. Inconsistent decisions, favouritism, poor communication, public humiliation, micromanagement and failure to listen can gradually turn trust into frustration and cooperation into mere compliance.
The first warning sign may not be open rebellion. It may simply be teachers becoming quieter, less enthusiastic and less willing to engage.
One of the biggest mistakes a principal can make is saying one thing and doing another. Teachers watch leadership closely. If punctuality is demanded from staff while meetings regularly start late, or professional conduct is expected from teachers while leadership ignores its own standards, the message loses credibility.
A principal’s behaviour becomes one of the most powerful leadership policies in the school. People are more likely to respect standards that their leaders demonstrate consistently.
Another quiet authority killer is favouritism. When teachers believe that some colleagues can arrive late, ignore procedures or receive preferential treatment without consequences while others are disciplined for minor issues, confidence in the system begins to disappear.
A principal does not have to treat every situation identically, because circumstances differ. But decisions should be fair, consistent and capable of being explained. Once teachers believe that the rules apply differently to different people, respect for the system can quickly weaken.
Constantly changing decisions can also damage leadership credibility. A principal does not have to be right every time, but teachers need reasonable predictability.
When an instruction given on Monday is reversed on Wednesday and replaced again on Friday, staff may eventually stop taking directives seriously because they expect another change.
Circumstances sometimes require leaders to revise decisions, but when that happens, explaining the reason is crucial. Good leadership allows flexibility without creating confusion.
Correct without humiliating
Publicly humiliating teachers is another dangerous mistake. Correction should improve performance rather than destroy dignity.
A teacher may comply after being embarrassed in front of colleagues, but public humiliation can create resentment that lasts much longer than the immediate compliance.
Difficult matters are generally better handled privately, professionally and with clear expectations, while good performance can be recognised publicly. A strong leader knows that correcting someone does not require diminishing them.
Failure to listen can be equally damaging.
Listening does not mean agreeing with everything teachers say. A principal can hear a concern, acknowledge it and still make a different decision.
Sometimes simply telling a teacher, “I understand your concern. I may not agree with your solution, but I want to understand the problem,” can transform a difficult conversation.
Teachers may not expect every request to be approved, but they want to know that their concerns have been genuinely heard.
Micromanagement can also quietly weaken a principal’s authority.
When every small decision must pass through the principal, teachers can lose confidence in their own professional judgement.
Leadership is not about personally controlling every worksheet, lesson detail or minor administrative task. It is about establishing clear expectations, systems, accountability and review mechanisms.
A principal’s job is not to do everyone’s work, but to create an environment in which people can do their work effectively and responsibly.
Recognise good work
There is also a danger in becoming a leader who notices mistakes but rarely notices good work.
If teachers hear from the principal only when something has gone wrong, they may gradually associate leadership with criticism.
Recognition does not mean lowering standards or overlooking weaknesses. A simple word of appreciation, acknowledgement of improvement or public recognition of good performance can strengthen morale.
People need accountability, but they also need to know that their effort is seen.
Some principals also lose authority by avoiding difficult conversations. When a teacher repeatedly ignores legitimate instructions and leadership continually chooses silence, other members of staff are watching.
They may begin wondering whether accountability really exists.
Difficult conversations should not become personal confrontations. They should be factual, respectful and focused on conduct, expectations and improvement.
Avoiding a problem may create temporary peace, but unresolved problems rarely disappear on their own.
At the same time, leadership cannot be reduced to punishment and accountability. Teachers also need to know that their principal will treat them fairly when problems arise.
If a parent makes an accusation against a teacher and the principal immediately assumes the teacher is guilty without establishing the facts, the entire staff may take notice.
Supporting teachers does not mean protecting misconduct. It means ensuring that allegations are handled fairly, facts are established and genuine mistakes are addressed constructively.
A teacher who knows that a principal will demand accountability without abandoning fairness is more likely to trust that leader.
Fear is not respect
Perhaps the most dangerous mistake is confusing fear with respect.
A silent staff is not necessarily a disciplined staff. Teachers can obey instructions because they fear consequences while privately disengaging from the leadership.
Fear may produce compliance, but it does not necessarily create commitment, initiative or professional ownership.
A respected principal can enter a room and command attention without intimidation because teachers understand the authority of the office and trust the person occupying it.
This is why every principal who feels that teachers are becoming increasingly difficult may need to ask a more uncomfortable question.
Instead of simply asking, “Why are my teachers becoming difficult?” the leader can also ask, “What is my leadership behaviour teaching them?”
Am I consistent? Am I fair? Do I listen? Do I keep my word? Do I recognise good work? Do I correct people without humiliating them? Do I communicate clearly? Do I support teachers while maintaining accountability? Do my actions reinforce the standards I expect from everyone else?
The title of principal provides formal authority, but it does not automatically create trust.
Authority may come with the appointment.
Respect is earned every day.
And when teachers stop listening, the first place a principal may need to examine is not the staffroom.
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It may be the leadership mirror.
By Hillary Muhalya
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