Category: Leadership

Kids These Days

One of the best things we can do for students is to spend time being truly present with them. Enjoy them, connect with them, encourage them, grow their skills, and celebrate them. Nourish their unique gifts and talents and help them believe deeply in themselves and their ability to make a positive difference. Our students are our hope. But they need hope themselves. Hope that tomorrow can be better than today and that they will have the skills necessary to make tomorrow better than today.

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Be All There

We are allowed to work this way. We might need to do a little work to create systems that make that possible, but we are allowed to work this way. In fact, it's how we work best. Wherever we are, we are at our best when we are all there. Wishing you more moments of peace and presence during this challenging time in the school year. Keep going. We need you.

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From Checking to Connecting

The world will continue to change but one thing will remain: the need for human connection. So, while we learn about all of the amazing things our technology can do to make life more convenient or the ways it can help us tell stories, let's not forget the power of stories told around campfires. Let's not forget the power of seeing and listening to other people during in-person conversations and classroom lessons. That cannot be replaced.

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Wholeheartedness

For me, sometimes the best way to feel better is counterintuitive. To give that which I'm lacking. If I'm not feeling wholehearted in my work and not feeling the love, I give love. If I'm not feeling like I belong, I create belonging for others. For example, ensuring equity of voice in meetings, paying attention to how I respond to the contributions of others, and sitting in circles are all small moves for belonging that I talk about in the draft of my book. And finally, vulnerability. Someone has to go first. Sometimes, that someone is you. Whether it be rest or more wholeheartedness in your work, I hope you find it.

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Lessons in Leadership

Will Guidara, author of Unreasonable Hospitality, was able to turn 11 Madison Park into the #1 restaurant in the world. He did so not by making the most unique food in the world or creating the most fancy of restaurants. He did it by tapping into a human need we have that will hold true until the end of time. The need to be well-cared for. So much of excellent leadership is not revolutionary. However, in a world filled with busy and in a time of so many initiatives and high pressure, taking great care of others can feel revolutionary. In this new year, may we all reflect upon how we can do less of what doesn’t matter as much, so we can do more of what matters most. In doing so, the work gets better and so do we.

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Hype People Up

Recently, a teacher sent me a very kind text message. It didn't feel like I deserved her words of affirmation, but I cherished them and held them dear. It felt nice to have someone see something good in me, and it made me want to live up to those words the next day and every day. I guess all I'm saying is that our winters are long. The middle part of the school year can feel long and messy. But the work feels better when we feel better and a great way to feel better is to notice and acknowledge what's great around us: the people. The people make our schools special. Let's hype them up.

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What We Water Grows

There is a national shortage of educators. Now more than ever, we need to represent this profession in ways that are hope-giving. If we truly care about making our schools better places to learn, work, and grow, we must remember that every conversation, every post on social media, every moment is an opportunity to show people how amazing these jobs can be. These jobs are hard, yes, but they are deeply important. These jobs can be exhausting, yes, but they can also be really, really fun when we choose for them to be.

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Asset-Based Experiences

Finally, we spend a lot of time starting with deficits in schools. We shoot ideas down because we can think of reasons why something won't work. We focus on learning deficits in classrooms and on state assessments. We talk a lot about what we aren't seeing. Our kids need to know how to read and think critically. I'm not arguing that. However, no one is inspired by a relentless focus on their deficits. I learned from my good friend, Dr. Tim Kubik, it can be more powerful to focus instead on what assets we do indeed have. The strengths and skills and special talents that students and teachers bring into schools every day are endless. If we were to spend more energy amplifying the good instead of diagnosing the not so good, I think the energy in our schools would change.

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Taking Care of People

No gesture is too small. All gestures matter. If we all took the time to make those small gestures, our classrooms would change. Our schools would change. Our districts would change. Our communities would change. This is how we change the world. Through small caring on a daily basis. If we all do our part, the world will change.

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