Four archetypes remind women of ancient cultures.

Women leaders burn out when they're caught between hierarchical, patriarchal leadership images and the sugar-and-spice model for women and girls.

Imagery from older cultures around the world promotes balance and integration instead of burnout. Two speakers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Women in Educational Leadership Conference in September told about a new model of leadership drawn from the teachings of indigenous peoples.

Dr. Margaret Hatcher is a professor and Dr. Peggy Raines an associate professor at Northern Arizona University's Center for Excellence in Education in Flagstaff AZ.

They found a guide to wholeness in The Four-Fold Way: Walking the Paths of the Warrior, Teacher, Healer and Visionary by anthropologist Angeles Arrien (HarperSanFrancisco, 1993). It's based on four archetypes, the term psychologist Carl Jung used for images he believed were imprinted on the psyches of all people for all time.

Deans may identify with the Warrior, faculty with the Teacher, counselors with the Healer and presidents with the Visionary. But wholeness and balance require that we each develop all four archetypes. Otherwise the underdeveloped ones will come out in "shadow" forms that will undermine our spirit and our work.

The Warrior: archetype of personal power

Hatcher's upbringing as a Southern belle didn't provide all the skills she needed to be dean. Effective leadership needs the Warrior, the power of personal presence.