Principal Matters: The School Leader's Podcast with William D. Parker

This week Jen Schwanke and Will Parker answer principal questions: How do you gain ‘buy-in’ among staff vs just ‘setting expectations’ when it comes to structuring or implementing new programs to support student learning? How do you start a leadership team? Ask for volunteers? Invite specific people?? Listen in for feedback on building trust, building on strengths, identifying leaders through volunteers as well as targeting leadership input.  During the show, William also refers to positive school outcomes at Dimension Learning Academy in Norman, Oklahoma. You can find out more about the school here: https://www.normanpublicschools.org/dimensions Also, check out a new book by Solution Tree Press: Powerful Guiding Coalitions: How to Build and Sustain the Leadership Team in Your PLC at Work® by Bob Hall.  Now It’s Your Turn If you have questions or feedback, email will@williamdparker.com. You can find Jen Schwanke at her website: http://jenschwanke.com The post PMP270: Gaining Buy-In & Building Leadership Teams with Jen Schwanke appeared first on Principal Matters.

Janelle McLaughlin, is an Education Consultant for Advanced Learning Partnerships working with districts all across the United States. She is a former curriculum director for Manchester Community Schools in Indiana. Prior to that role, Ms. McLaughlin spent 14 years as a classroom teacher. Her experiences range from job-embedded coaching for teachers and administrators, to leading reflective collaborations and facilitating action-plan development.  Ms. McLaughlin has a strong belief in the power of education and the role leaders play in building a strong foundation for their organizations. She has worked with educational leaders in over thirty different states and two countries. She has presented on numerous topics at national and international events.  Ms. McLaughlin holds a B.S. and M.A. in elementary education from Ball State University. She has obtained further licenses in school leadership from Indiana Wesleyan University, and gifted/talented education from Manchester University. She’s the author of the new book: Leadership at Every Level: Five Qualities of Effective Classroom, Building, and District Leaders published by Solution Tree Press. In this week’s podcast conversation, Janelle answers the following questions: Can you share a brief overview of the five qualities needed for effective leadership?You talk about leading with both the head and the heart. Can you explain why that is essential to you for strong leadership?What are some of the suggestions you give to those who want to grow in their own path of leadership? Every educator has a different story. Can you a share why teaching on leadership has become an important part of your own education story?  Now It’s Your Turn Listen in to this week’s conversations for lessons from Janelle’s new book. You can find more about Janelle McLaughlin at her website www.innovativeeducationsolutions.net  or via Twitter: @Ms_Mac4 Check out the new book, available for preorder at: https://www.solutiontree.com/leadership-at-every-level.html Leadership at Every Level: Five Qualities of Effective Classroom, Building, and District Leaders: Leadership at Every Level melds research with practical application while maintaining transparency among the levels of leadership in education. This book was written for educators in every role, whether you are leading in the classroom, the building, or at the district level, you are a leader. Leadership is really about the head and the heart. This book was written for educators at every level—in the classroom, at the building level, and at the district level—to equip and empower them to lead from both the head and the heart. Every person deserves a strong and caring leader, and every leader can continue to grow and learn those lessons to serve well. The best part is that we don’t have to wait on someone to make a plan for us, hire the right keynote speaker, or send us to that specific conference. Each person can determine the path to their own leadership growth.   The post PMP269: Leadership at Every Level with Janelle McLaughlin appeared first on Principal Matters.

