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~ J Clay Norton, Ed.D.

The Book Chamber

Category Archives: Unity

Education Needs Uniter’s, Not Dividers…

25 Friday Aug 2023

Posted by The Book Chamber in Decisions, Educational Leadership, Leader, Leadership, Transformational, Unity, Vision

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This past Wednesday night was the first presidential debate on the Republican side. As eight hopeful candidates stood on stage, I realized that each one was trying their best to bring the Republican party together. However, with so many different viewpoints and agendas, a disconnect is what we saw most. However, one item they all agreed upon was to get rid of the Department of Education…

Segue to education needs, especially educational leadership…
In a world where division and discord are around every corner, education should not be one of the areas where either is found.

True, quality leaders understand that their role extends beyond personal gain, hence the reason for being in education to begin with. Education needs leadership that fosters unity, collaboration and shared progress. The bottom line is the distinction in their approach – education needs leadership that are uniters and not dividers.

images

Uniters provide a transformational style of leadership that paves the way for growth, innovation, and an environment of harmony where everyone can thrive. Leaders who put unity first can offset issues that may be trivial at best. A different mindset or approach to problems does not exploit differences. Sometimes, acknowledging those unique perspectives on problems creates that uniting environment. When leaders actively seek out diverse thinking, they create a platform for inclusive decision-making, resulting in more well-rounded solutions. However, not doing this takes little time to see when dividers are present.

Uniting creates a sense of belonging and ownership, intrinsically motivating individuals to invest in it. You want leadership success? Give people a reason to want to belong. That’s uniting.

Leadership dividers ignore disagreements and avoid difficult conversations. The impact of their leadership does not extend beyond themselves. They do not inspire others, creating a ripple effect that festers and spreads like a disease. In contrast, a leadership uniter leads by example, demonstrating uniting values and behaviors they expect from others. They plant and cultivate a culture of respect, empathy, and collaboration. Success partners with collective achievement and uniting occurs when this comes to fruition.

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

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2023 J Clay Norton

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on… Twitter @thebookchamber or follow the blog directly.

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It’s about the one who wields it…

31 Friday Mar 2023

Posted by The Book Chamber in Actions, Andy Griffith, Attention, Attitude, Character, Classroom Leadership, Classroom Management, Inspiration, Intentions, Leader, Leadership, Servant, Unity, Useful, Value, Vision

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I saw the below tweet on Twitter the other day…
“A stone in evil hands killed Abel. A stone in righteous hands killed Goliath. It’s not about the stone; it’s about the one who wields it.”

hand-black-and-white-finger-rock

As I read that, I thought, “Man, this is good stuff.” And, of course, it got me thinking…

I’m sure there are numerous analogies one can use instead of stone in the hands of either, but I thought immediately about the tongue, the pen, and, ultimately, leadership.

My mom had a Rudyard Kipling quote cross-stiched in our house growing up, “Keep your words short and sweet, for you do not know the ones one day you will eat.” (many have been attributed to that quote). Yes, there have been many a person who cannot wield the tongue. I think of the Andy Griffith episode where Andy tries to catch his words back after a conversation with Ellie. He fictitiously grabs them out of the air and pretends to eat them, saying how bad they taste. The tongue with the right mindset can create a beautiful oration of eloquence. Alternatively, it will speak with a forked tongue of divisiveness, manipulating meaning to justify one’s own means.

The pen… I am fascinated with people who can write well. The nuance of language can move emotions when sentences begin to flow. No wonder, English author Edward Bulwer-Lytton in 1839, stated, “The pen is mightier than the sword,” a metonymic adage indicating that the written word is more effective than violence as a means of social or political change. However, we also see the pen as a means to direct harm toward others, especially when words are written by one hiding behind a keyboard. False accusations, slander, you get the idea.

And leadership… Yes, leadership in the hands of an evil person causes more damage than can be imagined. With a me, my, mine mindset, the complete culture of an organization can be wiped away. Leadership in the hands, and I will use the word righteous, person shows servant-based, others first, a we, us, ours mindset. Edifying the body of an organization where others feel welcomed, not threatened. Where the culture reciprocates the empowerment of ownership. We have all seen and/or been part of leadership in the right or wrong hands, and we have felt the result of such.

It’s about the one who wields it… Powerful, indeed.

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

Want more Leadership Thoughts? Follow me on… Twitter @thebookchamber or follow the blog directly.

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

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United or Divided? (A Re-post)

26 Friday Jun 2020

Posted by The Book Chamber in Agenda, Attitude, Change, Character, Conversations, Courage, Crisis, Culture, Expectations, Freedom, Future, Honest, Humility, Inspiration, Integrity, Intentions, Leader, Leadership, Listening, Love, Purpose, Reflection, Relationships, Sincerity, Trust, Understanding, Unity, Value

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For what it is worth, I am not a fan of “reposting” my blogs. However, I am reposting the blog “United or Divided” today. This blog was originally written on January 26, 2018. I believe that leadership stands and transcends time and many other things and ideas as well.

When I wrote the blog the first time, it was written with the idea that we are in a crossroads of education. Now, as a Nation, we are as well. 

Only one sentence I will add for the blog is this…  “We, as people, must find our likeness in Christ for healing to begin and to sustain.” 

I hope you enjoy the re-post.

