Are you settling for whatever comes your way? Are you letting what happens to you dictate your attitude and the direction of your life?
Don’t settle! You were born for more. If you have a genuine desire to do something that could positively impact others then find a way to do it.
Commit to pursuing your passion and fully using the talents and gifts that you have been given. Remember you have special God given talents and gifts that only you can use to impact your world.
You may need to start small, but start. Don’t worry about having everything figured out. It will work itself out.
Sept. 1, 2021. We turned the page of the calendar today. A couple of weeks ago I started a new trip around the sun headed toward a bigger number. (It’s just a number right?)
We turn over a new page every 24 hours. We turn over a new page every single moment of every single day. Every turn of the page, every trip around the sun, every new day, every moment brings with it a new opportunity. But how many times do we get stuck in the past and we aren’t able to see the new opportunity in front of us.
Why don’t we move on? We think and say things like “That person hurt me”, “My feelings were hurt.”, “They got more attention than I did”, “They got credit when there wasn’t any credit due”. Short story. Excuses.
We get stuck letting the past dictate too much of our future. Our past must be learned from but we live in a dangerous place when we stay there and let it have too much control and have too much influence over our present. If we let the past reign in our present there is no way we can move toward our future. Your future. My future.
I don’t write to tell just you to turn the page. I write today to tell US to turn the page. We’ve come to a new day, a new month and a new opportunity. The moments are fleeting and we miss moments if we live in past moments.
If you need help with your past and turning the page let today be the day you ask someone for help. I am confident there are people who will help you do that or help get you to the right person who can help you turn the page.
I’ve learned from experience that I can’t move forward until I deal with what might be on the page in front of me. It has taken an intentional decision to deal with what’s on the page in front of me. When I’ve done that the page has been turned and I’ve been able to experience a new chapter.
What do you have to do today to turn the page? What’s keeping you from turning it?
The calendar reminds us that today is a good day to turn the page.
Are you leading yourself daily? Are you taking the time to grow and be better so you can lead others more effectively?
We can get so focused on serving and leading others that we forget to take the time to work on ourselves.
Commit time each day to help yourself become better spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically. Read, listen, study and move.
I believe that you will not have a long term impact on people unless you are working on yourself at the same time.
No one will stay the same today. At the end of the day you will either be better or you won’t. Do what you can and where you are to be better today than you were yesterday. Even if it is only 1% better. Move forward on your journey today. Lead yourself then lead them.
Last Tuesday morning I started a new program at Greene County High School called rAM Leadership. The purpose is to talk about what it means to be a leader and what leadership qualities we should all be striving to be aware of and work on. The sessions are open to any student or teacher that wants to engage in and continue on their leadership journey.
Here are a few talking points and highlights from that first session that may be applicable to us all:
Leadership is available to every person. Research suggests that 1/3 of leaders are born with leadership traits and qualifies. That means the anyone can learn to be a leader through study, learning, experience and being committed to being a leader. Anyone can be a leader if they are intentional.
The most important person you lead every day is yourself. Make a commitment every day to improving yourself physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally. If you are leading yourself daily then you will have an opportunity to lead others Ina positive way as well.
It is estimated that we make somewhere in the neighborhood of 35,000 choices per day. Some are more mundane than others but some have a direct impact and correlation on what kind of leader we can become. Other choices define what kind of leader we truly are.
Every person is on a leadership journey. Some are in different places on their journey than others and that’s OK. Don’t compare where you are at to other people. Your journey is your journey and you have special gifts and talents that only you can use. The comparison game robs us of using those special gifts, and in turn, keeps us from helping and leading others.
At the end of each session I will give them two or three things to be mindful of during their week. Here are three things I believe all leaders should be aware of daily.
Be aware of the choices that you make that will impact your growth as a leader and your ability to lead others.
Get Better Every Day. Even if it is only 1% better. Keep moving forward and improving yourself physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally.
Process what you observe from positive and negative leaders. Observe and apply what you learn. The most important step is applying what we learn.
Yes, that cake above was delicious. Red Velvet (my favorite) made by my favorite Certified Pastry Chef, my daughter Nicole. She made that cake 10 years ago but don’t worry it’s long gone. This photo was found by doing a deep Facebook dive. So why are you looking at a cake that we ate 10 years ago?
As I start my 37th year in education today I was reminded of that moment and what has transpired in the last ten years to get to this point. There have been some fantastic moments, tough moments, moments that I failed and moments where I may have made a difference. The moment in 2011 and remembered in a timeline was a special one.
I have been blessed to be a full time Activities and Athletic Director for the past ten years since completing my degree. Completing that degree was the end of a long journey that I started several times, in several different places and could never get it finished because of the coaching responsibilities I always had. I was very proud to have completed that degree program and have been blessed to use it in three different districts since leaving Treynor in 2012.
Thinking back to that moment in time (2011) helped me remember a very important part of My Why. I think it is important for us to remember our why each and every day but we often times get to be so busy that we forget about why we really do what we do. A new school year is a good time to always think about the why and as an educator I have an opportunity to think about it every year as we prepare for the return of students from their summer break. The main part of my why is to help people become the best version of themselves now, help to play a part in preparing them for their future as workers, wives, husbands, mothers and fathers by working to provide them a first class experience.
There was also a photo in that Facebook post of myself (less grey hair), my dad, and my then only grandchild sitting with the cake shown above as we celebrated me finishing my Masters program from the University of South Dakota. (Did I mention how good that cake was.) The second part of my why is to honor my family and others. I want to honor my parents as well as the teachers, coaches, administrators and mentors who invested so much in me through their love, support and encouragement.
In addition, my why includes doing what I do for my family. I do it for my wife, my kids, their spouses, and my grandkids. I not only want to support and provide for them but I want to honor them by working hard, serving and caring for other people and try to model how to go about your business in a professional and respectful manner while helping people be better every day. I have never been perfect in what I do but I’ve always tried to work for people, respect people and give my best each and every day.
If you are educator and you are just starting your year like me please take a moment to remind yourself of your why and then give your best effort every day to honor those who have invested so much in you and then you can turn around and invest in your work to be an example to those who may be watching you. If you are in another line of work take time to revisit your why and let it help to reenergize you today as well.
I am looking forward to Year 37 and look forward to creating and investing in moments. I am encouraging you to do the same. Invest and Inspire someone today. Repeat daily.
Made For This Moment 