Enid Lee is a front-line educator, an anti-racist professional development specialist, leadership coach, writer and community builder. She began her joyful journey as a teacher on the Caribbean island of Antigua about 5 decades ago. She has taught in Canada and the United States. Today Enid consults internationally on equitable education with particular emphasis on language, race and culture and their roles in education. She engages members of school communities, families and community organizations in preparing all learners to create and experience a world with greater justice, joy and generosity. Her publications include Letters to Marcia: A Teachers’ Guide to Anti-Racist Education; Coaching for Equity; and Anti-Racist Teaching in the Encyclopedia of Diversity in Education. She is a co-editor of Beyond Heroes and Holidays: A Practical Guide to K-12 Anti-Racist Multicultural Education and Staff Development and the developer of an educational tool, Checking and Changing My Systems for Equity. Enid has been the recipient of several awards for her path-breaking work in antiracist education and community building among Black communities and immigrant parents. She received an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Queen’s University, Canada, and holds an Interdisciplinary Masters of Arts in Sociolinguistics and Caribbean Literature. She is a Virtual Scholar with Teaching for Change in Washington, DC and in real time shares her time between Santa Cruz, California and Toronto, Ontario. In spare moments she enjoys sitting outdoors and nurturing the child within by reading books for youngsters of all ages. One of her favorite current children’s book is Our Skin: A First Conversation About Race by Megan Madison (Author), Jessica Ralli (Author), and Isabel Roxas (Illustrator). In this podcast conversation we cover the following questions: 1.  When you define equity, equality and systems, you encourage educators to “build on strengths.” Why is that an important distinction? 2.  Take us back to 1967 please. Most educators I work with today were either not born then or still in school themselves at the time. How has the work of anti-racist professional development evolved over the decades you have been in education? –          What changes have you observed in education at large? –          What challenges do you still see? 3.  Why do you focus on ‘systems’ when address equity and equity in learning? 4.  What keeps you motivated, involved, or ‘going’ for so long in this work with schools? Another book we reference in our conversation includes The Rough Patch by Brian Lies:  Now It’s Your Turn Listen-in to the conversation for valuable takeaways and perspectives. You can find more about Enid Lee and her resources for schools at https://www.enidlee.com/resources. The post PMP268: Equity, Equality and Systems with Enid Lee appeared first on Principal Matters.

This week, Jen Schwanke, joins me as we respond to more listener questions. Jen Schwanke is an author and education leader from Dublin City Schools in Dublin, Ohio. Question: How do you manage leading a school through the grief of losing a teacher to COVID? Here are some of the points we cover in response: Grief is loss — COVID involves fear — it is important to keep both those dynamics in mind when dealing with loss. Loss takes time and community. Leaders need to involve others in the process of healing.Fear takes action and, in the case of COVID, isolation has added to the difficulty of working through grief.Remember that reconciling these losses is different for different types of people. Understanding “The Five Stages of Grief” by Kubler-Ross can be helpful. These include: DenialAngerBargainingDepressionAcceptance  Here is a resource for more reading: https://www.psycom.net/depression.central.grief.html 8 Ways to Help Your School Manage Grief In 2013, Will shared a post about managing the grief of student loss with the following tips. These steps include: 1. Communicate, communicate, communicate. 2. Be present and visible. 3. Maintain as much stability and routine as possible. 4. Allow creative and spontaneous responses. 5. Ask for help from outside the school. 6. Enjoy and appreciate your students. 7. Be prepared for media contact. 8. Allow yourself time to grieve. You can read the original post here. Also, we refer to a children’s book, The Rough Patch by Brian Lies, that can be helpful when working with staff or students who need context for discussing grief: Question: We are seeing an escalation of behaviors as we transition back to school.  How can we better equip teachers to adjust to this unexpected scenario?  Just as we teach math and science, we need to teach behaviors, too. Yes, there is an instructional loss here, but addressing it may take different tools.As leaders, it is our responsibility to provide professional learning, books/resources and specialists in learning behaviors.When possible, collaborate with parents for solutions. A helpful resource is a previous podcast with Dr. Don Parker on Building Bridges to Reach Students. You can access that post here. Now It’s Your Turn We would be honored to hear your feedback or suggestions on these questions or to answer questions you would like us to address. Please reach out at will@williamdparker.com. The post PMP267: Answering Questions on Grief and Behavior with Jen Schwanke appeared first on Principal Matters.

