Category Archives: Decisions

Don’t Let Your Conscience Disappear, Especially If You Are A Leader…

24 Friday Sep 2021

Posted by in Actions, Character, Choice, Clear, Conscience, Consistency, Deciding, Decisions, Leader, Leadership

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On Friday, April 16, 2021, I wrote on the conscience in my blog titled: The Conscience… It’s For Others As Much As It Is For You. Since then, it has been on my mind somewhat and even more lately that I wanted to say more. The other day I made the statement, “I find it very disheartening that we even have to put the words ‘weak’ or ‘bad’ in front of leadership. Leadership should always be measured as positive. That is why it is so crucial that we have leadership with a clear conscience. If we do not, then we will continue to fail society.”

So, here are some new thoughts… 

The conscience. Your conscience. That “thing” that each one of us is supposed to have. Labeled as good, bad, or not having one at all. Our conscience, an essence of warning that triggers and monitors our lives. The “inner voice” that speaks to us when our minds need confirmation that something is wrong, out of place, weird. An intuition per se.

While I would say most people will equate their consciences with their hearts… then our hearts know our motives, our true selves. Lying to others becomes more manageable when we get comfortable lying to ourselves. And when that happens… like a magic trick… poof, our conscience disappears, and the audience sits with amazement, wondering where did it go?

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When it comes to leaders in our society, their consciences are not any more or less important than others, but I am beginning to see leaders’ consciences leaving them as quick as they can run away from it. It just disappears, or they hide it where it can only be found when they want it. Why? What has happened to a person where we wonder, “When did they start to think a certain way?”

I see the issue not so much growing more popular but more evident. Blame-shifting is so easy to do now. Especially with the anonymity of social media and hiding behind a keyboard. Imagine everyone being made a scapegoat because leadership will not hold themselves to the same standards as everyone else.

We live in a culture where the conscience of leaders is elevated to be valued as medal-worthy due to pride. Leadership has also reached a level where others need to be blamed for a leader’s failure instead of responsibility taken for personal faults. Leadership deflection is so prominent that it is now seen as the norm, and leaders are escaping wrongdoing by claiming that they are now victims of other’s misunderstandings, even accusatory. When leaders shun responsibility, they set rules that only acknowledge self-entitlements.

Our conscience is a part of who we are. We cannot escape it. It does not and will not disappear, regardless of how many times we put it aside. However, the more times we do, the more numb our consciences become; stifled, muted, callous, eventually dead at the end.

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

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2021 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on…

Twitter @thebookchamber

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A text from my mom and the thought of influence…

08 Wednesday Sep 2021

Posted by in Character, Compassion, Decisions, Encouragement, Essence, Expectations, Future, Influence, Inspiration, Kindness, Purpose, Relationships, Teachers, Value

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This past Saturday, Heather and I were on the patio drinking coffee, and I get a text from my mom asking me to read something on Facebook. For some reason, I could not open the link (technical difficulties), so I call mom and tell her. Well, one thing led to another, and she ends up reading me the below post. For those who know my mom, she is not one who always shares her feelings. But, she was excited about this. Mom stated it was one of the best things she has read of late and thought about us since we are teachers and the value of influence we have. 

As she was reading it to me, I looked it up online and actually found the post. What was interesting, it was posted on my 7th grade English teacher’s page. The story, as far as I can tell, has an unknown source. By nature, I try to be conscientious about my blogs and wanting them to be “original thoughts,” but I believe this post is worth reading…

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The Teacher and the Stolen Watch

AN OLD MAN MEETS A YOUNG MAN who asks;
“Do you remember me?” 

And the old man says no.  Then the young man tells him he was his student. And the teacher asks:
“What do you do, what do you do in life?”

The young man answers:
“Well, I became a teacher.”
“Ah, how good, like me?” Asks the old man.
“Well, yes.  In fact, I became a teacher because you inspired me to be like you.”

