Monday, October 25, 2010

Seth Godin is a ScreamFree Parent

Ok, so I'm not even sure that the dude has kids, but I am 100% convinced that if he does, he is a ScreamFree Parent.  Why am I so certain? Because every now and again he writes posts like this.


He's describing how doing the things that are right may be harder in the short term, but they are better and less expensive in the long run. Sure, keeping your cool while your baby screams bloody murder for the third hour in a row is no walk in the park. But doing anything else will cost you (and your child) much more heartache and stress down the road. Same for toddlers, kids, preteens, and even...teenagers.


When you are in the throes of teen angst and you want to throw in the towel, don't. Do what's right, what's best, what's hard - the first time. I promise you will reap the rewards for years to come. If I'm wrong, we can both blame Seth Godin.



Wednesday, October 13, 2010

The First Shall Be Last

I have to admit that while I have been thinking and praying about the Chilean miners, I haven't been watching the story 24/7 like much of the world. But on this momentous night when all 33 miners were rescued, this CNN headline grabbed my attention:

"Last miner scheduled to emerge is group's captain."

Luiz Urzua thought that he was leading his crew into the mine for a 12 hour shift. He ended up leading them for 69 days. He was the first into the mine and the last one out. This is an incredible story about true leadership. Too often, kids think that power equates to freedom and leverage. They crave it because they don't feel like they have much say over their lives. And many times, all of that is true. But leadership is different than power. Leadership - servant leadership - is about being the first to go into a dangerous situation and the last one out.

This man kept his team sane and healthy by keeping his cool. Plain and simple. We as teachers and parents could learn a thing or two from Mr. Urzua. Here's hoping that he gets paid all of that overtime that he most certainly deserves.