Learner. Human. Joyologist.
I'm sharing this because we need to normalize fear. We are human beings. Of course we are scared. Sometimes even terrified. But if we don't push through discomfort, if we don't learn to talk to ourselves in ways we would talk to someone we love, we won't have what it takes to solve the world's really complex and daunting problems. Our future and the future of this world quite literally depends on our response to discomfort.
Imagine if an entire staff committed their 4.5 minutes a day or 30 seconds each bell to an impactful instructional move and did so every day for an extended period of time. Even when we didn't feel like it. This kind of radical commitment and consistency on something that requires little time and effort on our parts can lead to incredible growth.
When we nurture the conditions needed for people to show up as their best and biggest selves, we make it possible for people to do their best work.
n travel situations, there are a lot of variables, a lot of necessary safety precautions, and a lot of people. This is also true in schools. But it's the people who manage to keep safety and order while also ensuring the experience is enjoyable that make us want to come back.
No judgement here. Only love. Your feelings are your feelings. But I want you to know that you deserve to feel better. You deserve to find your work meaningful, manageable, and even fun. Our students are relying on us to bring green flag energy to school. We deserve it and our students deserve it too.
On the other side of these piles of shoes is a beautiful, more calm life filled with sunrises and present moments and self-compassion.
In our effort to innovate and lead and make our marks, let's make sure we don't miss the opportunity to learn from those unexpected little happy accidents and instead of hiding them or running from them, embrace them and allow ourselves and others to be transformed by them.
So, I'm simply asking us what it would look like to spend a little less time focused on what we are doing and what other people are doing and more time genuinely interested in being. Being together. Being present with others. Being interested in people and their stories and their childhoods. Being interested in our stories and childhoods too.
If you want to inspire meaningful learning for students, inspire meaningful learning for staff. Sincere classroom learning begins with a sincere and consistent effort to trust and inspire the educators who work hard every day to make a meaningful impact on students. When we take good care of adults and their learning in schools, it allows them to take great care of kids and their learning. - Legacy of Learning
In his book, Better Days, Neil Allen describes what he playfully calls our parasite or superego. You know, that voice that tells you things are not enough, not good enough, and therefore you are not enough and not good enough so why bother trying? He explains how essential it is that we view that voice as separate from ourselves, so we can become critical consumers of the messages we receive. One strategy for doing so is to give your superego a name. I was talking to my friends Kelly Croy and Joe Miller the other day on The Wired Educator podcast, and I asked them what they would name their superegos. Kelly playfully remarked that he didn't know but it would be a bad name, haha. I love that! Anne Lamott calls her parasite, "The Governess."
MEGHAN LAWSON 