The old man, curious, asks the young man at what time he decided to become a teacher.  And the young man tells him the following story:
“One day, a friend of mine, also a student, came in with a nice new watch, and I decided I wanted it and I stole it, I took it out of his pocket.

Shortly after, my friend noticed his missing watch and immediately complained to our teacher, who was you. Then you went to the class:
“This student's watch was stolen during classes today.  Whoever stole it, please return it.”

I didn't give it back because I didn't want to.  Then you closed the door and told us all to get up and you were going to search our pockets one by one until the watch was found.  But you told us to close our eyes, because you would only look for his watch if we all had our eyes closed.

So we did, and you went from pocket to pocket, and when you went through my pocket, you found the watch and took it.  You kept searching everyone's pockets, and when you were done you said:
“Open your eyes. We have the watch.”

You didn't tell me and you never mentioned the episode. You never said who stole the watch either.  That day you saved my dignity forever.  It was the most shameful day of my life.

But this is also the day my dignity was saved and I decided not to become a thief, a bad person, etc. You never said anything, nor even scold me or took me aside to give me a moral lesson, I received your message clearly.

And thanks to you, I understood what a real educator needs to do.  Do you remember this episode, professor?

And the professor answers:
“I remember the situation, the stolen watch, which I was looking for in everyone’s pocket, but I didn't remember you, because I also closed my eyes while looking.”

This is the essence of teaching:
“If to correct you must humiliate; you don't know how to teach "

Credit - Unknown

As I read this again, I agree; it is pretty good. As educators, we really never know the power of our influence. Just like in the story, there will be plenty of students we cannot remember – if you teach long enough, it will happen. However, little things matter. One little thing here or there. The things we do or say that inspire. How we communicate and make others feel. Showing students that there is a better way. You never know, we might just save their dignity. You might not remember them, but they will remember you. Yes, to teach is to educate. But I will add this to the last line of the story – To influence and inspire… An essence of teaching that can only be measured with time. 

Who will you influence and inspire today? 

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

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2021 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on…

Twitter @thebookchamber

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Stop all the noise, I’m distracted and can’t hear myself think…

03 Friday Sep 2021

Posted by in Captive, Classroom Leadership, Deciding, Decisions, Distractions, Importance, Intentional, Leader, Leadership, Teachers, Time

≈ 2 Comments

Two ideas got my attention this week… One, I was listening to a radio segment this past Saturday morning. The topic was about freedom and being held captive; we can be captive to others, and we can be held captive to ourselves. The other idea is from a statement our pastor said this past Sunday about how we allow noise of the outside world in our lives. If we are not able to set it aside, it will hinder our focus.  When I combined these two ideas in my head…

Well, as you know… it got me thinking…

We now live in a world of instant information. What one time took days and months to reach our ears are now at the touch of a button. I will confess, I am fascinated with news of what all is going on “out there.” If I let it, it will distract me, and it does to an extent. Our willingness to put that aside, in some ways, speaks to our mindset. And it does not have to be technology distractions. There are so many things that distract us; other people, family, your job, financials, sports… that putt I missed last Saturday morning, etc…

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That said, it now leads to what holds us captive. Are we held captive to our distractions? Individual freedom can only exist when we are no longer captive to the distractions of our own minds. At some point, they can very well become weapons of “mass distractions.” 

Don’t get distracted 🙂 stay with me here…

As educational leaders (by the way, that is what all people in education should want to be), are we distracted from doing our jobs? What interferes with us so much that our minds are held captive? If they keep us from doing what we are supposed to be doing, it is not good. For me, one distraction is idle curiosity. I will Google almost anything. I will chase rabbits with or without meat on it. Does it benefit my life? In my world, yes, but big picture, not really.

Nonetheless…

As we educate, as we lead, our minds really need to be clear of distractions. I know, easier said than done. Can we hone in on our objectives? There is a clip in the movie “For the Love of the Game” where Kevin Costner’s role is a baseball picther. When pitching, he mentally says, “Clear the mechanism.” It is often very hard to do this, but I believe we are at our best when we do.