Jen Schwanke joins me this week as we respond to listener questions. Jen Schwanke is an author and education leader from Dublin City Schools in Dublin, Ohio. We have two questions from a listener who wrote for feedback as an opportunity is opening to apply for a site principal position.  LISTENER QUESTION 1: “After several years serving in the role of assistant principal, I have been mired in testing, discipline, bus routes etc. for the past several years. I know a little about curriculum, but I need to beef up my knowledge in the coming weeks. What tips do you have for digging in and learning curriculum?” Jen: You don’t have to master curriculum. Just know people who have mastered it… curriculum coaches and support. Thru the evaluation process, ask questions. “This is for my learning…” Remember, you can have different standards being taught differently by different teachers. Will: First of all, acknowledge you do not have to an expert in curriculum to be a strong instructional leader. At the same time, you should be able to identify what standards are important in learning. Curriculum choices are guided by that question. In other words, the learning standards drive the curriculum, not the other way around.  Here’s an example to consider: When someone is teaching 11th grade language arts, for instance, he or she may choose to introduce a text from Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Letters from a Birmingham Jail. Although the teacher wants students aware of relevant material from our own history, he or she also wants to tie the text to learning standards. In this case, the learning goal may be helping students understand how to analyze the elements of persuasive writing, including rhetorical strategies. The learning standards then guide the outcomes students will identify in the reading as well as model the kinds of critical thinking they will need when they practice organizing their own thoughts and writing on persuasive topics. You can apply this same learning framework to every subject. As an administrator, the goal is to apply these perspectives schoolwide. It is easier to guide instruction when every grade level and subject area has curriculum maps tie lessons and outcomes with agreed-upon standards. LISTENER QUESTION 2: I need to have reasonable goals for the school over the next 3-5 years.  I clearly want to address learning gaps due to COVID and achievement gaps for students.  Are there other areas you would recommend I look at?” Jen:  After you’ve set your own goals, you may want to pair with teachers to do the same… don’t leave this to chance… have them do it as a team… accountability comes with sharing with others… Will: Always start with the questions: 1. What are we doing that is working? 2. What do we need to change or improve? I’m sure you already have access to a rubric, but as a matter of reference, SMART goals should be: SpecificMeasurableAchievableRelevant Timeline  Here’s a free PD resource: I came across a short professional development min-lesson plan I had created a few years ago on introducing teams to vision, mission and goal setting. I’ll paste it here if you’re interested in using it personally or with your teams: https://williamdparker.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/PD-Mission-Vision-Goals.pdf Let’s Wrap This Up Listen to the episode for even more explanations and feedback on the above questions! As you lead others, do not forget that setting goals is an important part of leadership. At the same time, relationships are the bedrock of leading change. What questions or feedback do you want to add to the conversation? Reach back at will@williamdparker.com. The post PMP266: Principal Questions on Curriculum and Goals with Jen Schwanke appeared first on Principal Matters.

This week I have the privilege of sharing Part 2 of a conversation with Daniel Bauer about his new book, His new book, Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader. Danny’s new book reimagines what professional development for school administrators looks like in order to meet the needs of all school leaders who currently feel isolated and overwhelmed. You will want to pick up a copy today as I’ve already had an advanced look and can’t wait to get my hands on the final printed publication.  Listen-in as Daniel Bauer shares: Ways your collaboration – and promoting the growth of others – leads to your own growth.How to create environments of belonging that lead to trust and learning. Why what you teach is something you should be experimenting with yourself.Why thinking outside the box – especially reading books outside the education field – can help stretch your learning and your work as an educator.Ways that openness and collaboration – not competition – is counter-cultural and still matters in your growth.Why Danny likes to use the term “level-up” when he refers to leadership growth. Plus, we add a bonus at the end of some follow-up conversation where you can hear Danny share even more takeaways! GET A FREE CHAPTER OF DANIEL BAUER’S BOOK HERE! The post PMP265: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader with Daniel Bauer, Part 2 appeared first on Principal Matters.