Below you will find the lyrics to the new song by Christian artist, Mandisa, “Bleed The Same.” The other day I heard it for the first time on KLOVE riding down the road. Like many things, it made me start thinking…

We say this, and we say that, only to get and keep the same results. We say we want more or better, but we do not put the effort in to change. Many times we might even be influenced by others who do not want to change. I/we want to…. I/we wish… I/we… The “want list” just goes on and on.

When it comes to the lives we live, they are the sum collections of thoughts created from experience or instilled as a way of life. However, the funny thing is, we are all in this together. At some point, we must acknowledge that everything in one way or another, affects everything else. The ripple effect might have diminished very small by the time it got to us but rippled it did.

Our world of humanity has its foundations based on morality. Sooner, rather than later, we should all know the difference between right and wrong. Yet we continue to make the same choices that enable our lives to stay the same, while at the same time always wanting more or better. The system can only be blamed so much. The issue becomes that we want the spotlight on others and their faults. We never want to turn the spotlight on ourselves. The last thing we want is for our inadequacies to be shown in the light.

I figure the best way to handle all of this, is to start with me. What am I doing to make it better? The “it” is anything that divides. It is united we stand. Can we (you, I, whoever) choose to work for a greater good? How many times does each of us have that one opportunity to do just that? Actually we have many opportunities.  We just wait on someone else.

As you read the lyrics below, I would dare say that each of us would agree with everything it says. So many solid truths. Whatever change you want, let it start with you. Most of all, let others see it. Go out and prove it. Your essence of leadership does one of the two… it unites or divides.

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

 

Remember… Think Leadership and Be For Others…

©2018 J Clay Norton

©2020 J Clay Norton (edited)

Want more Leadership Thoughts?  Follow me on…

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If you want to listen to the song, click here:

 

We all bleed the same
We’re more beautiful when we come together
We all bleed the same
So tell me why, tell me why
We’re divided

Woke up today
Another headline
Another innocent life is taken
In the name of hatred
So hard to take (hey!)
And if we think that it’s all good
Then we’re mistaken
‘Cause my heart is breaking

Are you left?
Are you right?
Pointing fingers, taking sides
When are we gonna realize?

We all bleed the same
We’re more beautiful when we come together
We all bleed the same
So tell me why, tell me why
We’re divided
If we’re gonna fight
Let’s fight for each other
If we’re gonna shout
Let love be the cry
We all bleed the same
So tell me why, tell me why
We’re divided

Tell me, who are we
To judge someone
By the kind of clothes they’re wearing
Or the color of their skin?

Are you black? (black)
Are you white? (white)
Aren’t we all the same inside? (the same inside)
Father, open our eyes to see!

We all bleed the same (we all bleed the same)
We’re more beautiful when we come together
We all bleed the same (we all bleed the same)
So tell me why, tell me why
We’re divided
If we’re gonna fight
Let’s fight for each other (fight for each other!)
If we’re gonna shout
Let love be the cry (be the cry!)
We all bleed the same (we all bleed the same)
So tell me why, tell me why
We’re divided

Only love can drive out all the darkness
What are we fighting for?
We were made to carry one another
We were made for more, said
Only love can drive out all the darkness
What are we fighting for? yeah
We were made to carry one another
We were made for more!

We all bleed the same (we all bleed the same)
We’re more beautiful when we come together (let’s stand united!)
We all bleed the same (we all bleed the same)
So tell me why, tell me why
We’re divided
If we’re gonna fight
Let’s fight for each other (fight for each other!)
If we’re gonna shout
Let love be the cry (be the cry!)
We all bleed the same(we all bleed the same) (bleed the same)
Let’s stand united (let’s stand united)
Let’s stand united!

So Father God, I pray
That our families will come together right now
And seek Your face
You will forgive our sins
And You will heal our incredible land
In the name of the only Savior, Jesus Christ
Amen

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The CANNOTs of Leadership

06 Friday Apr 2018

Posted by The Book Chamber in Actions, Attitude, Authentic, Balance, Choice, Clarity, Culture, Decisions, Humility, Ideals, Inspiration, Integrity, Leader, Leadership, Momentum, Opportunity, Passion, Perseverance, Power, Purpose, Servant, Team, Trust, Understanding, Unity

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“Leadership is an aspect of power, but it is also a separate and vital process in itself.” – James MacGregor Burns

Society has done a terrific job and an injustice of conditioning the minds of many leaders to be shallow and superficial. It distorts our thinking and our ability to make decisions. In some sense, it becomes a drug that is killing the future of what great, quality leadership should be.

Leadership-Featured.jpg

Photo Credit: gettingsmart.com

Unless there is a radical change in our thought process of the way we view leadership, to be for others and not ourselves, leadership will simply fade away.

Here are a few thoughts that we CANNOT allow ourselves to do…

  • We cannot simply flow with the societal trends of leadership.
  • We cannot elevate our leadership and at the same time not hold to the foundational truths of leadership.
  • We cannot promote our leadership by not living out what we say our leadership is.
  • We cannot fall victim not acknowledging that leadership requires humility.
  • We cannot fail to realize that leadership requires enthusiasm.
  • We cannot abandon our desire to want right leadership.

Today’s leadership models promote so much focus on self that we lose sight of serving others. It is self-absorbing. To make matters worse, we buy into it. We accept it as the norm. We allow it to become part of our inner being… ME FIRST!

Our defense against leadership, that is worldly and weakens right influence, relies on distrusting our ego to the point that we must separate the error it causes in our thinking.

Remember… THINK LEADERSHIP!

©2018 J Clay Norton

Follow me on Twitter at TheBookChamber

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