#DadsAsPrincipals - Work or Fun?

(In my best ESPN Films 30 for 30 narrator's voice...) "What if I told you that work is fun?"

In a recent conversation with my six-year-old son, we were talking about my trip to Philadelphia for the National Principals Conference. And he asked me, are you going there for work or fun.

Why does this have to be an either/or question? Why can't it be both? Why do some people look at me like I've got  a third eye when I tell them that I think work is fun?

I like working. I think that it is fun. And I am being 100% honest when I say that.

I feel bad for the people that don't have fun at work. We spend a lot of time at work. We spend a lot of time still at work even when we aren't physically at work. Life is too short. You've got to be passionate about what you do. You've got to love what you do. Love it or leave it.

This is especially true when it comes to working in schools.

"Adults need to have fun so children will want to grow up." - Erica Bauermeister 

Back to my experience in Philadelphia at #npc17...

My experience attending conferences is a whole lot different than what it was when I first started as an educator. No longer do you need to attend the conference to acquire the learning that is being presented (see my post re. #DadsAsPrincipals - Our Prequel). The primary purpose of the conference is to connect, and then learn from and with those connections. This is accomplished through the relationships that we build before, during, and after the conferences that we attend. And if building relationships isn't fun, then what's the point in anything?

Going to Philadelphia, it was for work. But it was also fun. A lot of fun.

This was my tribe from #npc17 - #DadsAsPrincipals
(L to R): @_AndyJacks, @tsschmidty, @Brewerhm, Me, and @Nick_Proud

The quote is from the closing key note via @kckatalyst