This week I have the privilege of sharing a conversation with Daniel Bauer about his new book, His new book, Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader. Danny’s new book reimagines what professional development for school administrators looks like in order to meet the needs of all school leaders who currently feel isolated and overwhelmed. You will want to pick up a copy today as I’ve already had an advanced look and can’t wait to get my hands on the final printed publication.  Danny was a guest on Principal Matters: The School Leader’s Podcast first in June 2017 for Episode 71: How Masterminds Help You Grow. Later in August 2019, he was a guest again for Episode 162: Building Community Through a Go-Community. Daniel Bauer is a self-proclaimed “Unorthodox Ruckus Maker” who has mentored thousands of school leaders through his Better Leaders Better Schools blog, books, podcasts, and powerful coaching experiences. I have been sitting on this conversation for months, and I enjoyed this conversation so much that I have split it into two parts. So I hope you enjoy Part 1 this week, and I’ll share Part 2 with you next week. Here’s a Glimpse of our Question/Answer Time: WDP: In your book, you look at the variety of reasons school leaders aren’t experiencing transformative professional development. Can you explain what you have learned? Danny shares… Some professional development is delivered inauthentically. Isolation is a key factor that leaders don’t connect and grow. Many districts do their best, but the professional development they offer end up being missed opportunities. WDP: What have you learned about who makes the ideal mastermind member and the ABCs of powerful professional development™?  Danny shares: Authenticity, belonging, and challengeProfessional development built with the ABCs in mind leads to transformation. (Mastermind score card) WDP: You talk a lot about authenticity. Why is this so important? Danny shares: Professional development that is psychologically safe Encourages self-awarenessIs values driven can be regarded as authentic WDP: What have you learned about the importance of belonging? Danny shares: Shared purpose, inclusive environments, and trust are the cornerstones of creating connection between leaders in a professional development experience. WDP: How have you seen your mastermind challenging members to level up? Danny shares: We do this by developing our leaders’ mindsets, encouraging them to take action, and surround them with a powerful community GET A FREE CHAPTER HERE! The post PMP264: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader with Daniel Bauer appeared first on Principal Matters.

This past month, we sent our third daughter to college. More than a year ago, she began to explore the possibility of studying abroad. As a result of months of apply to schools, virtual meet-ups, and 5,000 miles of travel, she is now a student at Aberystwyth University in Wales. Sending off another Parker child has been an emotional roller coaster. But the experience also brought back some memories of the first time we sent a child to college. As I was walking down memory lane this week, I came across a post I had shared in 2017 about the cycles of self-reflection and applying those lessons both in parenting and in personal growth. This week, I’ve decided to re-share that content here in an encore episode. Listening back also made me realize I originally shared this post in the spring of my last year as a high school principal. At the time, I had no idea I would be offered an opportunity to move into full-time work serving principals in my own state as well as across the globe with my books and trainings.  Listening back has been bitter-sweet, but it has also been a great reminder that growth is a ongoing cycle of learning, reflecting, refining, and action. I hope you enjoy this repeat podcast episode and can apply it to your own journey:  ——————————————————- March 2017: A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I took our oldest daughter, Emily, out to dinner. She turned 18 this year, and we wanted to encourage her in the opportunities and challenges she will be facing as a graduating senior and soon-to-be college student. Previously, I had been reading Tim Elmore’s Generation iY where he shares about three intelligences that help us in conversations with our students and children as they mature: Emotional intelligence: We need to help them develop their EQ—self awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management. Moral intelligence: We need to coach them toward robust character—personal discipline, secure sense of self, strong positive values. (Perhaps we could call this MQ.) Leadership intelligence: Finally, we need to encourage clear vision, courage, priorities, big-picture perspective, and planning skills (LQ) (Elmore 209). During dinner, I asked Emily if I could read through the descriptions and if she could reflect on areas she felt were her strengths and where she thought she still needed to grow. As she self-reflected on different areas, I learned some new insights about her. And I think she may have learned some new insights about herself too. My Own Self-Assessment Self-reflection isn’t only good for our children as they grow. It’s good for older learners like you and me. I remember about five years ago when I was talking to a buddy who is twenty years younger than I. He was telling me about the goals he and his wife had set and reached. He was excited about being a young father, starting his own business, and pursuing his dreams. I began to reminisce with him about when I was his age—how my wife