Less Than the Best...

When we continuously give a sub par effort at anything in life we slowly but surely get farther away from our true best.  If we have never had to bring out our best in anything, when the time comes to do so we tend to fall woefully short of what we are capable of doing.  This not only hurts our self-image, but I believe it even damages the essence/soul of who we are as people.  This leads to a shying away from real challenges, a plethora of excuses, and a sour attitude because we really don't think much of ourselves. 
Improvement is about doing something over and over, readjusting, then repeating the act again.  And yes, failure is a part of improvement.  If you want to get better at jumping rope--jump rope often.  It also helps to have a little coaching along the way from someone who knows how to do it.  This is where teachers come in.  They are the ones who can coach you into your best.  It's up to you to accept the coaching/criticism and move forward. 

Do you know how to give your best?

Seek the Silence

Sometimes it's difficult to get quiet time nowadays.  We listen to headphones, send emails, text, surf the web, talk on the phone etc...  We never seem to stop and enjoy the silence.  I am referring to total silence with no interruptions!  I am of the persuasion that the best thoughts and ideas come from the silence.  When I think of my own life, I seem to have my most creative thoughts when I have those rare moments of quiet.
That's why I try to spend at least five minutes each night in complete silence.  I just try and pay attention to the thoughts running in my own head.  I learn a lot about myself doing this.  I've discovered that I often think about the same things--family and work.  When I get past the first couple minutes of the silence my mind starts to calm down and then ideas seem to come.

I challenge all of us to enjoy the silence in our lives and use it to talk to us.

Words That Deceive

I tell students that we should always seek a worthwhile challenge.  Many times, we seem to make the choice that requires the least amount of effort or resistance, and we end up not getting the result we wanted.  I think back to a speech a good friend of mine gave to a group of students years ago on this same topic.  He mentioned that there were some words/concepts that seem positive, but are really deceiving.  Words like "easy, effortless, painless, and inherited."  On the other hand, there are also words that seem intimidating, but are really positive like, "sacrifice, discipline, commitment, suffering, and pain."
I know we all strive to be happy to some extent in this life, but I think we sometimes forget that our happiness and joy is magnified when we have gone through a "struggle, pain, or some suffering."  It's true that our joy is always preceded by some misery and pain.  I can promise you that we all have some misery and pain with our name on it out there somewhere.  When it comes, we need to meet it head on and fight past it knowing there is great joy on the other side!  The misery, in fact, does not detract from that joy, it adds to it!
-Thanks for the thoughts RK.

Thank the Thankless

How many times in life can we honestly say, "I did it all by myself?"  Whether we succeeded on a test or in the field of play, there are always others that helped us achieve our goals.  I recently attended a beautiful charity concert that was put together by myself and a number of others.  When it all came together so nicely, I could only feel humbled and thankful for its success.  When I reflected on how this success was achieved I realized that I had little, if anything, to do with it. 

When we achieve something I hope we take time to thank all those involved; even those who may not be so obvious.  I watched an NCAA basketball game and as the winning team celebrated one player walked over and shook the referee's hand.  I saw a student who stayed after school to work with a teacher last week thank her for staying after.  I heard my son say during dinner tonight, "Thanks to whoever made this dinner for us."  All of these gracious thoughts are healthy for not only the person receiving the "thanks," but also for the one giving the "thanks." 

It's hard to be our best when we are not grateful for the things that aren't so obvious.  Let's take time to thank the thankless this week.

What's Holding You Back?

     Sometimes in life we run into, hear about indirectly, or meet someone whose life humbles our own.  I mean they are so impressive in some arena that we can only hope to have a fraction of their talent, desire, or discipline.  One person that gave me that impression was Randy Pausch.  Although I never met him, he left me with a profound impression. 
     Randy Pausch, college professor and author of The Last Lecture, was an incredible guy.  I watched some of his speeches, interviews, and home movies the other day to get some perspective.  For those of you that don't know about Mr. Pausch here's a brief rundown of the last year of his life:
     He was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer and 3-6 months to live.  He knew he had limited time so he decided to spend his last months (he died in 2008) promoting and exemplifying how to live a great life for his children.  He made home movies, wrote a book, and presented his famous "Last Lecture" all for the benefit of his kids.  In the end, he won the hearts and minds of millions  and left his children, and us,  with an incredible example of courage, dignity, and the value of a focused mind. 
     One thing I really appreciated about Randy, besides his incredible valor and love for his family, was his ability to identify a problem (a life and death one at that), and figure out the best way to attack it.  "I have things I can do that will make difference for my wife, my kids, and society.  The woe is me attitude is not going to help anybody.  I might as well make the best out of it while I can.  The lecture and the book are not comparable to being a living dad, but the question I ask myself is, 'what do I do with the months I have left?'" 
     He once said, "I don't know how to not have fun.  I am dying and I am having fun." I can't imagine having that much courage.  Yes, Randy Pausch was an average guy on the surface, but because he lived his life with such zeal (even before the arrival of his sickness), it was not so daunting for him to continue living with this passion after the sickness came.
     He makes me wonder what talents we all have inside of us that we are not utilizing.  Do we have to be faced with a life and death situation to be our best?   What's holding you back from being your best now?  What's holding me back? 
     I urge you all to take some time to think about that this week.  

People Will Surprise You

I had a student who came to my office during the beginning of PM 4 yesterday because he said he did not "feel like" going to class.  I told him there would serious consequences for skipping class and we went back and forth.  He decided, in the end, to head to class.  When I went down to see him he was actually enjoying the class and getting something out of it.  What he thought would happen, in fact, did not.  He almost allowed his fears and negativity get the best of his behaviors.

Students, when we start making decisions based on fears and selfish motives, we usually end up more miserable than we were to start.

I witnessed something amazing at Schnuck's grocery store yesterday.  I was in a long line waiting to check out and there was an older woman in front of me trying to purchase her items with some difficulty.  She was paying with food stamps and the sales clerk was having a hard time running them through.  Then, the gentleman waiting patiently behind her, without knowing this woman, handed the cashier a $50 bill and paid for the woman's groceries.

That deed made me feel good and I did not even do it.  It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes by Todd Whittaker, "When you do something nice for someone else, two people feel better, and one of them is you."  Let's not miss opportunities to make someone else's day, and in turn, make our own.

No False Starts

I want to send a shout out to our 9th grade math teacher who is all over her AM 1 class holding them accountable.  Students, if you don’t do homework, you don’t pass.  Step it up and do your job.  I cannot back you up, nor will I try, when you are not doing your part. 

One thing I appreciated growing up from my dad was the morning greeting he gave me every day as a kid.  He was always up earlier than me, but when I got up he’d greet me with enthusiasm.  He always acted upbeat and positive and set the tone for the whole family.  I never once heard him complaining or talking about how he dreaded going to work.  No, it was just the opposite, he knew that the first hours of the day are key setting the correct tone of victory and success and allow them to echo throughout the day.  Let’s remember that we can set the tone realizing today will never happen again.  Let’s not waste it with a weak, feeble, and false start.  

One of the things I taught my own kids was that when I ask them how they feel, they always respond with a resounding, “great.”  If you force yourself to think it, you can then let it take root until it becomes natural.  I ‘m not saying we lie and don’t talk about our true feelings, but I am saying that something happens on the inside when we start to talk about how great we feel.