What is Your System To Deliver?

Let me first begin by profusely apologizing for being so errant in my writing. . Inexcusable. I enjoy it . I feel called to sharpen our next generation of school leaders. Yet, I do not find the time to write like I know I should. I am committing to writing more. I want to be a beacon of light to those who are in the trenches fighting for the next generation of students in America. We need each other. And, we need to strengthen each other.

So...where did this gap in my writing come from? What is the more systemic issue with actually failing to pay attention to my blog? I believe it boils down to the systems we have put in place and follow. I had a conversation with a friend of mine after church yesterday. You could see the energy ignite in him when he began to discuss how critical it is to put systems in place to succeed; he spoke of how much he loves to come alongside younger employees in his workplace to help them develop a system to deliver. Because if you do not have a system to deliver, you will not meet your goals, you will not maximize your potential, and most imporantly, you will not deliver.

I have had the privilage to be mentored by Dr. Michael Snell. Dr. Snell is the Superintendent at Central York School District. He is also a time management guru and author of the book Clockwork. In the book. Dr. Snell systematically walks through how to manage your day, your week, month, and your year. Moreover, he offers a systematic way to organize and manage your email- and, even more critical, your goals.

Dr. Snell's method to organization and delivering is simply one approach. There is a plethora of material out there to help you. I encourage you to check out some of the more popular options. I have listed these below.

You have about one month until the start of the 18-19 school year. I challenge you to take some time and reflect on how well you deliver. Are you managing your day to day so you can lead? Do your people have the faith and confidence in you that when you say you are going to do something, you have checks and balances in place to follow through? Simply put, are you organized in such a manner where you are maximizing your potential? This is critical work we are doing. Work to organize. Organize to lead. Get after it today. Lead. And win.

Organization Print Resources:
Clockwork
Getting Things Done; The Art of Stress Free Productivity
18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done
Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World
First Things First

Web Resources:
Time Management Ninja
Productivityist
Pick The Brain
Get Everything Done

What is Your Commitment to 2018?

I recently finished reading Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin. It is a dynamic book, perhaps one of the best I have ever read. However, I will warn you now. If you do not want to be challenged or feel uncomfortable, stick to the smutty romance novels.

Since reading the book, I have become a major Jocko fan. Jocko commits to waking up at 0430 hours everyday. He has created a cult following on Twitter, tweeting out a picture of his wrist watch everyday with the time. Without fail, he is up everyday at 0430. He usually follows up the tweet with something he accomplished in the early hours.

I decided to follow suit and match the challenge of getting up everyday at 0430. I was up the other day...and by the time it was ready for me to get ready for the work day, I realized something: I have been committed to getting up everyday at 0430...but I was NOT accomplishing anything.

I knew if I was going to commit to getting up early everyday, I needed to commit to something equally important: getting better everyday. Life is short. And hard. And fierce. Realizing your own full potential demands we commit to maximizing our efforts every day. We are all blessed with 1440 minutes each day in order to make it happen, and get after it.

As we approach the holiday break, I challenge you with this: what is your commitment for 2018? Where will you get better? How will you get better? What is your plan to make your commitment happen? One of my favorite Abraham Lincoln quotes on planning states that if he had 6 hours to cut down a tree, he would spend the first four hours developing a plan. What is your plan to cut down your tree in 2018?

Commitments School Leaders Can Make to Get Better:

-Develop an exercise plan

-Journal

-Commit to reading at least one leadership book a month

-Write a blog

-Attend a conference. (And be truly present)

-Research best schools in the world; apply learned principles in your own world

-Commit to quiet time everyday

-Find a mentor

-Mentor someone

“The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.”- Vince Lombardi

Be a True Leader: Get Your Hands Dirty.

I received a text message from my brother the day before school started for this year.

It read, “Go after greatness this year. And get your hands dirty while pursuing it.”

I took some time to reflect on this. What does getting your ‘hands dirty’ look like in leadership positions? How could I approach this school year with more of a mindset of getting my hands dirty? And, equally important, what was the ‘greatness’ I was going to pursue?