Bottom line… distractions disengage us. I would suspect that most people would want us to be engaged and the flipside of that as well. I guess, in the end, it boils down to what we are willing and not willing to control in our minds. What do we want freedom from? Don’t be held captive to the noise.

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

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2021 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on…

Twitter @thebookchamber

Want to share this leadership thought with others? Click on one of the social media sharing buttons below and help spread the good…

“Ready or not, here I come,” said the school year.

13 Friday Aug 2021

Posted by in Actions, Classroom Leadership, Classroom Management, Decisions, Educational Leadership, Encouragement, Engagement, Kindness, Leader, Leadership, New School Year, Rest, Teachers, Understanding, Useful

≈ 6 Comments

Hide and seek… the seeker would always start with, “Ready or not, here I come.” Well, the school year, like a 500 pound gorilla, does not hide. Every August, it opens its doors to all, ready or not. We do not have to go looking for it.

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Educators are in meetings, school supply lists are getting filled, new clothes possibly bought for the first day, and whatever else everyone does. The sound of the first bell of the opening day is like the start of the Kentucky Derby… “and they’re off.” By the time those horses make the final turn, teachers are much like them… worn out at the end of the day… legs tired, out of breath, heart beating fast. Last words of the first day for a teacher, “I can’t wait until the weekend gets here.”

Just think… to put this in calendar terms… we have 36 school weeks to go until May, 180 school days… I will not give you the number of hours 🙂

If this is you, let your heart not be troubled. As educators, we are all in this together. No one is on an island… UNLESS you choose to be there by yourself, and that is a much more serious problem on its own.

So, what are some “things” that will help you not always feel you are waiting for the weekend as school happens this year? Three “things” I believe are very important. All three work, directly and indirectly, to make your life better as a person and as a teacher.

Have a classroom leadership plan, not a classroom management plan.
To borrow a paragraph from a previous blog on classroom leadership Teach with classroom leadership not classroom management……
“Classroom leadership is centered around empowerment, not only for you, as a teacher, but for the student as well. Classroom leadership should be based on a vision and principles, not managing students like they are products on a shelf; a vision that shows what the end result can be – where students can grow, and finish better than they started. Classroom leadership should be about influence, and that is what leaders do; influence inspires, management manages. When people are inspired, they do not have to be managed.”

As an educator, I believe this with every educational fiber I have in me. Part of classroom leadership is “doing right by students.” When you do, they will do right by you in return. When you have an inviting atmosphere in your classroom, you do not have to sell your product.

Learn your student’s names.
Yes, and learn to pronounce their names – correctly. Get hooked on phonics if necessary to pronounce them. It will show an investment on your part. Sometimes, all a student has, is their name. We really do not know how they are being acknowledged outside the classroom. We all want respect; correctly learning and pronouncing a student’s name might seem small, but huge rewards can pay off. You might be surprised how quickly respect can be earned doing this. Also, try to acknowledge everyone in the class at least once during the class period. One more idea… meet them at the door.

It is essential that you take care of yourself and your family.
We all know that our home carries over into our jobs. I have really never met anyone who can separate the two entirely, even when they say they can. At one point or another, we all get run down. To bring our best to students in every class, we must be at our best.

I know it is hard, and we all “want” to do better, but try to plan your family life out by the week. Now, there will be surprises and hiccups, but at least you have an idea of what is going on. Yes, we are here to serve others, but we cannot do that unless we take care of ourselves. Above all, get some rest. Teaching tired benefits no one. A good and restful you is good for all. Try to eat right (that’s what I am working on right now..) and try to get some steps in (this too). Sitting behind a teacher’s desk is not good teaching any way.

Yes, the school year is upon us. There are so many things that we cannot control, but these three things we can. Work on perfecting them as the new year begins. Everyone will be better for it.

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

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2021 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on…

Twitter @thebookchamber

Want to share this leadership thought with others? Click on one of the social media sharing buttons below and help spread the good…