Pay It Forward...Kindness

I posted this post originally on January 22, 2017. It seemed like a good time to repost this message.

A smile, a kind word, a helping hand; all acts of kindness. How impactful can one positive act be? You may or may not be surprised to find out that kindness can be LIFE CHANGING!  A happiness researcher, Sean Anchor, found that if you perform random acts of kindness for two minutes a day for twenty-one days, you can actually retrain your brain to be more positive. The Power of Kindness Article

Sean Anchor also argues that happiness inspires us to be more productive.  The more kindness you sow, your mindset will shift to live and lead a happier life. See his Ted Talk here:

Jamil Zaki, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Stanford writes about the Kindness Contagion.  He explains that when someone carries out a single act of kindness, three people benefit.  The person doing the act, the person receiving and anyone who witnesses the act.  He goes on to state that a single act of kindness can spread faster than a virus.  Kindness Contagion Article

Here are a few inspirational videos to help spread the message of Paying it Forward!!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence!! 

Visualization to Actualization

We all have goals and dreams we aspire to. The ability to see what it will look like when that goal or dreams is realized can be a powerful tool. As leaders of each of your campuses, you are striving for improvement to reach an "ideal" school that you have envisioned. Have you thought about each and every aspect of what that will look and sound like? I encourage you to take some mindful time and space to visualize each of your goals. See what it looks, sounds, and feels like. Then, begin to incorporate that image into how you plan your actions and support/coaching for your team members. Help those on your team to also "see" the goal. If everyone has an image and an understanding of what they are working towards, they will be able to reference the current reality to the goal.

Here are a few articles that can help you with this practice of visualization to actualization.

Tony Robbins, "Goal Visualization"

Psychology Today, "Visualize to Actualize"

Dan Remon, "Visualization leads to Actualization"

Enthusiasm, Zest, and Gusto

On Friday morning while doing my daily meditation, the focus of the session was on enthusiasm; being intentional about approaching the day with enthusiasm and joy. It was a good message and a good reminder that our mindset can have such an impact on how we see and approach our work. Our mindset can make a situation better or worse, simply by what we are thinking. There were a few challenges that came my way during the course of the day on Friday. Instead of just getting annoyed or irritated by them, I attempted to use a sense of excitement to tackle the challenges. I was not 100% successful, but I did have a more positive outlook than I would have typically.  This will most definitely be some conscious work for me, but it could have such an impactful effect on the day to day.

It wasn't just my morning meditation program that recently emphasized the importance of enthusiasm it was also a common thread through much of the conversations shared during the Student Advisory Council on Wednesday of last week. Student voices are again letting us know that they want to have classes in high school that are relevant and meaningful to the many paths that they may take after high school.  Just imagine how amazing our schools could be if each and every one of us approached our daily work with ZEST and GUSTO.  Just imagine how amazing our schools could be if we approached our planning with enthusiasm and excitement. It is possible, and in order for it to become a staple of our organization, we each need to believe in our work, believe in each other, and make no excuses. I am honored to be able to work in FSUSD because I have the opportunity to be a part of a larger mission, vision, and goal to make the learning experiences for ALL of our students TK-12 as innovative, meaningful, and productive as they possibly can be. There is no room for complacency!

Taking Time for Yourself

It is always good to have the reminder that you need to take time for yourself. Things can get intense and stressful and each of us deals with that stress differently. Something that we can all benefit from is some quiet reflective time. Even during the course of the work day if you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, stressed, or experiencing anxiety, it is okay to take a moment to reground yourself and hit a reset. Here are a few great visuals that can help as you quiet your mind and take a moment to be reflective.

WHEN: The Science Behind Timing by: Daniel Pink

In case you are not aware, I am a huge fan of Daniel Pink. He is an author of several books including the New York Times bestsellers, Drive, To Sell is Human, and a Whole New Mind. Pink’s TED Talk on the science of motivation is one of the 10 most-watched TED Talks of all time, with more than 20 million views. His RSA Animate video about the ideas in his book, Drive, has collected more than 14 million views. I am currently reading his newest book, WHEN The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing. All of Pink's books have applications in the work that we do in education. I am intrigued by his newest book and the potential positive implications if we implement some of his ideas.

His newest book takes a look at scientific "secrets" of the best timing to help you be as successful as possible in areas of work, school, and home. Pink talks about the hidden patterns of our everyday lives. Analyzing research and patterns across the globe, there is a pattern in our everyday life where our positive mood rises, dips, and rises again. In the same way, our processing of certain types of tasks can be greatly influenced by the time of day that we are tackling them. In When The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, Pink highlights three conclusions: "First, our cognitive abilities do not remain static over the course of a day. During the sixteen or so hours we're awake, they change often in a regular, foreseeable manner. We are smarter, faster, dimmer, slower, more creative in some parts of the day than others." "Second, these daily fluctuations are more extreme than we realize." "Third, how we do depends on what we're doing." (Pink, 22)

I was fascinated to read about the implications the timing of day has on standardized test results. Pink references research compiled by Harvard's Francesca Gino and two Danish researchers where they looked at four years of test results for two million Danish children and the time of day the students took the test. Students that took the test later in the day did score significantly lower than the students that tested earlier in the day. However, Pink notes that researchers identified a way to help reduce the negative impact of testing later in the day. "Taking a test in the afternoon without a break [before the test] produces scores that are equivalent to spending less time in school each year and having parents with lower incomes and less education. But taking the same test after a twenty-to thirty-minute break leads to scores that are equivalent to students spending three additional weeks in the classroom and having somewhat wealthier and better-educated parents. And the benefits were the greatest for the low-performing students." (Pink, 57)  

I am excited to continue to read the rest of this book and identify some strategies that I can implement to improve my and my fellow colleague's work lives. I can't help but think about the timing of most of our staff meetings, late in the day typically around 3:00, when according to self reported scales referenced in the book, people report as the lowest point in the day for enjoying themselves, less warm towards other people, and are the most unhappy. That does not sound the like the most ideal time to get together and discuss challenging topics. However, if the meeting kicks off with a physical activity or "break" it could help to reset the individuals in the room. Something to think about for sure. 

