I had the honor of speaking with two different groups of professionals last week. I spoke with a room of child nutrition directors and the next day, I had the honor of speaking with roughly 150 pupil transportation directors. At the closing of my keynote, one of the transportation directors locked eyes with me. I... Continue Reading →

In order to be good at anything, we have to first be willing to be a beginner. Any person who has accomplished anything in this world had a first day. So, if you find yourself in transition this summer, I thought I would write a few other reminders because it's easy to feel overwhelmed, insecure, and in a hurry quite frankly.

I've had the sense lately that maybe I've got a little too much on my plate. Not even necessarily just with work but with other commitments that I've made as well. As an Enneagram three ("The Achiever"), feeling like I'm growing and getting better every day is really important to me. I draw a sense... Continue Reading →

I'm simply asking us to pay attention. I'm asking us to pay attention to how we feel when we leave a live performance or a ceremony. There is a reason why we feel so alive, hopeful, inspired, and capable. There is nothing like a sense of belonging that stems from being "in it" with others. Let's find opportunities this summer to put away our phones and enjoy the magic of being in the moment with others. And perhaps let's be a bit better about asking for help next school year. It's not only a gift we will give to ourselves. It's the gift of neural synchronization for those around us.

So, while many are counting down the days until the school year ends and summer begins and trust me, I get it. Let's not forget to slow down time in a good way for students. Some students won't be excited to be away from school, to be away from the love of the staff, or to be away from the routines that make them feel safe. So, how might we make these last precious days feel special and savored in our classrooms? Yes, there will be fun field days and perhaps pep rallies, but how might we make our classrooms feel a smidge different in these final weeks? Perhaps a trip outside for instruction, a new learning game, a change in seating arrangements. Every little move we make will allow us to savor the precious time we have with each other this school year. And I don't want us to wish that away. It matters because we matter. We matter to each other. And this work matters to the future of our communities and this world.

I don't want us to miss out on the opportunity to unearth the hidden gems of potential that live inside people. Both those currently working and learning inside of our organizations and those interested in joining us. Because when we overlook the good in others, we miss out on contributions those individuals could be making too.

But when we do this kind of work well, our systems and collaborative model actually begin making the work easier versus harder. We do hard things at the start to make our work more enduring and manageable long-term. When our systems and structures support us in thoughtful ways, we can actually experience more joy, creativity, and success in our daily work with students. It's yes and. Not yeah but.