With these thoughts swirling in my mind, I visited our new elementary school for the first day of school.  This past year, we realigned our attendance zones. As well, we consolidated from three elementary schools to two. To put it in perspective, our largest elementary school last school year had about 400  students. Our new elementary has blossomed to over 725 students. 

I stood in the cafeteria watching the controlled chaos. Parent volunteers roamed about everywhere. In fact, it appeared there were equal adults to students.

As I surveyed this scene, my attention was drawn to the food line. There in the midst of the students lining up was the building principal, demonstrating his expectations for how to line up and proceed with the lunch period.  And, not far from where he was, the assistant principal was working with a different group of students on where to sit- and outlining behavioral expectations for the cafeteria.

This is ‘getting your hands dirty’ in action. Often times, as school leaders, we can issue edicts from behind a computer screen. It is easy to ‘tell’ the way. It is not always easy to ‘show’ the way. As these two leaders’ actions showcased, if we are willing to get out in front and allow our words to become actions, we don’t have to share our leadership philosophy. People will see it. And seeing is believing.

My challenge is this: how can you be more proactive with applied leadership (aka ‘getting your hands dirty’)? What tangible steps can you take to allow your leadership philosophy to become more than words on a paper penned in silence?

Getting Your Hands Dirty for School Leaders:
- Teach a class. Demonstrate a new instructional practice.
- Get in the cafeteria.
- Spend less than 60 minutes in your office a day.
- Don’t miss dismissal time.
- Substitute for a Day.
- Serve Food in the Cafeteria
- Learn Your Students’ Names
- Ask Your Staff Questions.

"We must be silent before we can listen. We must listen before we can learn. We must learn before we can prepare. We must prepare before we can serve. We must serve before we can lead."
 ― William Arthur Ward

Other thoughts on tangible ways we as leaders can get our hands dirty?

The Car Wash Communication Plan

My dad passed away on July 3, 2015. This year, to honor his memory, I decided to wash the car. Strange you might say...but I have many childhood memories of washing the car with my dad. Although my dad had many laudable traits, patience was not one of them. Washing the car usually resulted in one or more of my brothers and me getting yelled at for some odd reason or another.

I set out to break the cycle. My six year-old was eager to wash the car and be a good helper. As we gathered up the materials and headed out to the driveway, I made a pact with myself that I would not yell. I would not get irritated. I would not get mad.

Washing the car ensued. David, always wanting to be the good helper, asked if he could give the car a pre-wash. I let him. He didn't see me bending down in the front of the car to scrub off the bugs.

I was soaked. But I had not failed at my mission (yet).

We continued to work together. As we were about halfway done with the car, it all started to make sense to me. If I clearly explained my expectations, and if I showed him how I would like the task to be completed, my irritation completely subsided. Those times that he set off on his own without clear direction, I found myself fighting irritation.

David was promised a popsicle for helping. As he was in the house devouring it, I had some quiet time alone with my thoughts. What a great lesson in leadership. Clearly, methodically, intentionally explain your expectations. As leaders, how many times do we do this, assume our people know our thoughts and expectations? I know for me, I continually operate in a presumptive mindset. I assume those around me know my thoughts and my expectations. And, often, when these expectations are not met, I well up with irritation. Yet, the irritation should and will reside with me.

As leaders, we must continually communicate our expectations. Begin with the end in mind; what needs to be communicated? How are you going to communicate? Where are the blind spots in your communication? How will you assess if you have effectively communicated?

The leadership lesson I took away from the car wash was not earth shattering. In fact, one friend I shared this nugget of wisdom with said, "No duh. That's leadership 101." While I do not argue with this statement, there are leadership lessons all around us. We need to be intentional and reflective in our thinking to grasp them. And, most importantly, to to take these learned lessons and implement them.

As you take time to reflect, what might be some dysfunctional family cycles you need to break? As you pinpoint those irritation moments in your life, is it a result of your failed communication plan? What areas of your leadership communication need to improve? As Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet, To Thine Own self Be True.

The Effective Presentation

I spent the morning attending a conference. One of the sessions I attended dealt with 'delivering an effective presentation'. As I sat through the presentation, I thought to myself, this is one of the worst presentations I have ever sat through. Dull. Drab. Boring.

