U-Turns

A Swarm of Lemmings:Writers' Passive Suicide and the Crisis in K-12 Literacy – Implications for Western Civilization

Sat, 07 Mar 2026 01:55:31 GMT

A swarm of lemmings continues their march to the proverbial sea, attracted by a temporary vision of sun and beauty, but ultimately distracted by that vision—thus, they fall off the cliff in a passive suicide. It wasn’t a conscious decision. Their deaths were the consequence of distraction alone.

In this allegory, the lemmings are writers (and many in publishing) who ignore the erosion in elementary schools and K-12 education. Writers may create brilliant work, but if students graduate without the skills to engage deeply, our audience vanishes. From a cultural perspective, this is alarming—and the stakes extend to the health of Western civilization itself.

In my day job, as Executive Director of a small non-profit, I oversee a pre-K program, a charter school, and our efforts to revitalize a publishing company re-dedicated to high-quality children's books, which we're strongly considering. These trends hit close to home: we're building foundations early because the data shows the stakes are high—not just for individuals, but for the shared knowledge, critical reasoning, and civic discourse that have sustained Western democratic traditions for centuries.

Key trends:

Average Grade Level of Books Sold Now vs. 1950: Decline Toward Grade 5–7
Bestsellers today often score 5th–7th grade on Flesch-Kincaid (many 4th–6th for broad appeal), with simpler sentences and vocabulary to match declining adult reading stamina. Mid-20th-century works frequently demanded more (closer to 7th–9th in analyses), reflecting a market shift toward accessibility amid falling literacy.
Didactic vs. Non-Didactic vs. Classics: Effects on Brain Development
Narrative-driven reading (non-didactic stories or classics) sustains broader brain activation—engaging language, empathy, memory, and connectivity regions more effectively than passive or overly didactic methods. Neuroscience shows immersive storytelling promotes neuroplasticity and deeper neural pathways, while fragmented/instructional approaches may limit sustained engagement and cognitive depth needed for complex literature.
If Trends Continue: What Will Texts Look Like in the Future—4th Grade?
Pleasure reading has plummeted ~40% over 20 years (daily readers from 28% peak in 2004 to 16% in 2023); adult literacy scores dropped sharply (many below 6th grade); NAEP reading scores remain at historic lows. Unchecked, popular texts could simplify to 4th-grade or lower: basic vocabulary, short sentences, reduced nuance—eroding space for sophisticated writing.

These declines threaten more than literacy: they undermine the foundations of Western civilization. Deep reading fosters critical thinking, empathy, and shared cultural references essential to informed citizenship and democratic debate. As reading wanes, societies risk shallower discourse, greater susceptibility to manipulation, weakened civic engagement, and a fraying of the reflective reasoning that has driven progress, innovation, and self-governance in the West.

This isn't inevitable. Writers and creators bring storytelling, imagination, and engagement that schools and early programs need most.

Call to Action: Get involved in schools and early education. Ask kids about the books you remember reading when you were a kid– The Oddyssey, Of Mice and Men, Leaves of Grass. Advocate for narrative-rich curricula, or support initiatives like ours in pre-K and charter settings.

Or send me an email, I'd love to chat.

When we relaunch our website in the summer, we'll have some exciting news. We have a lot of work to do-- and we're all learning from it.

Venturing into the Courage Gap, #1

Sat, 21 Feb 2026 22:01:57 GMT

Pushing and Pulling

The "push" connotes aggression whereas the "pull" connotes invitation.

The "push" is a criticism, and the "pull" is coffee and advice at a nice cafe selected just for the advisee.

Both are needed in different measures, at different times and often towards the same ends.

In 2024, I engaged in a sabbatical to step back, read, study, think, and reflect about schools and leading through the pandemic. It was a very prolific period. However, what made it prolific was the "push"-- spending days reviewing data and learning to criticize the sector I worked in.

The Courage Gap Talks document those learnings, in the most lo-fi way. They're ugly, but they inform the work and solutions we're imlpementing at the park, where our goal is to "pull" folks into a transformative educational envioronment.

Originally, they were called "Career-Suicide Notebooks", the original plan being to walk away from education all together. Instead, what I learned will inform my work for years.

It's been said that Buddhist monks can see the world in a grain of rice. After being immersed in education for several years, I see the world in a school ecosystem. Thus, schools enter my creative work and the way I think about creativity enters my work in schools.

The first video is called 33% and it looks at the proficiency scores of 4th grade students on the NAEP Assessment. Additionally, it looks at the broad economy that works to maintain the status quo.

