#oneword2016 - Serve!
During a recent Twitter chat with other educators, one of the really smart people that I follow and learn from, Bethany Hill, an Elementary Principal from Arkansas, mentioned her one word for 2016.
I was intrigued by the idea of one word providing the focus and inspiration for my work and for my life and began to reflect on what my one word would be.
I spent time during my daily run thinking about my one word. I mentally sorted through various cliches and jargon, but was unhappy with my list as none of the words seemed to seize my heart and give me a true feel of authenticity. I started again, but this time I pictured our students and staff members. I thought about my wife and our four children. I reflected on our church family and the civic club we belong to. Then just as I paused before crossing an intersection on my run, I had my #oneword2016: SERVE!
My job is just that, to serve. I serve the teachers. I serve the bus drivers. I serve the principals. I serve the child nutrition specialists and the teacher assistants and the custodians and every employee in the school system. I serve the parents. I serve the Board of Education. Most importantly, I serve the students.
Serving or just being willing to serve falls short if it is not done in the right spirit. I serve because others have served me throughout my life. My parents, my teachers, family friends, my wife, my children, and countless others have taken care of me, often I am sure without my knowing it.
I also serve because it is the way I believe we should each approach the opportunities we have been given. Call it "paying it forward" or "the golden rule." Servant leadership is more than a cliche. It is how I approach my work, leading through serving.
My #oneword2016 is a reminder and a focal point for me. It is the legacy I want to leave one day when I step away. What a powerful epitaph that would be, "he served others."
What is the one word that you will use to focus all that you do in 2016?
Others from my PLN (Professional Learning Network) have shared their #oneword2016 as well:
@bethhill2829 - Empower
@tsschmidty - Soar
@heffrey - Less
@SteveFigurelli - Present
@schug_dennis - Stretch
I was intrigued by the idea of one word providing the focus and inspiration for my work and for my life and began to reflect on what my one word would be.
I spent time during my daily run thinking about my one word. I mentally sorted through various cliches and jargon, but was unhappy with my list as none of the words seemed to seize my heart and give me a true feel of authenticity. I started again, but this time I pictured our students and staff members. I thought about my wife and our four children. I reflected on our church family and the civic club we belong to. Then just as I paused before crossing an intersection on my run, I had my #oneword2016: SERVE!
Serve. Imagine the world if everyone truly grasped the power of a service outlook. If we each chose simply to serve others at each opportunity, the world would be a far different place. Stepping aside from that vision of wonder, I realize that I may not be able to change the world, but I might be able to change the world for a child or a teacher or a school.
During a visit in a first grade classroom earlier this year, a new student to our district turned to a neighbor and loudly whispered, "Who's that?" The neighbor replied in a matter-of-fact tone, "That's the big boss. He is the boss of the principal." The child looked awestruck and turned to me and asked, "What do you do?" I knelt down and whispered back, "I work for you."
Serving or just being willing to serve falls short if it is not done in the right spirit. I serve because others have served me throughout my life. My parents, my teachers, family friends, my wife, my children, and countless others have taken care of me, often I am sure without my knowing it.
I also serve because it is the way I believe we should each approach the opportunities we have been given. Call it "paying it forward" or "the golden rule." Servant leadership is more than a cliche. It is how I approach my work, leading through serving.
My #oneword2016 is a reminder and a focal point for me. It is the legacy I want to leave one day when I step away. What a powerful epitaph that would be, "he served others."
What is the one word that you will use to focus all that you do in 2016?
Others from my PLN (Professional Learning Network) have shared their #oneword2016 as well:
@bethhill2829 - Empower
@tsschmidty - Soar
@heffrey - Less
@SteveFigurelli - Present
@schug_dennis - Stretch
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