Inspiration versus Perspiration

 Inspiration versus Perspiration 

John Hattie's work revolves around a lot of moving pieces and ideals, but none more than "Know thy impact." Understanding what our words and actions can do, makes all the difference in the world in how we deliver them. At any level, in any position, we are impacting and influencing the people we talk to and interact with each day. It really doesn't matter who I am--it goes through every level of a Fortune 500 company the same as it does in a classroom. Whomever is speaking or interacting with others has an impact on them, like it or not it's happening. Every word, every look--it all contributes to your impact. 

And here's my question; What does your impact produce from others? Do you inspire them or make them perspire? 

I'm sure that I'm not the only one that has had "that" boss. The one that when they called me into their office or even walked by, I cringed and my stomach knotted up, feeling that I wasn't ever doing enough. 

But I've also had folks in my life that every time I talked to them, or heard them speak, I felt like I could take on the world. 

To me, these are the two polar opposites in leadership styles and beliefs that we see today. Some folks feel that the more they make you sweat, the more that you fear their mere presence, the more you will produce for them and fall in line. On the other side of the coin, there are folks that lift you up, and promote the benefits of a singular, upward direction for everyone in the organization.

Personally, I like to live on the positive side of this coin. I understand that the more I give of myself, the more that I do and (even more so) say to support and uplift those in my charge and interact with, the bigger and better the outcomes will come for all of us. 

So make the choice--do you want to build people up to be the best that they can be, or just make them sweat the impact of your presence and expectations. 

Lottery Tickets & Kindness

 Lottery Tickets & Kindness

So scratch-off lottery tickets have been something that I'll get every now and again. I am always expecting to hit it big, but here I am still going to work and still making payments on my used car. That's not to say that I haven't won a little something every now and again, including $500 one time!! 

Having no guarantee of what you will get in return, you put down a little bit of cash to get a ticket. Personally, I keep the faith that I would at least get my money back--but again no guarantee. This holds true no matter how much you "invest". And therein lays the gamble--you may get something back, or you might not. You may get a huge return on investment or bupkiss. But still, we put money in with the idea that we will get something back. 

Kindness parallels this model of uncertainty. 

I choose to be kind. I choose to invest my kindness in strangers and friends alike, without any guarantee on possible returns. I choose to be kind and give of myself not in the hopes that I may reap any kind of benefits, but that my kindness may inspire others to give more of themselves, and so on and so forth. It's as simple as a smile or holding the door for someone. One of the things I enjoy the most is paying for someone's coffee or meal at a drive thru and then watching for their reaction in the rear view. Most times, it's surprise and appreciation--others it looks like a ho hum, I got a free meal. Again, no guarantee that the kindness is returned or even appreciated--but I invested in someone else. I planted that seed of kindness, and now it's time to see if it blossoms or shrivels. 

So keep investing, keep scratching, and some day--you'll hit it big. 

Your Reflection

Power of Choice allows us to determine our responses to any situation. Yes, you can CHOOSE your response in any situation.

We generally have two responses in unfamiliar or unknown situations. People may feel confident or ready for whatever comes their way and feel ready to go in accepting the challenge. Conversely, you could be a pool of sweat--shaking and on the verge of hyperventilating and searching for the exit. How can the exact same challenges, experiences, or situations produce such different outcomes? 

One word--preparation. 

Here's your choice--you can choose how well you are prepared for any type of situation. And you and your reaction are a direct reflection of the level of your preparedness. 

Do you know how Tiger Woods has become Tiger Woods? The man was preparing to be the best golfer of all time since he was 18 months old. One of my favorite Tiger stories comes from when he was at Stanford and there was a huge storm coming through Palo Alto. His team mates all went to the clubhouse to gain shelter from the wind and rain. But Woods remained at the range. Someone asked why he was out there, and a team mate said he was getting ready for the British Open. It is expected that in England, Scotland, Wales & Ireland that the weather is often cold, wet, windy, and unpredictable--and they play through it all. Think about it, if you've never experienced the conditions in which you will be expected to perform at your absolute best, how in the world will you be able to call on those needed skills to come through "in the clutch" and be successful? Tiger has won 3 British Opens during his career. 

Preparing for the unexpected is in the same realm, although you may know less about what really might happen, but you will be prepared. In teaching, you have all the basic answers to questions that come up in a lesson ready to go--canned answers if you will. But the moment that a kid pops up with a controversial question or topic, or they start talking about their dog, and you immediately become a) flustered b) upset or c) defensive, and now you've lost control of the situation-just on your reaction. You were not prepared. I'm not saying you would know the answer to whatever off the wall question or comment they made, but you chose not to be mentally prepared for that situation, and it reflected in you losing the classroom for that moment in time. Is it always easy? No. But as we grow to be more comfortable as classroom and school leaders, and prepare for those situations you will look more like a cool & calm duck on the water than a spastic & flailing cat in the water. 