Lettuce Entertain You: Why Fluency Matters

Sat, 21 Feb 2026 21:11:10 GMT

Lettuce Entertain You

“Lettuce entertain you” is a classic line from an old reading assessment passage. When kids read it aloud, assessors listened for more than just smooth delivery—they hoped for laughter, or at least a chuckle, as a sign the pun landed. Too often, though, the reading was fluent but flat. No chuckle meant the joke flew right over their heads; students weren't picking up on the playful language.

In one district, coaches and a principal were so eager for better results that they printed t-shirts featuring “Lettuce entertain you” with a cartoon head of lettuce. The goal? Prime students to spot the pun. It backfired into a perfect illustration of two broader lessons that apply far beyond reading:

Fluency goes beyond word-calling and prosody—it's also about the fluency of ideas, vocabulary, and real understanding.
Outcomes aren't a competition; chasing short-term wins can undermine genuine mastery.

Fluency

In reading instruction, we often emphasize how smoothly words flow from a student's mouth—rate, accuracy, expression. But we under-discuss the clearest marker of comprehension: real-time emotional responses. A laugh at a pun, a gasp at a twist, or a puzzled frown when something doesn't add up—these are the tells that a reader is truly processing and connecting with the text.

Genre knowledge matters too. In a mystery or whodunit, fluent readers adjust tone for foreshadowing or suspense. True fluency integrates decoding, word knowledge, genre conventions, and quick comprehension.

This isn't unique to reading. Fluency of ideas—the ability to recall and apply mounds of knowledge fluidly, under pressure, with little time to look things up—is a universal hallmark of expertise.

A doctor in the ER doesn't have minutes to Google symptoms; they need instant recall of anatomy, pharmacology, differentials, and protocols to make life-saving calls. That's fluency in medical knowledge.

A chef in a busy kitchen doesn't pause to consult recipes mid-service; they fluidly combine ingredients, techniques, flavors, and timing to plate perfect dishes under the heat of the line. That's fluency in culinary craft.

An artist doesn't deliberate over every brushstroke in isolation; in flow state, they draw on a deep reservoir of techniques, composition principles, color theory, and intuition to create without hesitation. That's fluency in creative expression.

States have experimented with measuring aspects of this in reading. Tennessee came close around 2020 with a foundational literacy fluency component on the TCAP ELA assessment (especially in Grade 2). It was a simple yet powerful timed task: students read short, grade-level statements and quickly marked YES or NO to indicate if each was true. In a minute or so, it gauged decoding speed, basic vocabulary, and instant comprehension—exposing gaps that many elementary programs overlook . See the snippet below:

It promised actionable insights for teachers across the state, but the component was later de-emphasized or phased out. Still, the idea endures: tools that blend speed, accuracy, and meaning reveal more than isolated drills, whether in reading or any domain.

Some educators now use assessments that track vocabulary breadth, listening comprehension, and overall progress to build this deeper fluency. As more schools adopt rich, knowledge-building curricula that weave in history, science, literature, and beyond, we see kids not just decoding words but engaging ideas with curiosity and joy—laughing at clever wordplay, debating concepts, applying knowledge fluidly.

That leads to the second lesson. When pressure mounts to boost scores or rankings, some turn to shortcuts—like handing kids the punchline via t-shirts or excessive drill-and-kill prep. It might edge up short-term metrics, but it shortcuts real mastery.

A student who infers just enough from context to pass a test by a hair still misses out if everyday puns, idioms, or humor sail past unnoticed. The same principle holds in any field: surface-level performance without deep, fluent knowledge rings hollow when real demands hit.

The heart of education, especially a liberal arts approach, is connection: linking ideas, people, and experiences in ways that endure. When we prioritize genuine fluency—of words, ideas, and application—over competitive edges, we prepare people better for whatever comes next, whether it's a tough diagnosis, a high-pressure service, a blank canvas, or simply enjoying a clever joke.

Keep focusing on what matters—building fluency in words, ideas, and the joy of mastery. The real rewards show up not just in scores, but in the chuckles, quick thinking, and confident flow that follows.

Life Data, Part 2

Sat, 05 Apr 2025 23:23:16 GMT

Tracking Life's Data, Part 2: Extremist Edition

I've written about my process for collecting and analyzing internal Life Data through time tracking-- but the next step is a bit extremist.

In today’s entry, I’ll share another step from my personal annual review process– which is a very inefficient task– but valuable nonetheless.

First, I create a stack of data, from one of my daily practices, doing Julia Cameron’s Morning Pages.

