Tag: Focus
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Analysis in the Age of AI
AI-driven over-planning. When generating reports becomes effortless, analysis paralysis can quietly stall your organizational momentum. Here’s why easy analysis might actually be slowing you down.
Somehow Travel is not Enough
Five years ago, I left a traditional life to pursue sailing, seeking freedom and adventure. Initially enjoying blissful travels, I soon realized the need for deeper cultural immersion. Instead of rushing through destinations, I embraced longer stays, allowing me to truly understand and appreciate the diverse rhythms and traditions of each place.
When Plans Don’t Matter: The Ultimate Constraint is Time
It’s a great feeling when things go as planned, isn’t it? The perfect roadmap, the seamless execution, the predictable outcome. The satisfaction of hitting the bullseye. And when things don’t go as planned? Well, it’s just not a bullseye. But what if none of it actually matters? See, a plan is only an idea of…
The Inner Architect: Building a Happy Mind
How often do we look outside ourselves for happiness? For that next promotion, that perfect vacation, that new gadget? We chase it like a distant mirage, convinced it lies just beyond our grasp, tethered to external circumstances. See Also: Never Truly Satisfied But what if the blueprint for a truly happy life already exists, not…
The Unruly Seas: Finding Strength When the Forecast Changes
Strength lies not in stopping external challenges, like storms at sea, but in mastering our response to them. A seasoned sailor illustrates this: despite meticulous planning, unforeseen chaos arises. The key is to focus on what can be controlled—our mindset, decisions, and actions—finding calm amid turmoil.
Moving Beyond Your Mistakes and Shortcomings
Sailing the oceans gives a certain perspective. It also provides way too much time to contemplate things, so I end up writing blog posts like this one (and this one about learning to live in flux), LOL. When you’re out on the ocean, you constantly have an unobstructed view of the horizon both in front…
Identity-Based Decision-Making
Often we contemplate our decisions based on benefits and costs. It’s a practical methodology. But it’s not the only way to make decisions. Another way is identity-based decision-making. This is an approach that helps you avoid distractions and stay focused on your vision. It’s the idea that you take on identities throughout life and during…
The Genius of Persistence
The genius of persistence is that it buys time: Time to garner feedback Time to adjust Time to reapply and employ Time to decide when to go and when to stop Time is our greatest asset, and it’s bought by the genius of persistence.
Circles of Influence and Concern
There are ideas, processes, and people that are within your circle of influence. Those are deserving of your time and energy. Then there are those ideas, processes, and people that you might care about or are interested in, but they lay outside of your circle of influence. These are within your circle of concern. Your…
Restarts and Planned Ends
The end of the year is a great time for restarts. In reality, any time is great for a restart. The reason we often think of the end of the year as a time for new goals, new habits, etc. is that it’s a planned end. It’s anticipated. Unanticipated ends make for chaotic restarts and…
Do You Ever Just Not Feel Like Doing It? …a secret.
I know I do. Sometimes I just don’t want to do it. That project, that repetitive task, or whatever that job is that has lost its pizazz. Here’s the secret. When you don’t feel like doing it, that’s the sign to do it. Act. Don’t delay. Then when you’re finished, you can evaluate whether or…
Three Powerful Letters
Y, E, S are three powerful letters, but they’re not as empowering as these three letters. These three letters form a word that initiates learning, sets momentum in action, and provides evidence for decision-making. What are the three powerful letters? N O W Now. Whatever it is you’re wanting to learn… Whatever it is you’re…
Good Enough Continuum
The trap of perfectionism is on the same continuum as the trap of laziness. Basic dictionary definitions from Google state: “Perfectionism: refusal to accept any standard short of perfection. Laziness: the quality of being unwilling to work or use energy; idleness.” All tasks fall along this continuum. Let’s call it the Good Enough Continuum. It’s…
Distractions on Leadership Teams
It’s simple for a leadership team to be distracted from focusing on their plan. Here some causes: Agendas from different stakeholders that don’t align with the district/building plan. New, but not necessarily better, ideas that create divergence. Lack of data that highlight the small early successes. Pressuring from local politics. Here is one solution to…
Tricky Little Sophistication
We have a problem in education. Academics. It’s both our strength and weakness. Academics have a way of making us feel right – making us feel assured. These feelings don’t always lend themselves to the best dispositions for leadership. Most often they create blind spots. Worse, academics have a way of placing value on sophistication.…