Choose to be prepared for all possibilities in a given situation and you will reflect the confidence that comes with the time you put in to be ready when your time comes. 

Short Sighted?

Within the Power of Choice, we have the ability to choose our vision and course. You have the ability to choose the impact of your decision to be instant and immediate, or long-term and lasting. Years ago, I was looking at the opportunity to make a huge, drastic change that would be a major difference maker in my career path. 

I was in my third year of teaching in 2005, Susan and I were married the previous spring, and we had just moved cross country to Arizona. The district we were in, Dysart Unified, set up an informational meeting for an upcoming cohort with Arizona State University. The program was a Masters for Administration and Supervision in Education. 

It was a huge decision on so many levels. We were newer teachers, just married, broke as hell, and like most newly weds, we were thinking about starting a family. Taking on a 24 month masters program was not going to be a small feat or challenge. We would be at class for 3-4 hours every Monday night during the next two spring and fall semesters, and add in 6 weeks of 4 days a week classes over the summer session as well. Oh and don't forget to throw in there the 260 hours of internship as the cherry on top. It was a beast of a program, but it would set the course for my career. 

The meeting was in November, and the program was going to start in January, so there wasn't a whole lot of time for debate and zero time for indecision. Applications needed to be made and filled out, the funding piece and all of that had to get done immediately. The more and more I thought about it, the more I talked about it, it was an opportunity that I couldn't pass. It would be in-person instruction, from a major university, they would be sending the instructors to us in Dysart so we wouldn't have to drive to Tempe, and it was directed to the discipline that I wanted. 

I was in. 

So the next twenty-four months, it was a lot of stressing, a lot writing and research, but on December 7, 2007 I received my hood from Arizona State University. 

Now, this was not a short-term or an immediately impacting decision in regards to my education and career, but it was a long-term decision that still echoes today. Having that piece of paper has given me the opportunity to lead my own school (I never say it that way, I've talked about that before--me, my and mine vs we, us and ours.), and have an impact on hundreds of kids, teachers and community members. 

So I challenge you the next time you are gifted a choice that you see the impact beyond its immediacy and envision the choice's true and long-term impact. 

Educational Bucket List

Educational Bucket List

So in August 2018, my parents retired. In that time, they have criss-crossed the country, visiting friends and family, and hitting up some major touristy spots. My dad kept referring them as bucket list stops—Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, a corner in Winslow, AZ, and even our house to name a few. But they were all significant stops—the sites and the people—for them in their new post-employment life.

In 2017-2018, I was able to hear essentially the Mt. Rushmore of educational speakers. Adam Welcome, Andy Jacks, Dave Burgess, John Hattie, Peter DeWitt, George Curos, Hamish Brewer, Michael Boner & Kim Bearden. It was awesome! To be able to hear the voices from the books that helped to shape me as an administrator was powerful. It was important to hear these folks speak, to ensure that what I had heard and processed in my head and heart, actually matched up with their personalities and personas—a reaffirmation of sorts. I was very fortunate to hear these folks talk, and have continued to follow them as I have moved on from that point in my career, to my current.

Yes, hearing and meeting all of the above was freakin awesome, but it was not the end. It was part of a list, my “educational bucket list”. I know we all have these lists, on paper, on a board, in our heads or just in our hearts, but we’ve got them.

I began my journey into teaching in 1998 at Mayville State, and my list was born. Now, we can’t get confused or muddle up bucket lists with accomplishments. Becoming a principal—accomplishment, driving 3 hours one way to hear Adam Welcome speak—bucket list. Some items on list, we don’t even know that they are there until they happen—in 2015 I attended VAESP and met Jacks & Brewer. (At the time, Brewer whom you all know as the “Tattooed, Skateboarding Principal” was better known as the “Whip and Nae Nae Principal”. )

We all have  choices that we get to make on when and where we go (sometimes) for our experiences. Keep the power in your hands, make the decisions that will impact your list. Because the more that we expose ourselves to the positive influences in the world, the more likely we are to turn around and make awesome things happen for others. It’s a fantastic cycle. 

Go out and choose to be a positive force in this world! You’re doing it for far more than just your own list. You never know, you just may be on someone else’s list.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Down the Rabbit Hole

Over the past few years, we have heard about schools transforming the educational experience from straight-lined, mundane, outcome (summative test) driven to the free-flowing, choice and real-world skill driven classrooms. Yes, there has been a movement, and we’ve made strides as an educational unit, but we’re not even close yet!