Every morning I wake up, feed the cats, turn the coffee on, then I write three pages in my journal. That’s it. I just get whatever is in my head and soul out onto the page.

I don’t re-read. I just close the book, then engage in my other practices– which are prayer, reading the bible, then some form of exercise.

However, four years ago I started to re-read the entries, document them in a spreadsheet, and look for trends, moods and tones . It's a new year's tradition at this point, completed during the last week of December.

It’s a long process because I fill 4 notebooks. Each of the notebooks contains 251 pages . I prefer the LEUCHTTURM 1917 notebooks because there’s a space for a table of contents, lines and page numbers, which makes documentation easy.

The Process

To do my Year In Review, I re-read, do a qualitative analysis of the tone, topics and my calendar, then I enter the findings in a spreadsheet. The categories I document are date, page number, theme (if there is one), a learning and I assign it a positive, neutral or negative for mood value.

Here’s an example from Book 1, 2022:

Book 1, 2022

January was tough that year. My stepfather, who raised me and with whom I had a difficult relationship with, was diagnosed with cancer. And my daughter was away at college, in an emergency room, with COVID and possible blood clots. There’s a lot of sadness and anxiety in these entries. I had my first blood clot in my calf earlier that year, so I was scared for my oldest kid.

2 weeks later, on page 197 , I documented other insights. Dad died. We were near him. In fact, I was on a zoom call with a funder on the minute of his last breath. Seeing my father ill , I started smoking again and craved being an underdog, to start over at something, to try something new.

2 months later, in Book 2, I found what was spiking joy– writing short stories and studying the craft. I also began to see creativity as a daily practice and started thinking about leaving my job. Perhaps the contemplation of mortality, based on the death of Dad, made me start contemplating other career and life choices.

And then later in May:

May 2022, Book 2

From the entry on page 158, I learned that Rachmaninoff brings me joy, as does the writer Lydia Davis, and I was grateful for participating in The Creatives Workshop by Akimbo and Seth Godin. Seeing my daughter graduate and reading a friend’s writing also struck joy. However, on page 161, there were negative themes around work-- which I'll share at some point. As a result, a few weeks later I made the decision and left.

So why is this process important?

For me, it allows me to be more conscious in my decision making. I have good qualitative data as evidence for what brings me joy, what my challenges are. As a result, I gain more discernment.

In knowing this, I now know how to better spend my time, what challenges are worth engaging in and what challenges need to be avoided, just because it may be a waste of time and energy or the challenges don’t align to my 2026 goals.

As part of my coaching package, From Dark to Diamond , I help other introverted men to develop similar systems for collecting life-data in order help them make conscious choices instead of reactionary ones. If you want to learn more, email me at james@miningandshining.com or visit the miningandshinig.com website.

Remember, the first excavation call is free and I guarantee some insight.

Tracking You Life Data

Thu, 05 Sep 2024 16:40:45 GMT

Ask better questions of yourself and take action through time tracking

A few years ago, I read Peter Drucker’s book, The Effective Executive. There are so many lessons , but there was one that resonated a lot: The Importance of Time Tracking. Often we put events and tasks on our calendars, but life happens and sometimes we don’t get to all of them.

Curious about my real time usage, I downloaded the Boosted App. Boosted is a time tracker that helps you track projects and tasks, but is very adaptable. Personally, I use the Projects to define a general category, and the tasks to define the subcategories.

For instance, under the category of “Work”, I track time in meetings, time doing administrative work, time in classrooms, and time spent creating plans and strategy.

Under Creativity, I track the subcategories of composing, editing, and reading.

It’s super adaptable– it depends on your values and what you’re curious about. A snapshot of one of my reports is above.

As a result of this report, I noticed an immediate flag–you probably see it, too.

I wasn’t spending enough time with family and other people.

I decided to take action.

I signed up for a class so as to be social and to learn something new; we committed to going to church physically instead of listening online; my wife and I are now committed to weekly hikes in Tennessee ; and I started attending a weekly men’s breakfast.

In other words, the data gleaned from using the Boosted App brought me a ton of value that I wouldn’t have otherwise. The best part, I think it was free or a .99 cent download.

Give it a try– you may be surprised by what you learn– especially if you are consciously designing a life you want to live.

There are other tools I use, but this is one of the more powerful ones. Over the next few weeks I’ll share each of them and illustrate the value they bring me based on my values. For you, MINING and SHINING IDEA LAB helps introverted leaders develop internal data tracking practices to help them make more conscious decisions when pursuing a goal.

It looks different for everybody, but it’s 100% essential– especially for those who like to process information before they act. To signup for an Excavation Call, use this link or visit miningandshining.com.

