It Is Not Good For Man or Woman to Be Alone

Men and women have unique gifts that are particular to their gender. These gifts complement each other. It's the uniting of them that creates a whole. A school will only reach its full potential when the men and women within its walls work together in unity of purpose, respecting and relying upon each other's strengths.

These thoughts are built upon the thoughts of Sheri Dew in her book No One Can Take Your Place.

Being True to One's Core

For educators who truly want to make a difference it is critical that he or she act from one's own core rather than external mandates. To know one's core I would suggest that each educator buy a journal and then take the necessary time to answer the following questions:

• Why did I become an educator?
• What do I stand for as an educator?
• What do I think is important in education?
• What are the gifts that I bring to my work?
• What do I want my legacy as an educator to be?
• What can I do to remember my own heart?
• What do I value most?
• What do my strong interests and passions tell me about my purpose in life?
• What opinions do I have about education that I passionately care about?
• What is my vision of a quality school? What would I specifically be doing in such a school?
• What behaviors would I never engage in if I were in a quality school?
• What kinds of things would I say to all the different stakeholders in a quality school?

Ideas for these questions came from the book Inspiriting Quality in Your School by Robert A. Sullo and Failure Is Not An Option by Alan Blankstein.

Lessons from Sokolow and Houston

I recently finished reading a great book Spirituality in Educational Leadership. In the book there is a chapter by Stephen L. Sokolow and Paul D. Houston where they identify 8 key principles that will help leaders lead more effectively. I believe these identified principles are especially helpful for leaders wanting to reach Hispanic learners.

The 8 principles are:

1. The Principle of Intention: Knowing what you want to have happen in a particular situation and also the motivation below this ultimate goal...and then sending this out into the Universe will create energy and attract people, material resources, etc. to make it a reality.
2. The Principle of Attention: Energy flows were attention goes. What you think about, talk about, write about, and do is where you are putting your attention and this attention will act like a magnet.
3. The Principle of Unique Gifts and Talents: You must discover your unique talents and gifts, then cultivate and develop them, and then share them and then help others within your influence and stewarship to do the same. This is a continuing process as you take advantage of new opportunities and learning new things.
4. The Principle of Gratitude: Have an attitude of gratitude towards both the positive and challenging things that come. Having an attitude of gratitude is a form of energy that has the power to attract and empower...and beget more gratitude.
5. The Principle of Unique Life Lessons: Be reflective about all that is happening in your life seeing how problems can be opportunities to learn and grow.
6. The Principle of A Holistic Perspective: This means being willing to see things from different perspectives and helping others to do the same. This includes being able to see how the parts and the whole are connected.
7. The Principle of Openness: This means doing the work of opening your mind, heart, and spirit moment by moment in order to be receptive to the limitless information of the Universe.
8. The Principle of Trust: Trust is the foundation of leadership. First be a trustworthy person. Then start trusting that each person is innately good and treat him/her accordingly which help bring out the best in others and empower them. In other words, trust is a choice you make, not about the other person.

For more information you can visit the website: www.cfel.org