Leading to Foster Creativity

I remember when the opportunity to step into a management position first came up. I wondered whether I was truly suited for the role, because my initial impression of management was that it revolved around a top-down approach which focused on command, control, and hierarchy. That made me uncomfortable, and I questioned how I could transform the role into something that felt authentic to me.

A year into my management role, I began my Master’s in Education, where I focused on an interdisciplinary approach to better understand collaborative creativity and organizational leadership. Through this, I began to view leadership differently and discovered that my natural style was more aligned with servant leadership, an approach that promotes autonomy (Khan et al., 2024, p. 833) and encourages knowledge-sharing behaviour (Trang Tuan, 2017, as cited in Khan et al., 2022, p. 848). Research also shows that servant leadership fosters positive well-being, which can, in turn, drive creativity and innovation (Song et al., 2024).

In practice, I wanted to support and encourage my team to want to do their best work, rather than simply making them do it. My focus was on nurturing intrinsic motivation rather than relying on extrinsic motivators, as a way of reducing burnout in a fast-paced environment.

This approach transformed the learning environment at the academy. Team members felt supported, trusted, and empowered to lead within their own roles. The culture encouraged innovation and we came together often to generate new ideas and discuss how we could better serve the community, both educationally and strategically.

As Song et al. (2024) further suggests, when well-being is fostered in the workplace, it strengthens psychological resources and promotes involvement, which in turn enhances creativity and builds trust.

How Servant Leadership Supports Creativity in Education

Creative environments, whether in design, art, or education, flourish when trust is present. When students and staff feel safe, they are more willing to take risks and explore new ideas. Communication becomes more open, and growth becomes visible.

As an educator, I’ve seen students pursue unique ideas and unconventional approaches when they felt supported through attentive listening, validation, and open dialogue. We built an environment where ideas were valued, even when they didn’t fit traditional expectations.

The same applied to the team. They became more willing to collaborate, innovate, and invest in developing programmes that served both students and the wider industry.

For me, leadership was never about standing in the spotlight. I could have pushed myself to take more visible credit, but it always felt more important to encourage others to step confidently into their roles and places within the community.

References

Khan, F., Arshad, M., Raoof, R., & Farooq, O. (2024). Servant leadership and employees’ performance: organization and information structure perspective. The Service Industries Journal, 44(11–12), 832–850. https://doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2022.2086976

Khan, M. M., Mubarik, M. S., Ahmed, S. S., Islam, T., & Khan, E. (2022). The contagious servant leadership: exploring the role of servant leadership in leading employees to servant colleagueship. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 43(6), 847–861. https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-06-2021-0305

Song, W., Ma, Y., Fan, X., Jin, X., & Peng, X. (2024). Servant leadership, workplace well‐being and employee creativity: The roles of psychological availability and experienced creative time pressure. Creativity and Innovation Management, 33(3), 399–413. https://doi.org/10.1111/caim.12595