Ambiguity of Silence

Fri, 30 Aug 2024 02:21:16 GMT

Reduce ambiguity by speaking up.

There are different shades of silence. Some silences have an edge to them, while others are so unnoticeable that you don’t know that they’re there at all. Regardless of what category of silence we are discussing, there’s one attribute that most forms of silence share– and that’s ambiguity, which can be detrimental. I learned this early in life and I relearn it often– even now, less than one month away from my 50th birthday.

As an introverted leader, silence has become my most loyal partner– along with countless books, classes, small teams, walks, journals, and data. While silence helps me process thoughts, listen, create and re-energize, it also creates ambiguity if I don’t share those thoughts, takeaways and creations with people. As a consequence of this partnership with silence, ambiguity allows people to employ guesswork to create your narrative for you, or to make assumptions about you or your work, or to overlook you, and all of that, in my opinion, is dangerous.

Why?

Because the narratives and assumptions may not be true at all. Then you have to make the decision to respond and react to dispel it OR to let it go. It’s not a good use of time because it’s reactive. If you’re an introverted leader, you may be in a perpetual battle between sharing and not sharing; who to share with and who not to share with; when to share; and how not to be awkward.

I get it.

But in my experience, it’s just better to share, to get your thinking out in the world, so that people know where you stand and who you are.

It’s not that easy to do.

It takes courage, audacity ,getting out of your comfort zone, practice and an understanding of incentives.

Now that I’m on a school leadership hiatus and launching a Jungian Coaching Practice, I find myself driven by different questions and incentives than before.

One of those questions is simply about potential: How many solutions and ideas never get executed because an introverted leader never shared it?

It’s a simple question that puts 100% of the responsibility on those of us who fit the “introvert” descriptors. There’s a reason for this. Most organizations favor extroverted leaders and workplaces. Frankly, I don’t think that’s going to change, nor should we expect it to. Therefore, the responsibility to change and share is on the individual introvert.

Again, it’s not easy, but the consequence of not doing it could be detrimental to all.

While it’s easy to become our own obstacle by bemoaning the extroverted world and hanging onto the label as being an introvert, a more fulfilling life may be to take responsibility and exercise courage to make change happen.

And that’s why MINING and SHINING IDEA LAB exists to help other introverted leaders contribute to the world while tapping into unrealized potential. Sign up for a 20 minute Excavation Call today using this link /

Fasting from Leadership and Other Self-Inflicted Sabbaticals

Thu, 15 Aug 2024 16:10:30 GMT

What are you doing to renew, relearn, and reprioritize?

I remember listening to an interview between Tim Ferris and Jerry Colonna, the famed CEO coach. I was excited to listen to the conversation as Jerry's book Reboot set the stage for me to enroll in an ICF program for Jungian Coaching. During the interview, I learned that Jerry goes on sabbaticals to recharge, refresh, and rejuvenate. It helps him be a better coach, a more present human, a better father, and loyal friend.

From June- November, I fasted from leadership and focused my energy on becoming a Jungian Coach and to review and study leadership and charter schools-- where I've spent the last 14 years of my life. While I’ve not taken time off to rest, per se, fasting from educational leadership– has been a powerful experience. Stepping away does helped me feel rested, but also allows newer perspectives to emerge as I worked through my days.

Many of the insights and learnings helped me identify an organization I could serve authentically while also finding ways to apply lessons from my six-month hiatus and fast . Some of those changes are based on a series of talks I posted on my YouTube Channel-- The Courage Gap .

The channel itself is not for the faint of heart nor is it entertaining-- but it served its purpose in helping me readjust.

One of those perspectives is, why don’t more organizations prioritize sabbaticals or leadership fasts for leaders?

In my day industry, an 8-week sabbatical, on a cycle of three-years, could do wonders for school leaders, district leaders and network leaders alike.

Yes, there’s the rest and rejuvenation element– but there’s also the perspective you gain about yourself, the people around you and the field of education with all of its complexities and nuanced challenges.

Sometimes engaging in the day-to-day , the urgent, and the tactical just doesn’t allow enough space to evaluate current tactics and strategies – and so we continue on autopilot, and sometimes get burnt out. Allowing leaders a sabbatical helps them observe the sector from a distance, and more objectively. With that comes new opportunities to do things better and differently because you take the time to see things that way.

And the public doesn’t necessarily need to foot the bill for school leader sabbaticals. There are a lot of creative people in the world, and I’m sure there’s some finance team that could build a fast growing fund for leaders to invest in their sabbaticals in some pretax way.