and I had paid off debts, bought our first house, started a family. As he listened, he looked at me with a curious expression and asked, “So that was twenty years ago. What are your goals now?” Suddenly, I was stumped. I realized I didn’t have an answer, and as I stumbled around to find one, I finally looked at him and said, “You know. I think right now I’m just trying to survive.” When I walked away from that conversation, I was haunted by my response. When was the last time I had self-reflected on new goals for my family and my future? In some ways, I had achieved a lot of my dreams in my career. But where did I want to grow from here? A few weeks later, I was invited to a weekend men’s retreat with my church. It was a unique agenda: Instead of spending a day together in meetings or activities, our pastor asked us to spend time in solitude, self-reflection and prayer. He gave us a list of questions and goals, and among them these were some that I reflected on: Reflections: 1. What were the major milestones of the past year (events)? 2. What were the major blessings? 3. Major victories? 4. Major defeats? 5. Major lessons learned? Goals for this year: Spiritual Family Social Physical Vocational Are your personal goals also SMART goals? Strategic and specific Measurable Attainable Results-oriented Time-based Reflecting and praying about these goals was a great wake-up call for me. In fact, I’d say that was the launching pad for much of the content I have created over the last four years in my blog, books, and presentations. That day was a turning point because it challenged me to embrace a mindset of continuous growth. To put it simply, self-reflection is a practice that can help you move from a “surviving” mentality to a “thriving” one. Ultimately, it also helps you reflect on how your life can benefit others in specific ways. We all have lots of room to grow, and I certainly haven’t maintained growth without difficulties, challenges or failures. But I can say that a significant shift occurs in your trajectory when you take time for self-reflection. Teach, Reflect, Learn If you haven’t thought about the power of self-reflection lately, let me recommend a great book by Pete Hall and Alisa Simeral: Teach, Reflect, Learn: Building Your Capacity for Success in the Classroom Recently, I heard Pete Hall present lessons from the book, which included a description he calls the Reflective Cycle. He explained that our ability to grow is connected to our ability to honestly assess our strengths and weaknesses. And our ability to self-reflect involves a continuum of four stages (my takeaways in parenthesis): 1. Unaware Stage(the inability too see or lack of sensitivity to our own practices—good or bad). 2. Conscious Stage(the recognition of our habits, progress—or lack of progress—and a realization of the implications) 3. Action Stage(moving forward armed with new information, new action-steps, new accountability, and a new commitment to trial-error for improvement) 4. Refinement Stage(repeating what works, thinking ahead, collaborating with others, and planning with this new knowledge or practice in mind) Pete shared an amazing video clip from a teacher on YouTube reflecting on his own teaching practice. In that short spot, this young teacher went from describing his most incredible teaching moment to also acknowledging where he still had room to grow. He went from a “Wow, I’m awesome” moment to an “Uh-oh, I still have tons to learn” moment. It was a great example of how we can practice the reflective cycle even in the times when we think our practice is profoundly effective. Pete concluded: “Beware of the traveler who thinks he has arrived.” In other words, we endanger effectiveness when we simply do what worked before without really analyzing our motivations or outcomes. So here are some questions to think about this week: When is the last time you have walked through a reflective cycle about your own practices?When is the last time you assessed your own strengths and weaknesses as an educator, leader, spouse, parent, etc.?If there is a direct correlation between our self-awareness and our ability to help others, how can you explore your own motivations,  and how can you guide, coach, or help others with theirs? Let’s Wrap This Up During the special dinner with my oldest daughter, my wife and I took turns telling her ways we’ve seen her flourish as she’s grown up. And we encouraged her to keep growing in other areas. Then my wife gave her a beautiful necklace as a way to remember the occasion. Later that night as my wife I were talking alone, we talked about the pleasure of watching our girl becoming a young woman. As proud as I am of her, she still has years ahead of her to grow. And like me, she will experience lots of ups and downs. But in the process, my hope is that by modeling self-reflection for her (and with her), she can begin seeing the benefits of understanding her own EQ, MQ, and LQ now. In the process, she may also make wiser choices for the days ahead–choices I’m hoping will be focused on how she can, in turn, help others. Now It’s Your Turn What is one step you can take today to move toward a conscious awareness of where you may still have room to grow? Then what are some ways you help others do the same? Take time to reflect on the some of the questions shared above. If you’re preparing for a break soon (we’re getting ready for Spring Break at the time of this post), how can you include self-reflection as a way to recharge your batteries for the rest of the semester? The post PMP263: Cycles of Self-Reflection in Leadership appeared first on Principal Matters.

