“Carpe diem… Seize the day.” For the younger readers out there, this was a classic movie, Dead Poet’s Society, 1989. For us older, distinguished veterans, we should remember it well.

There is this one scene that I like where the teacher, Mr. Keating, played by Robin Williams, takes his class out to the commons on the first day of class and has them look at the former students who came before them. While there, Mr. Keating tries to awaken their spirits, per se, into making the most of the time they have. In the clip, these words are spoken by Mr. Keating, “… seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.”

Watch the clip here: Carpe diem… Seize the day – Dead Poet’s Society

While watching and listening to the clip, I thought about this… The other day I stopped by the bank on the way home, and the teller asked me how my day at school was. I said, “fine,” and she said, “I don’t know how ya’ll do it.” I figured she was talking about teaching… So I said, “Well, I can either focus on who they are or who they can be.” She just looked at me like I had two heads and changed the subject. I wondered if she wanted to continue the direction of the conversation, but I was not going to speak negatively about education. Sure, we have problems, but so does every other occupation. Anyway…

How does this all tie in? Well, how many times as educators do we “seize the day to make the lives of our students extraordinary? It’s easy to focus on what walks through the classroom door, but do we ever consider what they can be when they walk out the door? Do we focus so much on the negative aspects of students that we forget that they might not become who they can be without our help? This goes for all aspects of education… Teachers and students, administrators and teachers, School leaders, etc.

While I believe Mr. Keating wanted his students to understand that, ultimately, it is up to the individual to “seize the day.” Knowing or unknowingly, at the same time, he was helping them understand that. That’s where we make the most of who our students can be. Giving them belief, giving them hope for their future, and modeling an example that says, be different for the right reason.

Oh, to help a student to feel extraordinary, to help them “seize the day.” Most might not do that on their own. Let’s help them “seize the day” by us doing the same. Our lives might just feel extraordinary if we do.

Let’s go fight the good fight of leadership. Someone has to…

Go be a great educator and leader today… Our future needs it…

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2023 J Clay Norton

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