We just have to think differently.

If that’s not possible, although I think it is, then engaging in leadership micro-fasting by visiting another district , network and city works just fine.

When I was a principal and principal manager, I made it a point to visit another city and other schools just to reset, learn, and contribute.

Here’s why it was valuable:

It’s an incentive: In order to do one of these trips to another network , school , and city, it’s imperative to make sure your own school is running well. You can’t really be absent from your school if it’s not running at a high level. This is just not just because it’s the wrong thing to do, it’s also because you want to be fully present on these trips. If you are receiving calls and texts because things have gone awry, it’s just too hard to focus.
Learning: There’s nothing better than visiting another school and walking with different leaders– especially if their model and program is different than yours. In fact, it should be a little different– even a lot different-– because new knowledge happens when we evaluate the differences between what we know and what we encounter. Plus the perspective of other leaders is valuable.
Contribute and Connect: Any time I’ve done a visit to another school, other leaders ask for feedback or some kind of debrief. It’s a generous exchange for everybody AND you just connected with somebody whom you can email in the future with a question.

So this week, ask yourself what you’re doing to renew, reflect and learn. It’s important and could save your career.

But if you want more of a cognitive and spiritual workout that affords reflection, renewal and learning, Jungian coaching might be for you. It will help you become more creative, unstuck and may change your perspective on a lot of things– with that comes opportunities. Additionally, it helps you step away from the urgent, to settle in, to think, and to re-evaluate. So, it’s kind of like a micro-sabbatical every couple of weeks. You deserve at least that, don’t you? Email me at james@miningandshining.com for a free Resilience Assessment OR persona assessment and a consultation.

A Year without Summer PD-- A Reflection and a Preview

Thu, 08 Aug 2024 16:15:04 GMT

Reflecting on a Leadership Persona

Summer of '24 was the first time I wasn't involved in the first days of school or the summer professional development. The feeling was complex-- a mixture of nostalgia, pride , sadness , isolation and regret-- partially because my role and persona in education was not in play and I failed to integrate into a new one.

To reflect , I spent an afternoon reviewing several videos from over the years, and was reintroduced to team members I miss dearly. Many of them are now in school or network leadership. Some have moved onto careers in other industries, and some consult.

Here are a couple of things I'm proud of:

Practice the Leads to Muscle Memory and Resilience: My favorite videos illustrate how much we practiced. Practice helped create muscle memory, but repeated practice with feedback built resilience. We transformed the gymnasium into four classrooms while keeping the center area clear for presentation. In each of the micro classrooms, there were 10 student desks organized in two rows of five, an easel, and a carpet. We spent a lot of time practicing the transition from desk-to-carpet, then carpet to desk . The idea was to make practice as real as possible. To ensure the practice was effective, each area had its own coach, and I was perched on the second floor with a birds eye view, overseeing it all and filming. From that vantage point, I could also walkie or call down feedback to the coach team. Everybody practiced and repeated practice until we reached proficiency.
Fostering Deep Internalization and Ownership: Additionally, I reviewed a "State of the First Grade" briefing I asked one of my assistant principals to do that same year. Her work was meticulous. She analyzed all elements of the grade level, including the attendance records of every child, growth data, absolute data and action steps to improve outcomes. The document was 25 pages long, but it served as a road map for her and the teachers she managed. She presented it to her team in July, three weeks before the kids came in. The achievement and growth that year was outstanding. In the upper grades, teachers made double-digit gains on the state test. I attribute all gains to the depth of knowledge acquired by our APs-- it fostered a sense of ownership like nothing I'd witnessed before.

Here are a few things I regret:

Trapping myself in a role. My best PD was done at the building level. Back when I was a principal, there was very little oversight from the central office-- so my team could design PD aligned to the needs of the school. However, as I rose up to the network and national level, there was less creativity and less responsiveness to local needs. My first year or two as a principal manager, I managed to be responsive to the region, and I made it known. However, after my colleagues in the national cabinet categorized me as "going rogue", I aligned myself more to the centralized vision and national plans regardless of how effective, relevant or ineffective the plans were. There's a self-consciousness and low-grade fear of losing your job the higher up you go. You become the face of a region, yet are expected to uphold the centralized tactics and priorities despite how irrelevant they may be. In other words , my role and persona as a senior executive made me brittle and stifled in my approach. The centralized team even provided a speech writer to ensure my words were aligned. This episode of The Courage Gap covers the overarching issues of centralization-- especially when it comes to charter school growth and the political nature of the role.
Family : Missing in action. H ere’s where the regret comes in, it’s what I don’t see. I don’t see any photos or videos of my own children on their first days of school. Between both daughters, there would have been 26 first days total. And I wasn’t present for any of them– not a single one. I regret it. Instead of being with them, I began crafting my persona as a “leader”. On Sundays, I’d go into the building and work for 8-9 hours, preparing for the week. There was always a desire to be more “hardcore” and more “all in”– especially, because I worked for mission driven organizations. In truth, there was a lot of ego on my part– because the ego’s job is to help build the persona. And there was also a sense of leadership shame– that if you didn’t show up , you didn’t care about the students. There was a brief period of time when the phrase, “So and So is not good for kids” was the ultimate insult. I heard it used by a few managers across different organizations: “So and so was 3 minutes late to the meeting. He or she is not good for kids.”