Yes, we want to make schools more remarkable for our kids AND staff alike, but what does that look like/feel/sound/smell like? I believe that this is where the genuine and unintentional disconnect in thinking that we are transforming our schools and classrooms, and what is truly taking place. 

What may be an amazing and mind blowing conversation for one teacher, most of the class is sitting there being lectured to, while the teacher converses, with one kid. How can we ensure that students are able to express their comprehension and passion for a topic without having a drawn out 12 point conversation? How about a pic collage that has the twelve points covered with a caption? Or an essay that takes her stance in the class discussion of Romeo & Juliet? What about a set of Q & A on Twitter or Flipgrid (And maybe just maybe, not all of the questions come from the teacher!)? 

All of these are ways that we can reach the kids where they are at, and all it takes a little trust. Trust that the students are going to do what they choose to the best of their ability, but more so as administrators, the trust in the teacher to carry out their well laid plans.

So imagine you took the leap down the rabbit hole, and as you fall further and further from what you know and are familiar with—do you panic and reach out to grab at roots and rocks to try and hold on or just let go and see what comes next? If we continue to grab at the lines that lead back to our safe places, we will never allow ourselves to discover a new level or depth to our abilities.

This is where we are in our teaching and learning and really leading—do we continue to hold on to the things that we are familiar with? Or do we just let go and really see what comes next? Don’t get me wrong, it’s not just close your eyes and hope for the best, its having an understanding of what is best, and where we should go—just maybe we don’t know the exact path to get there, or how long it’s going to take to get close to where we want to be.

With some of the leaders we have around education, the ones that are truly letting go of what “we have always done”, there are some awesome things in store for all of our kids.  

Where will you choose to be in this paradigm shift?

Message in a Bottle

 

Message in a Bottle

We’ve all seen the person stranded on a desert island, writing a message in a bottle. They set it out to sea, just hoping that someone will find it, and in turn find him.

I often wonder if we are in some ways trying to do the same with our teaching and leading—are we hoping that someday, someone will find the wisdom in our experiences and failures and they are turned in the right direction.

I think back to the reasons why I got into teaching and who pushed me there. I know there were many that guided me during my educational journey, but one stood apart from the others.

Jim Myrold.

Mr. Myrold’s in-laws lived a few doors down from where I grew up. His sons were a few years older than I was and I would go shoot basketball with them at their grandma’s house. Jim was a history teacher, and he taught the summer program for elementary students. I loved the class. We went on field trips, learned local history and had great discussions. As I moved through the grades, I think I took that same summer course 3 times. It never got old. As I moved into high school, Mr. Myrold was one of the history teachers, I got him for 10^th grade geography. He told us about his life travels. More so about the stupid decisions he made, and that he had spilt enough booze to float a boat. It was hearing his life stories that made more of an impact than anything for me. Hearing how someone could fail and fail and fail and still continue to move forward, and make the impacts on the lives of others that he did—that’s what he did.

So I guess the reason I gravitated to education; teaching and coaching can be linked directly to Mr. Myrold’s sharing of experiences with me. I liked history, was a pretty good story teller, and enjoyed sports. 

Sooooo, I took a crooked path, and ended up with a teaching job in Virginia, began my teaching career, fell in love, and got married. And I was excited about all of this, because I was able to demonstrate to my students all of my bad decisions, and impress upon them my experiences and how my failures could make them more successful. I didn’t at the time, and don’t now claim to be any kind of expert. But I knew that I had a variety of life experiences that would make a difference in the life of one kid.

I one kid that sticks out for me, B.C., he was a smart kid, very intellectual, and analytical. He was in my sociology class during his senior year, and was trying to figure out his next move. Well, B.C. had the grades and had applied to a variety of schools, one of which being The College of William & Mary. We were just having an informal discussion in class, and this came up that he wasn’t sure if he wanted the challenge of W&M or if he should just take on one of the other local colleges. Please note that he would receive complete scholarships from both universities. I told him that if he had the opportunity to attend a college as esteemed, storied, historical (I’m pretty sure I threw in there that Jefferson went there.) and challenging  as William & Mary, that I would track him down and beat him up.

He went to William & Mary.

After he graduated from W&M, he served as our 5^th grade celebration speaker and mentioned my challenge to him years earlier. In that moment, I realized that I must have been doing something right.

We all have the choice if we want to use our experiences to build ourselves or to build others. 

One thing I have told kids I’ve coached over the years has been, “Good players learn from the mistakes they make. Great players learn from the mistakes of others.” Make the choice to use your downfalls and failures to better your students, better your teachers and better your divisions. Don’t ever forget the power we all have in our choices.