HAPPY NEW YEAR!
While the new calendar year does not mark a new school year, the spirit of starting fresh offers an opportunity to re-commit to goals we set out to achieve in September or to set a standard for a re-energized last 52% of the year. I embedded 5 slides below that capture what I'm committing to for the remainder of the 2012-13 school year.
1. BE THE SPARK: continue to model the practices and habits of mind you wish to promote to others. I need to focus on what I can control from my position, and what I have complete control over are my actions, my words, and how actively and intentionally I promote the values I wish to see.
2. MAKE CONNECTIONS: bring people together and put folks in positions where their strengths and skills will thrive. I need to continue to meet with and visit faculty and staff as they lead classes; I need to find out who our house experts are and what they are experts in. We have teachers doing awesome things, and I need to be intentional in finding and promoting them.
3. FIND THE ROOT: "People don't buy what you do they buy why you do it." I need to continue to articulate the why with everyone I work with if I want to see the results I want to see.
4. ENJOY THE PROCESS: leadership is hard; this has been the most difficult yet invigorating semester of school I've ever had. Getting sucked in to the highs and lows of working with a lot of people is a trap that I'm sure has plagued many before me and will plague many after me. I need to trust my values, instincts, knowledge base, and professional network; I need to enjoy the ride.
5. POLISH WHAT WE HAVE: speaking of traps, I'm committing to improving what I have rather than starting something new. It's easy to move from new thing to new thing in 2013, but effective results come from practice and polishing of what works rather than continuous implementation and shuffling of new things. I need to stay focused on what works and how to make it work better.
HERE'S TO MAKING 2013 THE BEST YEAR YET! WHAT ARE YOU COMMITTING TO TO MAKE SURE IT IS?