Ouch.

Depending on the persona we wear, we can become calloused. For me, I was definitely stuck in Warrior mode for a good portion of my career– and it is exhausting. My beard is aspirin-white and just as brittle. What I’ve learned is that I didn’t integrate other elements of myself into leadership roles at first, because I let myself get stuck in the warrior role– essentially using it as my operating system for a few years.

Nowadays, the warrior is still there when necessary, taking a nap. It’s the roles of the coach, father and creative that are getting more airtime.

If you’re curious about how you’re showing up, reach out for a free persona quiz by emailing james@miningandshining.com . Then Sign Up for a free consultation– we can talk about what your results mean.

How Do You Engage Resistance?

Thu, 01 Aug 2024 19:36:06 GMT

Getting past obstacles and following your curiosity...

From June-November, I'd throw on a backpack and go rucking in silence in the morning for the first 3 miles. The act of doing the first three miles in quietude is significant as a personal practice. The weight on my back is felt for the first half-mile, then it’s normalized, almost unnoticeable. With the exception of having to heave up on the straps to reallocate the weight every few hundred meters, I barely think about it. The silence forces me to listen to the ambient sounds around the neighborhood-- birds, traffic, car doors opening and closing, the random conversation of other walkers.

Because my listening is tuned to the frequency of the world around me, so is my sight– it follows the sounds. I’ve put 104 hours on the road in the last two months , and have encountered and absorbed a myriad of information and insights, whether I’m conscious of it or not. For instance, today I noticed the bars covering the entrance of a tunnel. I’m surprised that this is the first time I’ve noticed.

In the evenings, there are sometimes families flocked near the tunnel. Like most of the neighborhood, they likely don’t know where it leads. The tunnel could lead to the Harpeth River, by going under the busy Carruthers roadway. Or it may lead to Alabama. We don’t know. Parents sit on the drought-brown pockets of grass on the knoll, in conversation, watching the kids, keeping them safe, then take a few glances at their cell phones. The kids explore the trickle of water, flip stones, play, and stick their faces between the bars to see what’s beyond the tunnel’s entrance.

The bars are there for safety. They exist to cause resistance, preventing people from getting into the tunnel to explore it and journey to the other side, wherever it may lead. But that’s obvious, right? Regardless, here are some insights from that walk:

The Bars are illusive: The message of the bars is, “ Do not enter. Danger lies ahead”, and yet the gap between each bar is wide. I’ll be 50 years soon, and I'm small enough to get between them– if only I can overcome my mind and push myself to explore. With almost 100% certainty, kids have tried it– especially if their parents aren’t supervising. Resistance is like the bars at the tunnel’s entrance. Resistance tells you “you can’t”, but when you look at it closely, you can get by it– the gaps are big enough– all it takes is a little courage.
The Tunnel will be uncomfortable: Getting past the bars is only the first obstacle, then it’s time for the journey. The tunnel is an uncomfortable 36 inches in circumference, which means a person either crouches the whole way or positions himself to crawl on the damp concrete– not knowing what’s on the other side. There will likely be discomfort. The bigger you are, literally and metaphorically, the more uncomfortable it is. It takes commitment and courage to get to the other side– and there are no guarantees.
No Guarantees: What’s on the other side of the tunnel could be a quarry, a garbage heap. or a site so unimaginably beautiful that you rejoice in what you find. But there are no guarantees. That’s why it’s important not to get attached to the outcome. There are many tunnels to explore and this is just one of many. While you may need to take your courage to another tunnel to explore, at least you now know that your courage works and is strong. SO long as you have resilience, you should be ok.