Don't get me wrong; the content was spot on. The presenter provided some of the science behind delivering a solid presentation. As well, there were ideas shared on alternatives to the tradition powerpoint. All good stuff. However, it lacked a key, main ingredient: enthusiasm.

It was as if the presenter was going through the motions...delivering the slides- with no emotional connection tied to it.

As I reflected on the session, I drew this conclusion: the most dynamic presentations I have sat through have been delivered by people who passionately believed in their message. And, they left an indelible impression on me- along with other attendees.

I inherently believe if you want to deliver a presentation that people will talk about long after you left the room, put your heart into it. If  you cannot muster the strength to put your heart, soul, and passion into what you are presenting on, go find something else to do with your life. Life is too short to be wasted on going through the motions. If you have to present, present like you want people to walk away from your speech truly changed.

Determining the size of font- and how many words you have on a slide are important. And, if not done well, can be a major distractor. However, if you get the nuts and bolts right- yet lack passion, don't be disappointed when people pull out their phones to check Facebook or Twitter.

Delivering the effective presentation? Simply put: Bring your thunder stick.


“Be still when you have nothing to say; when genuine passion moves you, say what you’ve got to say, and say it hot.” -D. H. Lawrence  

Leadership and the Path to the Super Bowl

As you may be aware, I am a die hard Pittsburgh fan. I am still reeling from that crushing, devastating, embarrassing loss. After the loss on Sunday, I pretty much vowed I would not watch the Super Bowl.

Until I read this article on the Falcons Head Coach (Falcons Believe in all of Dan Quinn's Corny Sayings...).

I am a leadership junkie. I love to read about leadership in action. This article on Coach Quinn truly embodies leadership.

Leadership is about pulling together a team. The team can be on a field, a court, a classroom, a board room, or an office. It is about gelling together a group of people to unite for a unified cause. Anyone who has ever led knows this is no small feat wrought with obstacles, frustrations, and challenges.

Yet, in spite of the difficulties, the truly great leaders are able to take the focus of the individual and place it on the greater good of the team- and the ultimate mission of the team. When a team truly bonds, and comes together, amazing feats are accomplished.

Many coaches, bosses, managers are able to rattle off certain leadership buzz words they may have read or heard about it; leaders can use the same verbiage, coupled with relationship building, and produce vastly different results. This is what separates leaders from managers.

Coach Quinn embodies what is right with leadership. Unifying a group to accomplish a goal. Leadership at its finest.

It pains me to say it, but Go Falcons. I am a bigger fan of leadership than I am of the Steelers.

"We talk about brotherhood every single day."-Dwight Freeney on Coach Quinn. 

The Path to Success in 2017: Reading.

As the new year dawns, many, including myself are brainstorming areas for improvement in 2017. As I have spent time thinking about areas I would like to grow, I have not given much consideration to how I will get 'there.'

I read a fascinating article yesterday on successful people and their respective reading habits. The article talked about Warren Buffet. WB said he will read for about 80% of his day. Many times during his life, he would read anywhere from 600-1000 pages a day. Similar to Warren Buffet, Bill Gates is an avid reader. He regularly sets a goal to read 50 books a year.

I spent the better part of the day reflecting on this. I have always enjoyed reading. And, I do read everyday. Am I reading enough? In comparison to the aforementioned, no. Not even close. I thoroughly enjoy watching sporting events. I won't think twice about watching the Steeler game for 3 hours at a time. Not sure I remember the last time I read for 3 hours at a time.

Yet, as I think of the areas in my life I want to grow, I wholeheartedly believe reading is an avenue to get there.

So, as you prepare for the start of a new year, I challenge you with this: make growth in your reading habits a priority. Put down social media. Pick up a book - or a magazine. Find something to read that will make you grow. In turn, take time to reflect on how much you have grown- and read.

Here's to a great year of reading and growing...

"Being an avid reader gives you a strategic advantage in life. It improves your thinking, relational skills, and more. But you can leverage that advantage by reading books that stimulate personal improvement."- Michael Hyatt

"You stay teachable most by reading books. By reading what other people went through." 

— Retired Marine General James Mattis