Houston, We’ve Had a Problem
The problem could have turned fatal. The solution was created from a handful of “household” items. There’s a message in it for educators. When you listen to the original audio, you’ll hear the sense of calm that prevailed. The incident started with a loud bang, and the crew initially thought they struck a meteoroid. After…
A Collaboration on Focus
“Every human being enters each day with a finite amount of mental energy. Once that energy is gone, it’s gone for good.” – Daniel Bauer This is one of many insightful quotes from a recent collaboration on staying focused as a school leader. We created this for you as a part of a blog crawl.…
Saying No This Summer
The slower pace of summer break allows a better chance to examine baggage. You know, that stuff that you grabbed along the way because you needed it or just wanted it – the programs, the habits, the time grabbers. But now it’s time. Time to say no to all the good, so you can say…
Six weeks out
Six weeks until the end of the school year. Time is your scarcest resource. It’s running out quickly, and you know the many demands placed on time here at the end. So how will time be prioritized so that the year is finished strong? How will time be maximized for a good launch into the…
Three Things Within Your Control
There are three things completely within your control: Energy Effort Engagement Each of these is desirable when committing to a project, during the hiring process, or when building a team – probably more so than skills or knowledge. Skills and knowledge are relatively simple to gain. Energy, effort, and engagement are not so simple to…
Blockades and What to do with Them
There are four things to do with a blockade. Let the blockade deter you. Remove the blockade and make progress. Zoom out to see how it fits within a larger perspective (is it really a blockade?). Leverage it in ways that allow you to make greater progress. What is blocking you from doing your best…
But what about…?
In the can’t challenge I made an embarrassing mistake. A minor typo. I left it in there and learned a lesson. There are many great projects or innovative ideas sitting on “the shelf” at various schools. They don’t make it off the shelf because of various reasons: Typos. Critiques. Imperfections. But-What-Abouts. Reasons why “you can’t”.…
How to Create a Stop Doing List
This is so simple. Or at least we can make it that way. Meeting #1: Brainstorm Gather a team together. State the purpose before arriving, so they can already have some thoughts stirring. Commit to only 15 minutes. Plus, another 15-minute follow up. Ask two questions: What do you do, that you’ve been told to…
The Power of Have-To Myths
You’ve heard of the importance of a stop-doing list – that list of programs, processes, and initiatives that we’re going to stop doing. It’s a brilliant way to minimize initiative overload. On the other hand, there is a power at play when we aren’t clear about the have-tos. Have-To Myths Have-to myths spread just as…
Clarity at the Outset
No one intends to obfuscate their communication. No one intends to confuse their school. Instead, we intentionally plan events and use tools that give clarity. We know clarity prevents a toxic school culture. Sometimes a map gives clarity. Sometimes a message gives clarity. A conversation, a plan, a meeting – these also provide clarity, sometimes. Rarely…
Everybody Has Something
And so do schools. Some call it the gift they bring. Some schools will call it their strengths. That one thing is your school’s brand. Sometimes you have to define it. Other times it’s already there. It’s just waiting for you to stop doing the things that don’t match it. There are good reasons for the…
Let’s Be Clear, Values
Directional clarity allows a cruise ship to arrive in the correct destination after a thousand mile journey. Clarity in communication requires an understanding of the millers. Unclear expectations can create a lack of behavioral cohesion for leaders. Clarity of purpose is vital. Clear values might be just as important. Let’s be clear. Values aren’t all the same.…
Costly Decisions
The costs of experience & previous investment are not good enough reasons to hold to inadequate practices. Letting go and saying stop can be among the hardest decisions when you invest so much into trying to make an idea succeed. But not saying stop is a costly decision. Opportunity cost is always greatest. _______…
What Do You See?
The trees vs. forest metaphor can’t fully capture the spectrum of what is seen on your campus. The school is a hub of so many spokes. Each spoke can be viewed from a different angle, from a different distance, and using a different lens. Often we refer to this as perception. Or expectations. Or vision.…
Champions Finish Strong
The pace on any campus is relentless. It’s not day to day or week to week. It’s moment by moment – minute by minute, and for this reason (among many others) we are exhausted near the end of semester 2. That’s the nature of the game. But like in any game, it’s the finish that counts. You are…