Noticing these small lessons in the real world is powerful. The weighted, silent walks help me learn. However, my favorite part of the walk is the last 1.5 miles, when I drop my backpack off at home and continue walking. While I became used to the weight the first few miles, I become aware of the weight as an unconscious burden at the end. Ridding myself of that burden makes me feel free, looser, and able to float through the day– which is why I start everyday the same way: light, unburdened , ready to serve and maybe 1% wiser.

Cultivating Your Leadership Courage by Being Yourself– The Parable of the Suburban Waver

Thu, 25 Jul 2024 17:08:51 GMT

What's your personal leadership "wave" to the world?

Between 6:45 and 7:45 AM, a man in his 70s walks the main thoroughfare near my home. This segment of road connects the rural fairgrounds to a suburban highway populated by mediocre chain restaurants, car dealerships, and supermarkets. From one end of this thoroughfare to the other is five miles– a good trek for anybody, of any age.

But what makes this man peculiar is that he waves at every car that passes by. It’s not a lukewarm greeting, but a vertical stretching of his arms, punctuated by a smile. His vocabulary of waves, smiles and greetings is extensive. My favorite is the two-handed arm raise that he lowers down while extending two fingers, directly pointing at the driver – and his lips yelling, “Good morning.”

The energy is contagious. Drivers smile and wave back. It’s impossible not to at this point.

His practice of waving has been going on for years. Now, drivers expect to see him every morning. They honk, slow down, and acknowledge the Waver to reciprocate. On the few days the Waver doesn’t walk, it’s noticeable. On those days, the part of the world I live in seems different– there’s something absent and its visceral. Once, I saw the Waver at a local coffee shop, and witnessed his brand of celebrity in action. All patrons paused, gawked attentively at the barista, and eavesdropped. She asked him what we all wanted to know, “Are you the guy who waves at everyone in the morning?”

“Yep.”

And that was it. He smiled, paid for his coffee and left. It was perfect..

What I love most is that the Waver’s social media platform is simple. It’s a sidewalk and a busy street. That’s it. Observing the Waver for nearly ten years, here are a few insights I’ve gleaned:

Conjure the Courage to Be You, No Matter What: Waving 100s of times per hour is both eccentric and generous. There’s no guarantee anybody will wave back or if if will help your reputation. In the early days of his practice, he may have been frustrated and drivers may have perceived him as a kook. Going into the world to perform your personal work takes real courage– even if one’s reputation takes a negative shot initially.
Consistency and Persistence Pays Off: Because the Waver consistently shows up, he has led people to expect that small shot of joy every day, at those times. Had he done it on some random Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays, the result wouldn’t be the same. The same would be true if he didn’t persist through storms or the scalding Tennessee Sun.
It's Done in Good Faith: Based on the Waver’s response in the coffee shop, he’s waving to people and spreading positivity because it’s a good thing to do. He knows people like to be seen and acknowledged. He’s not looking for fame or recognition, he just wants the world to have a great day. That’s a task worth waking up for.

I'm going to finish with a question: What's your personal leadership wave to the world? For me, it's posting this blog, creating content and coaching .If you’re an introverted leader wanting the courage to be yourself within your organization, let’s connect .

Foraging in the Suburbs

Thu, 18 Jul 2024 18:57:41 GMT

Save time, money, and build confidence by searching inside ...

Three weeks ago, I had my chance to do some domestic foraging.

Having the house to myself, I decided not to go shopping during the week, opting to search the territory of my house for sustenance. Whatever lurked in the pantry, the freezer and fridge would be fair game. If I turned over a tub of ice cream and found a whole frozen chicken, I’d thaw it, then separate the bird into grillable parts before dooming the rest of the carcass to a pot for soup stock. If there were a bundle of buckwheat noodles tied into a neat cylindrical bale, I could figure something out– but it would take imagination. And if all we had was ketchup and oatmeal, I’d find a way to put the ingredients to use until I could no longer do so.

Of course, I had some cravings and wanted certain meals, but I stayed committed although initially bored with the options. Then, after stewing a bit, solutions became clearer.

There’s a ton of ingredients in the house– some I haven’t seen in months or ever. All I needed was a little imagination and a few minutes to look.

I found some wings, thawed them, air fried them and had a variety of sauces and spices to experiment with. Then I looked deeper in the chest freezer and found three varieties of dumplings– so I made a simple dipping sauce of chives, sesame oil and soy sauce. Lastly, there was a NY Strip steak, soba and salad. I cut the steak into sushi-thin slices, and savored it more with just a dash of sesame oil and sea salt.

It would have been easier to go shopping, to add to our pantry and fridge, but the satisfaction of putting a meal together based on subtraction , imagination and domestic foraging was too delightful– more economical, too. I saved time and money. Going to the store takes 30 minutes to an hour, and the cost of food is outrageous.