Motivation and Challenge

I have to say that this weekend was a great one. For the first time in a long time I refrained from checking email, sending email, and doing any work related activities until late Monday. I spent time with my family and friends and I was truly present in the time I spent with them. It was a good reminder for me that keeping balance in our work and personal life will actually make us stronger in those areas! 

Now, for this week's blog focus; motivation and challenge. I see motivation and challenge as two key areas for success in our lives. Twitter is still my go to for connecting with professionals and learning and sharing. It is also an avenue for challenge and motivation for me. Thanks to teachers like Kristen Soulsby, Shareen Choy, and Ruben Lerma and administrators like Steve Trotter, Rebecca Dinwiddie, Kristen Cherry, and Larissa Sherrod I feel more compelled to get out and run and to push myself harder than I had been. It is quite amazing how a few small words and some pictures can be so compelling to get someone to move, but it has. It is so encouraging and rewarding to see others partaking in challenges and pushing themselves even further than they thought possible. We are supporting and motivating each other and it is makes the challenges so much more doable. This can and is so easily transferable to the classroom as well.

Here is a challenge I think everyone can get involved in. Straight from Dr. Rob Martinez on Twitter: "The school year is young, and I implore you to take on this #Educator Challenge! If you are part of the educational system that serves our 6.2 million students in California, then you have a responsibility to act in ways that connect, engage, and tell those in your world that you notice their efforts, their kindness, and them!"  

#Doit! #LeadWithResilience! #togetherwegrow #togetherwelearn#togetherwelead #juntoscrecemos#juntosapredemos #juntoslideramos#liderconresiliencia

Remember how important your words and actions are on all those that you interact with!

We must graduate every FSUSD student and ensure that they leave FSUSD college and career ready!  Inspire, Engage, Excite, Lead, Foster, Create, Empower!!

Continue to be innovative, creative, and a model of excellence!!

Know Their Name, Know Their Face, Know Their Story

It is so important to Know Their Name, Know Their Face, and Know Their Story. All of us have different life experiences that make us who we are. No one path is better than the other. The reality is that we all come to the "table" with a different understanding based on our experiences. As educators we must honor each of our students' life stories/experiences by understanding them and responding accordingly. EVERY student is valuable. EVERY student CAN be successful. We must not allow our preconceived notions or misconceptions to overshadow a student's potential. Most people do have a bias and that is based on their experiences. That does not automatically equate to a bad situation. In order to move forward in a progressive manner, every educator must be able to look inward and recognize what his/her biases are. Once those are recognized, then each educator can ask himself/herself the question of why and how to respond to those biases. If we ignore the lens that we see the world through we are doing ourselves and those around us an injustice. One cannot discount his/her reality. That is what makes us unique. It is once we appreciate that our reality is NOT the same as the person standing next to us that we can then begin to be the most effective. Approaching students, staff, and everyone that we interact with from a place of understanding and inquiry allows for give and take. These are some of the equitable approaches  we need to ensure are in play in our classrooms and schools.

Are you ready to be that visionary making the changes needed for our students? Whether we want to see a physical, mental or systemic change... it takes time. Most of us, myself included, can be impatient waiting for the transformation to take place. However, if we want the transformation to be lasting and with positive results we must be patient, persevere, and continue to make strides towards that goal.

If we see something about ourselves, our classroom, or our school that we don't like we need to face it. We need to take a good look at what it is we are challenged with. We must determine what we could do differently to potentially bring about the change we want. Keeping in mind that the genesis of the change we desire must be rooted in positivity. Once you are committed to the transformation you must begin to adjust your habits you have become accustomed to. We all know Albert Einstein's famous quote, "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

Don't forget the WHY of what drives our work. We are doing this for EVERY one of our students in our district. We are doing this to engage our students so that they are empowered to be the change agents of the future. We are doing this so that students are excited to go to school. We CANNOT allow mediocrity. We must not make EXCUSES! Don't let your budget constraints get in your way. Think of ways to maximize the dollars that you have. Don't let negative staff get in your way. Think of ways to tap into everyone's strengths and have them be a part of the process and ensure they understand the WHY. We CANNOT be complacent. If you see something going well then share it and encourage others to see the benefits. If something is going wrong then address it and determine an action plan to make corrections, don't allow it to fester. 

We can use our challenges and struggles to develop our passions and to push us to improve. 

We MUST commit to spreading the message of self worth and importance. As every child walks across the threshold of our classrooms each and every day we MUST tell our students they are valued, they are important, they are needed. We must use our positive words to overcome any existing self doubt. WE must help them handle negative thoughts and in turn it will help them gain more confidence in who they are.

We MUST not give up on any of our students!! We must empower! We must BELIEVE that anything is possible. We MUST NOT make any excuses. Provide HOPE!

We CAN change the reality around us. We can commit with positive intention to reinforce the actions and behaviors that we want to see in our colleagues, our students, and ultimately our society. We must highlight and showcase the strengths of our peers and our students. We must mend any mistrust and replace it with open and honest communication. Don't be afraid to have those that you are leading come out from the shadows and shine bright. True leaders are able to create more leaders and empower those that they lead to be the absolute best they can be.