Pebbles in your shoes
I have thought a lot about this quote over the past few weeks. The Champ, Muhammad Ali, summed up my feelings of being in education with this quote. He is saying that we often get distracted, sidetracked, or detoured from our goals because of small “pebbles” that get in our way.
We all know how annoying a pebble in our shoes can be. We can’t walk, or it might hurt. We have to stop what we are doing, take our shoes off, and remove the pebble before continuing with what we are doing. We also all know the feeling of relief when that pebble is removed from the shoe.
With education becoming increasingly complex, those pebbles are starting to appear in our shoes much more frequently. These pebbles could be student, parent, or administratively created in our roles. Sometimes, the pebbles are a look we receive, a feeling we get, a comment someone makes, or our thoughts rumbling around in our heads. A pebble might also be being asked to do one more thing or a negative email after a long day. They could be things that we control or things we cannot control.
My challenge this week is simple. What are we doing as administrators to remove the pebbles from the shoes of those we lead before they get into someone's shoes? Are we raking the ground before our staff to eliminate the pebbles?
I would love to hear what you are doing to eliminate the pebbles for your staff.
"Everyone needs a coach. It doesn't matter whether you're a basketball player, a tennis player, a gymnast, or a bridge player." - Bill Gates
At the end of the day, we are all in this together. Wasn’t that a song? I am here if you need advice, support, guidance, or someone to talk with. One day, when I retire from the principal job, I will work with principals to help them avoid “Administrative Overwhelm.” This phenomenon is my garden of pebbles, sometimes rocks, and many times boulders.
If you feel that the administrative overwhelm is overcoming you, please reach out and let’s talk. I’m here to help.