Category Archives: Actions

What You See Is What You Get…

07 Friday Sep 2018

Posted by in Actions, Attitude, Authentic, Character, Leader, Leadership, Relationships, Servant, Teachers, Transparent, Understanding

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The key to effective teaching is subject matter knowledge. But more important than that is your ability to convey your understanding, while at the same time being able to bridge the gap of teacher-student relationships. Teachers who do not foster relationships with their students in and out of the classroom forfeit their sincerity, authenticity, and transparency.

So… As a teacher, do your students see what they get from you?

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I believe in answering that statement; a teacher needs to have two characteristics.

One, be a servant-teacher…

How many teachers do you know that make the classroom all about them? I find these type of teachers having poor student interaction and have difficulty with their classroom management. The goal of a teacher should be to “get” their students to enjoy coming to your classroom for the right reasons. If that can be the case, then maybe, just maybe, they might give the subject matter a better chance, even if they dislike the class.

Being a servant-teacher requires intentionality with being who you say you are. It means having an understanding of the lives of your students. It means that you grow your students from the inside out. If you can change their heart, hopefully you can change their mind. Servant-teacher means you put them first. Empower them with ownership.

Two, be an example to follow…

The power of teaching has a direct proportion to the character of the teacher. The great concept about everyone we interact with is knowing if we like or dislike the example they portray. It does not take a student long to figure out what you see is what you get with teachers. Our students are much smarter then we give them credit for sometimes.

Christian author and speaker Josh McDowell said it like this, “You can con a con and kid a kid, but you cannot con a kid.”

Think on it like this… The example you provide might just be the only example a student sees as to how they should be. There are enough terrible examples in society for their picking. Give them an option for positive models for the betterment of themselves.

Teaching is a privilege, and not everyone can or wants to do it. Nothing we do as an educator gives more pleasure than to see a student succeed. Be the servant-teacher, and the example students need to see.

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP!

©2018 J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at TheBookChamber

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The Call of Teaching: Character

24 Friday Aug 2018

Posted by in Actions, Attitude, Character, Expectations, Integrity, Leader, Leadership

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Ok… Here we go with part three of the call of teaching… CHARACTER

The call of teaching must also include character. Now, there are many quotes and thoughts on character out there; so many that they can all end up meaning the same thing. However, when we look at character as it relates to the call of teaching, it takes on a new definition.

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As educators, our work must be characterized by the pursuit of modeling the message of character. Here is a question that all teachers should ask, “Would you want to be taught as you teach?” If yes, then ok. If not, then your teaching has serious character problems. We have all heard the adage, “practice what you preach (teach).”

Having character as a teacher should be non-negotiable. Part of having the right character is having maturity. What a teacher is, is much more valuable than what a teacher does. A teacher’s character, which includes maturity along with integrity, is a leading indicator if they possess the call to teach.

I believe teachers fall into two groups; those that see teaching as a calling and those that see it as a job. Those who answer the call of teaching must teach as they live; a life that is worth emulating by others. The character must demonstrate the message you send. This does not mean that we always teach perfectly, but it does say that the character we have is from the heart. More importantly, the character you have and the character you bring to the classroom is seen by others.

As you examine your teaching, start with your character. One thing is true… you can never separate who you say you are with what you say you believe in.

Next week we will talk about: Crisis from within for good…

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP!

©2018 J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at TheBookChamber

Subscribe via email to my blog at the top of the page

The Call of Teaching: A Gift

17 Friday Aug 2018

Posted by in Actions, Attitude, Gift, Giving, Heart, Humility, Leader, Leadership, Teachers

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“The gift to teach is special and requires giving of yourself to help others help themselves.” – Teresa Duke

Simple point… The person who wants to do the work and teach recognizes teaching as a gift. It is not an “or” statement. The gift is the ability to want to do both.

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Everything we do as teachers connect to the world positively or negatively in education. Great teachers have a gift equipped with some supernatural ability to open up a student’s mind by imparting knowledge to help better society.

The gift to teach can be carried out in many different areas. It may be carried out in the classrooms, hallways, lunchrooms, ball fields, etc. It can even be carried out outside the educational setting. In whatever capacity, the gift you have as a teacher involves imparting that gift of knowledge to others.

Recognizing you have a gift to teach, sets you apart. I believe that great teachers sense a call to teach and those who do, have that gift. Having the gift to teach sends a powerful message to students and other educators as well. It causes something to stir in the hearts and minds of others; it intensifies the gift even that much more. Realizing that you have this extraordinary gift to teach, solidifies your value as an educator. This is why it is important to exercise your gift of teaching. It makes you have an inner drive to dig deep within yourself and exhaust all efforts to change a person’s life.

Giving and receiving a gift is a novel concept. If you have a gift, usually it is for someone else, and you want to give it to someone you know who will appreciate it. If this is the case and as an educator, why not give your gift of teaching to others. Odds are, there will be someone divinely appointed in your path, which it is intended for, and will more than likely appreciate it very much.

This is the gift of teaching. Do you have it?

Next week we will talk about Character…

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP!

©2018 J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at TheBookChamber

Subscribe via email to my blog at the top of the page

GPS Leadership

20 Friday Jul 2018

Posted by in Actions, Attitude, Clarity, Communication, Family, Leader, Leadership, Listening, Perseverance, Trust

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This past week, our family had the opportunity to travel to Los Angeles, CA.  My wife had a counseling conference to attend, and my daughter and I made it a vacation.  Now, if you have never driven in LA, then you do not know what you are missing.  The rumors are true.  It is slam packed, turtle moving, and prayers needed. We had to make a lot of Ninja and Jedi moves to get to the correct turns sometimes.

We rented a car and used the GPS on our phones for directions.  As I reflect, I found a lot of leadership lessons from the trip and the GPS.

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Good leaders need a great wingman.

I found myself a few times telling my wife or daughter, “Talk to me Goose.” The classic line in Top Gun with Maverick and Goose.  They both did an excellent job in guiding me where we needed to go.  Leadership is like that.  There has to be trust and communication. You have to have someone on your side, by your side who is going to help you because it benefits the whole group, not just themselves.

Good leaders plan for the long road.

We were going to Anaheim one evening, a distance of only 26 miles.  1 hour and 39 minutes later, we arrived.  No one in LA says, “I’m just going to run over there real quick.” Leadership takes a look at what is ahead and determines the path to take.  It may be long, slow, stressful… but at least you are doing something.  Too many times, it is too easy to say no, let’s not do that.  It will take too long.

Good leaders sometimes make wrong turns.

Every day, I made at least one wrong turn.  LA is full of forks in the road and merger here and merge there lanes.  The great thing about missing a turn, the GPS will always recalculate.  That is what happens in leadership.  Sometimes leaders make a wrong turn, a bad decision, an oops and an opportunity to recalculate.  Let’s try that again.  Many times, on our wrong turns or missed exits, we were able to see something that was not planned.  A lot of great leadership decisions have been made in the same manner.

Our GPS made our trip all the more doable.  I would not want to drive in LA blind.  At the same time, I do not want to be leading blindly.  I am not a fan of the “let’s fly by the seat of our pants leadership.”  Too many bad things can happen.

Leaders need a good wingman, a plan for the long road, and an opportunity to recalculate.  If you do not, then you are leading alone, probably shortsighted, and think you never make mistakes.  If this is you, then stay out of everyone else’s lanes that know where they are going.

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP!

©2018 J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at TheBookChamber

Subscribe via email to my blog at the top of the page