A few weeks ago, I was invited to provide some virtual professional learning with a wonderful group of aspiring and assistant principals from Pecos Barstow-Toyah Independent School District, in Pecos, Texas.  As a part of our time together, I shared content from my book Principal Matters, including “8 Hats” that school leaders wear. For the sake of this podcast episode, I am including a shortened version of the introduction to the session. My hope is that you will find these takeaways helpful as you reflect on your own responsibilities as a school leader. Here is a summary of the eight hats that all school leaders should expect to wear: 1. Coach Someone has to make the final call, and as the principal, that will often be you. Like a good coach, you will need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of your team. You will need to listen to input from others. But ultimately, you will be the one who often makes many of the final calls in your building. Coaches also set the tone, cast the vision, or help motivate their teams to action. Even if you are not a pep-talk kind of person, it is important that you are clear with direction, consistent with follow-through, and fair-minded in difficulties. Like it or not, others will look to you for direction and follow your lead. So plan to lead in a positive direction. 2. Manager School leadership is much more than management, but it is still an important part of it. Some principals are surprised at the amount of work required for supervision, personnel decisions, report generating, budget decisions, and schedule planning. If you are transitioning from the classroom, you are now responsible for an entire school. You can’t manage a school without a great team. One way I have tried to encourage focus in office management of our school, for instance, is by putting job responsibilities in writing. Each office staff member has key responsibility areas in writing so each of us know who is managing specific tasks throughout the year. 3. Counselor Whether it is handling concerns of students, parents, teachers, or other school staff, a significant part of school leadership is learning to listen. I am not a counselor and do not pretend to be. But I have learned the importance of giving my attention to someone in need, providing them feedback, and helping them find solutions. Sometimes people just need to be heard, and sometimes they need to be guided into finding their own solutions. My favorite Stephen Covey quote always comes into play when I talk about counseling: Seek first to understand before seeking to be understood. 4. On Duty Like it or not, everyone is accountable to someone. Just because you are a principal does not mean you are on your own. You still answer to your superiors. You still answer to the state department. You still follow the same rules, regulations, policies, and laws your staff is expected to follow. When you are absent for family sick leave, for instance, you fill out the same form your teachers fill out. I sign in every morning on the same sheet my teachers use for sign in. In fact, I am usually the first one to sign in. Principals are on duty just like everyone else. 5. Cheerleader I am not sure I can emphasize enough the importance of keeping people informed. So often because you are on the front end of decisions or information coming to the school, you falsely assume others have the same information or context. Here are a few ways I try to keep communication clear: a. Be present and visible. b. Follow up meetings with email summaries. c. Email parents and teachers in group emails with school updates. d. When someone is upset, call or see in person if possible. e. Send photos and updates to your local media outlets. f. Create a school newsletter so great events are published to a wider audience. 6. Servant-Leader One aspect I appreciate about my current superintendent is his ability to roll up his sleeves and lend a hand. More than once, he has been seen helping out with grounds work, standing in the serving line at faculty meals, or organizing a tailgate party on game night. Principals are not exempt from service. In fact, they should be on the front-line when it comes to helping others. This doesn’t mean you neglect the tasks of management, supervision, and meetings to do all maintenance tasks in your building. Instead, it means that at times, you will need to step in when there is a need and lend a hand. More than once, I have cleaned up the spill in the commons. Working a mop is something I can still do while wearing a tie. 7. Individual Sometimes school leaders forget that in order to serve others, you also have to invest in personal growth. In the wheel of life, if you pour the majority of your time and energy into work while neglecting other priorities, you will eventually burn-out. Your life also includes your family, finances, physical health, and spiritual growth. Just like a seed grows best when planted in the right soil, you grow best when you cultivate each area of your life. When you take time to invest in the people, activities, and passions that make your heart sing, then you have the energy and motivation to lead others. 