Don't Become a Cynic

As Ferris Bueller famously said,

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." 

This is especially true for educators, which is why reflecting (and blogging) is an important aspect of our job. Years come and years go at an ever increasingly rapid pace. I often times find it hard to pin point certain events that have influenced who I've become.  Yet, surprisingly, I can still recall sitting at my desk during my first year as a principal while having a phone conversation and thinking - I'm becoming a cynic.

This is NOT who I was. Nor was it who I wanted to become.

As a district and a school, this year, we've been spending a lot of time talking about our why. Why do you do what you? What drives you? What inspires you? What motivates you? What is your why? At the simplest level, mine is to make a difference in other people's lives; to inspire them.

We have to always keep that (our why) in the forefront of our minds. Because if we don't, it's easy to lose sight of our why. It's easy to get bogged-down with the day-to-day grind, and consequently forget about our why.

I like to think that I am a pretty positive and optimistic person. This doesn't happen by accident. We have to be intentional with our actions to remain positive and optimistic. We have to be intentional.

How? Here are some tips that help me always stay positive and optimistic.

• Be connected - Find your tribe. find your like minded people, find your people that inspire you, find your people that push you to be a little better each day. Lean on these people, problem solve with these people, share with these people, and most importantly celebrate with these people.
• Be balanced - Education (life) can be stressful. Find things that provide you with an outlet. Exercise, read, write, spend time with family and friends; whatever it is, do the things that you enjoy.
• Be kind to others - Assume others are giving their best effort; assume others have positive intent. Always seek to understand.
• Be kind to yourself, too - "Give yourself the grace to be imperfect." You aren't going to be perfect; no one is. Focus, instead, on getting better, bit-by-bit, day-by-day.
• Be grateful - Think about all of the things that you have. Not everyone has all of these things. We sometimes get so caught up in all of the stuff that it can be easy to lose sight of this. Don't forget, perspective is key to life.
• Look for the good - Because the more intentional you are about looking for good, the more good that you will find. 
• Choose your attitude - Life happens. Situations occur that are outside of our control. Furthermore, we don't have control over other people. We do, however, always have control over how we respond. We have the power to choose the attitude that we embody.

#DotDay Reflections

Recently, while visiting classrooms, I was invited to participate in a project alongside our students in Mrs. LaRoche's 4th grade classroom. This had me reflecting...

It was September 15th. That's International Dot Day, the "holiday" that celebrates the book that Peter Reynolds wrote, The Dot. Mrs. LaRoche was introducing a Dot Day activity with her students. I should mention that The Dot is (at least one of) my favorite picture book(s). So I was honored that the Mrs. LaRoche invited me to stay longer AND participate with her students.

Taking a break from the busyness, which is the norm for school principals, was time well spent.

This was an investment in regards to the relationships that I have with this teacher and these students.

So as I sat in the classroom, designing my dot(s), I was showered with praise from the students telling me how good (and other adjectives) my creation looked. The celebration of my creation didn't come as a huge surprise. This is my sixth year as an elementary school principal, I'm aware of the celebrity status that I have with kids. Nonetheless, their praise had me thinking.

My experience in Mrs. LaRoche's classroom
mirrored this page from The Dot.

Like Derek Sivers claims in the video (above): what's obvious to you, is amazing to others. I didn't think that I was creating anything special, but the students in Mrs. LaRoche's class thought it was kind of special. This had me thinking, it is imperative that we find ways to share our work with others. You never know, it might be just what someone else needs.

The other thing is, until fairly recently, I never considered myself to be the creative type. I certainly did not think that I was much of an artist. It is just easier this way. I can just say, "I can't (insert art skill here)" or "I'm not good at (insert any skill here)."

But those responses are a cop-out. It's easier to say that you can't. It voids yourself of having to make any effort. It strips away any responsibility that you would have to take-on. It is a safe response, but no risk equals no reward. It is a weak response. It's represents a fixed mindset.

I take pride in regards to embodying a growth mindset. I believe that when we practice, we get better. I believe that when we give our best effort and persist, we can produce results that we might not have thought possible.

Dear Linda Sue Park

Dear Linda Sue Park,

Hi, I am Eric Ewald, and I am the Principal at Van Allen Elementary School in the Iowa City Community School District. I believe, before I was the Principal here, that you’ve actually been to our school as a visiting author in 2012; however,  I don’t know if you remember us (although, I think that we’d be hard for you to forget). We are a great school with great facilities, a great community, a great staff, and an especially great group of students.

In fact, one of our great students is co-writing this blog/letter with me. I’ll let her introduce herself.

Hi, I am Jaelyn Perry, and  I am 10 years-old and in fifth grade. I live in Coralville, Iowa and go to school at Van Allen Elementary. Earlier this year I read your book A Long Walk to Water. After I read it, my dad and mom both read it as well; we immediately decided we had to do something for all the people who do not get clean drinking water. We thought that other people should read the book so they could help, too. We ordered books for my whole class, my teacher, and my principal.  

Jaelyn gave me the book on the last day of school. I assumed that she had read the book as a part of a reading group, or something. Regardless, when a student gives you a book. You read the book. I did. I was inspired on multiple levels.

Then on June 2nd, 2017 (we finished the book on the 27th of May, 2017), we had a lemonade stand for two hours. We raised almost $600 to help the people in South Sudan build wells!  

Over the summer, I found out that Jaelyn’s teacher had nothing to do with this. She had read the book, and then bought a copy for each of her classmates, her teacher, and myself! My mind was blown. Then I heard how much money her and her family raised at their lemonade stand. As impressive as these acts were, I knew that we were just beginning to scratch the surface in regards to what we can potentially do.

During the summer my principal sent me an email saying that we should do something about this as a school project. On Wednesday, August 30th, we had a school-wide assembly. We have seven big water jugs that we plan to fill up with coins during the school-year! Every Friday, we are going to do “Caps for Coins” - where you donate coins and get to wear a hat at school. We will do this as a part of the Iron Giraffe Challenge. We hope to raise more than $1,000!

We’d love any opportunity to reconnect you with our school as we make these efforts for this good cause. A letter back, a phone call, a Skype, a Google Hangout, a Tweet a visit, anything. We’d love your support.

When I read this book I knew we needed to do something. It made so sad to think that all these people around the world get almost no water while we waste hundreds of gallons of water everyday! So even though I might be little, I know I can do BIG things!

Sincerely,

Jaelyn Perry and Eric Ewald