Reflecting back on the best improvements that I have made as a teacher and as a leader, they usually come from a moment of inspiration. That moment might be a great conversation, a conference or workshop, reading a book or article, or even seeing another teacher in action. In other words, improvement needs a spark.
We sometimes get lucky and our spark finds us, but most of the time we need to find a spark. We need to have the conversations, get the books or articles, connect with the colleagues who inspire us, register for the conferences. If we continually wait for a spark to come to us, we are being inefficient with our time and ability.
Every teacher has lived moments of doubt and low motivation. It seems the days drag on with no change and no inspiration. Want to change that? Get inspired. Break out of your rut find something new. Find a spark.
There are so many excuses not to find our motivation. No money for professional learning. No other colleagues who are interested in what I am into. No time to try something new. The weather is bad. My students are difficult this year. The list goes on. Here is the thing, the excuses don’t go away.
Put yourself in a position to be able to be inspired. Put yourself out there. If you are struggling with something, find ways to make your path easier. If you are uninspired, connect with inspiring people. It is easier today to get inspiration than ever before. Find great educators and leaders on the internet or social media. This is one way that these tools are making our life better.
Finding the spark that gets you moving in the right direction, that gets you on the path to improvement, that makes you put in place habits that will encourage your continued improvement is what you need. Go find it.
We both know that our professional lives and personal lives are linked. Maybe this spark is what you need to a better person, to feel better about yourself, to feel empowered. When we are successful at work, we feel good about ourselves.
Get out there. Find a spark. Get better.
Some places that I look for motivation:
Conferences:
uLead – Council of School Leaders, ATA
Agile Schools Summits/Workshops
Books:
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
Discipline Equals Freedom – Field Manual by Jocko Willink
The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday
Visible Learning by John Hattie
PodCasts:
The Tim Ferriss Show
Jocko Podcast
Hidden Brain
Master of Scale
Corey Haley 