8. Team Player Finally, a principal must remember he is not working alone. You are surrounded by teachers, students, or staff members who are talented, intelligent and creative. And you always accomplish more when pulling with a team than by yourself. So you must not forget that you need others to be successful. And other need you too. Strong leaders do not push others. Instead, they lead and are followed. As you set the tone for your building, remember you are doing this in partnership with others. Reminding yourself that you are part of team will keep you from the false belief that you are on your own. I heard someone say once concerning leaders: Tuck in your cape, you are not a super hero; you are on a team. Conclusion School leadership is a multifaceted calling whether you are a coaching, managing, staying accountable, communicating, serving, or working with a team. Ultimately, your goal is to create a safe and effective learning environment, no matter what hats you have to wear to reach that goal. Now It’s Your Turn This list is not exhaustive. What are some other roles or responsibilities school leaders must be prepared to handle? Thanks again for doing what matters! The post PMP262: Revisiting the Hats You Wear in School Leadership appeared first on Principal Matters.

In last week’s podcast episode, I shared the second part of a keynote presentation I provided on August 12, 2021, to the Archdiocese of Louisville for a welcome-back ceremony of educators from thirty nine Pre/K-8 elementary schools and nine high schools collectively serving 18,000 students. In Part 3 of this keynote series, you will learn the power of your friendships, legacy and laughter. Learn the following: What research says about the power of friendship when facing adversityHow your friendships allow others to see parts of you that may not be visible in isolationHow important it is to acknowledge those who are ‘packing your parachute’Ways your story has been built by the influences of others Considering your legacy as an educator, including two truths: 1. You’re not as important as you think. 2. You are more important than you think. Listen-in to find out why… Relationships are more important than outcomes because deep trust inspires better outcomes. At the end of this episode, you’ll also hear some reminders of why you must keep finding humor and joy in learning and leading. Further Reflection There is a story that I love about friendship, involving C.S. Lewis, the author of The Chronicles of Narnia. Lewis was friends with J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the two of them had a mutual friend named Charles Williams. When Charles died, Lewis wrote the following: “In each of my friends there is something that only some other friend can fully bring out. By myself I am not large enough to call the whole man into activity; I want other lights than my own to show all his facets. Now that Charles is dead, I shall never again see Ronald’s [Tolkien’s] reaction to a specifically Charles joke. Far from having more of Ronald, having him “to myself” now that Charles is away, I have less of Ronald…In this, Friendship exhibits a glorious “nearness by resemblance” to heaven itself…” (Keller, 2016).  Keller, Timothy. The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith. Penguin Books, 2016. You have others in your life who can see parts of you that you are unable to see yourself. And you have attributes that may be best displayed with one person over another. Keep this in mind as you remember the importance of connecting with friends, family, and community members. Sometimes we need one another to see the best in one another. Now It’s Your Turn How can you be committed to mutual accountability? How are you allowing your friendships to call you back to the best version of yourself? Is there someone you need to thank for doing work that makes your work possible (in school and outside of school)? Thank you again for doing what matters! The post PMP261: Your Friendships, Legacy, Laughter and Well-Being appeared first on Principal Matters.