But imagine if we committed ourselves to internal foraging when stuck in life. Instead of adding on and looking for solutions outside of ourselves, why not take a deep inventory of our own inner resources, then make something with what we already have. It saves time and creates more value. We’re bigger and have more inside ourselves than we want to know, and that's the problem . Knowing what strengths and attributes are on the inside is scary because knowing is responsibility. Jungian Coaching at MINING and SHINING IDEA LAB, LLC, is here to help. Use this link to book your 20 minute complimentary “Internal Foraging Session” today.

Transitions, Promotions, and Discharging the Loyal Soldier–An Idea to Try On…

Wed, 10 Jul 2024 22:43:09 GMT

Say goodbye to old roles with dignity and honor. Invite people into their new roles with clarity and excitement!

A few years ago, I was recommended the book Falling Upward by Richard Rohr– a Franciscan friar, mystic and founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation.

Prior to this recommendation, I’d seen some of his videos about Enneagram typology. My team loved the Enneagram assessment and found it a good entry point for understanding their peers.

When I learned Father Rohr is considered a “mystic”, I found myself skeptical, uneasy, and a bit triggered. Back then, I perceived myself as a data and analysis guy. Mysticism went against all of that. However, when reading the text, I found there were more “A Ha” moments than not. One of those “A Ha” moments came from reading the story of discharging the loyal soldier.

During WWII, communities in Japan conducted a ceremony for soldiers re-entering society after finishing their wartime obligations. To help with this transition, the soldiers were honored and praised for their war efforts. After being honoring the soldier, an esteemed elder spoke-- directing the soldier to let go of the war, while providing expectations for their reentry into society as peaceful and productive citizens.

There was clarity, honor, and a separation made between the past and the future. It dawned on me that we don’t do this enough in our organizations.

As such, I found myself jotting questions:

What could a Discharging Your Loyal Teacher ritual look like for a person promoted out of the classroom and into the position of Assistant Principal or coach? How about for principals becoming principal managers or leaders transitioning out of the organization to pursue new challenges?

Implementing rituals and ceremonies for Discharging the Loyal Soldiers within organizations could benefit us all:

BENEFITS

Honoring the Past: This is healthy for everyone. Sharing past triumphs and accomplishments feels good for the honoree and all other people in the room. Add gratitude, and it's even better!
Clarity on Expectations : Because the loyal soldier is being discharged and transitioning to a new role, clarity of those expectations is important for everyone involved. Had the Japanese soldiers of WWII only been praised and discharged without expectations for the future, there may not have been any transition in any real sense of the word. Instead, the soldier may have gone out into the world as a soldier during peacetime, which could be dangerous. The same could happen in organizations as staff are promoted to new roles, but remain unclear as to what the expectations of the role are .
Separation and Integration: I’ve used the rearview mirror vs windshield analogy often. As a rule, I used the analogy to focus my team more on the future during data talks or staff meetings. I aimed for a ratio of 80% future-focused talk and planning VS 20% past. Looking at the past, we mined for strengths, replicable actions, and root causes. The rest of the time was future-facing, vision setting, and getting clear on expectations while inspiring hope. A Discharging the Loyal Soldier ceremony should do the same.

Decorum and Structures

I’m a fan of decorum, structures and formalities when it comes to organizational rituals. If done well, they feel like secular holidays that employees look forward to a few times a year. Over my tenure in charter schools, I’ve been very fortunate to work for organizations that do this well, and I’ll share those experiences soon in another post. Until then, here are a few things to consider when setting up a ceremony :

Have Witnesses : We all love transparency. By holding the ceremony in front of an audience, onlookers can learn how to rise to the next level while becoming clearer as to what is expected of different positions at that particular time. Moreover, it may give people a goal to strive for, a personal vision for excellence while pursuing their personal mythology.
Be Formal: Have you ever been invited to a party or event, then show up and there’s no balloons nor decorations to signify its importance? I have, and it feels like any other day. Ceremonies should feel different– there should be something pattern-breaking about them so as to become memorable, desirable and something people look forward to .
Provide Tokens and Symbols: A token or symbol goes a long way in a ceremony. Be sure to provide honorees with something soulful to hold onto during the tough times , when the person needs to remember the new role that he or she has taken on .

If your organization has a promotion ceremony for staff, I’d love to hear about it. Just reply in the comments or send me a note.

And if your organization would like to collaborate to create a ceremony unique to your people and needs, send me a note.