Not Giving Up!

Although we have never met, I have followed Adam Welcome for some time on social media. I have read his books and have been inspired by his work. This past year I was humbled to have him join the Aspiring Leaders cohort that I created a few years ago. Adam is always posting motivational snippets, and a recent one was the punch in the gut that I needed.

Here’s the background story….
I have my school administrator’s license and after countless applications, resumes and even interviews, I have not landed that coveted position. This past year, I thought “I’m done. I’m truly happy with what I’m doing, so I’m going to keep refining that”. I even thought “Heck, I’m *sorta* close to retirement (then found out I wasn’t), I’ll finish, move to the beach and start something new”.

Then Adam posted about how when he first started speaking he did it for free just to get his face/name out there. His recent videos have talked about working twice as hard to get what you want. What really got me was a video saying “he just doesn’t give up”.

Why am I giving up?

Why am not continuing my “Dream Big”?

So I recently reached out to a few friends for advice. No more giving up for me!

Although I hold my administrative license, this fall I am pushing myself to do another “internship” on my own. I have contacted people to get this ball moving. Yes, I remember how busy I was, but I’M NOT GIVING UP! I’m willing to put in the hours and work with others to make connections and see what I need to do to move to the next step in my career.

So, thank you Adam and ALL my supporters who I’ve reached out to recently, and the ones who will be contacted in the future! We’re going to #DreamBig!

#oneword for 2019

a·ware

/əˈwer/

adjective

having knowledge or perception of a situation or fact.

When I sat and thought about what my 2019 #oneword would be I kept circling back to the same thoughts. It dawned on me then that my word had to be “aware.

Throughout the past several years I have been struggling with ‘what I want to do’ ‘where I want to go’, and ultimately ‘how am I going to get there’. I’ve recently reflected and thought maybe there have been signs that I have missed because I am too focused on one narrow path. Perhaps my “dream job” has been shadowed over by what I perceive as my “dream job”. I need to be more aware of the possibilities and options around me!

Sometimes I get caught in the “twitterverse” or “InstaWorld” and need to be aware that I am who I am, and that is perfectly fine! I need to celebrate others, but not compare myself to those other people. We are each unique and all add great value. I vow to make myself more aware of the great things going on in my life and celebrate others in a truly authentic manner.

I will make myself more aware of my health and physical being. I will set realistic goals and be aware of what my body is telling me. No more pushing or trying fads. I will concentrate on me and what feels best for me and my overall health.

I will be aware of the gifts of friendship I have been blessed with and make sure that these people are aware of their value in my life. I surely wouldn't be where I am today without some amazing friends and role models!

I vow to be more present in everyday life! See the joys, see the happiness and make everyday count. I will be aware of my surroundings and see the beauty of the people, places and things I get to encounter.

This is MY year of awareness and I am VERY excited to be on this journey!!

Why YOU should be a mentor!

Mentoring often occurs organically once a new school leader enters your building or district. You take them under your wing, you help them through the paperwork, you’re the listening ear that they need. It’s a friendship that forms and often lasts for years.

But have you considered reaching out and mentoring ASPIRING school leaders? Guiding them and encouraging them prior to them entering the field? You MUST! Here’s why:

• Aspiring School Leaders learn pedagogy and theory in leadership programs. It’s YOU as practicing school leaders that can share with them the day to day “real life” of a administrator.
• Remember your first year? Wish you knew something more prior to going in? Now’s your time to give back and help others!
• You know what you’re looking for in a fellow administrator. Share this so the TOP candidates are out looking for jobs. GROW our profession.
• Think of a person who has made a huge impact on you - now pay that forward.
• It’s such a HUGE gift to give that takes little time each month. Make a phone call, Vox, do a Google Hangout, email. Relationships matter and help mentees tremendously!

Mentoring is a small thing that adds up to BIG rewards to a future leader. Are you ready? Do you support building greatness for our students by bringing top leaders into schools? Can you commit to having this authentic, helping relationship for the next ten months? No set times, you and your protege decide what works best for you.

We have a cohort of aspiring leaders ready for you! We are in need of leaders in ALL areas!!

--- Not ready to mentor, but still feel you have something to offer --- 

We also host short webinars for these aspiring leaders. If you would be interested in sharing your experience this way we would also appreciate your support.  Sign up or suggest your area of expertise!

Mentoring does change lives! Sign up here -- http://bit.ly/AspiringLeadersMentor18

This is the second year of our amazing support program -- check out what we did in year one: www.dreambigmentorship.com

Aspiring Leaders Cohort 2018 - 2019

Are you an Aspiring School Leader? Are you following the #NAESP and the #NCP conference through social media and thinking “that will be me someday?” Then THIS cohort is for you!

According to the National Association of Secondary School Principals, “the demand for elementary, middle and high school principals will grow 6 percent nationwide” over the next four years. 

Do you feel prepared? Having a mentor at any stage of your career is so beneficial, but often doesn't happen after student teaching, unless people personally seek a mentor out. Time constraints and location can often prevent strong mentoring relationships from being formed.

Today, online relationships are often how we connect for personal growth and learning - edchats, blogs, webinars and personal PLNs --- strong mentoring relationships can also be built through these same digital means!

There are SO many great leaders across the United States that are willing to reach out and support the next generation of school leaders! Our goal is to support aspiring leaders through a series of webinars held by some of these inspiring top leaders.

Webinar topics include:

• Interviewing tips
• The “behind the scenes” of administration
• Tech tools and tips for growth
• Work/Life Balance
• Resume / Cover Letter Building

In addition to the FREE webinars, we want to match experienced leaders up with future leaders in mentoring relationships. We have personally experienced and know the value of mentorship and know it doesn't have to occur face-to-face. Tools such as Voxer, Google Hangouts, etc will be utilized to make these unique relationships happen.

Could you use the support? Know someone who could?

Even if you are thinking about only watching the webinars, please take a few minutes to register below. This will help us see what webinar topics would be most helpful to you as an aspiring leader.
http://bit.ly/AspiringLeadersMentee18

Still not sure? Check out what we did last year - www.dreambigmentorship.com. Almost half of the active participants in the cohort landed admin roles this year!!!

ARE YOU ALREADY A SCHOOL LEADER????? Sound like giving back and helping others? Join us -- YOU are exactly what we need to make the program successful!

Sign up today to be a mentor or a webinar host.

http://bit.ly/AspiringLeadersMentor18\

Women in Leadership

                            
I’m currently co-leading a Voxer book chat using Chip and Dan Heath’s book The Power of Moments. The book is truly amazing, and talks about how events in our lives evolve into defining moments. I am so beyond words right now, as the past few days have been peaks of defining moments for me!

On Sunday I was able to meet in person (and finally hug) my mentor and friend Jennifer Hogan. For those who follow Jennifer on social media she is every bit as amazing as she appears! She has been an inspiration and mentor to me for a few years, but to see her in action truly has confirmed my desire to be a leader and continue to share her vision.

I came to Alabama to attend the 1st Women in Educational Leadership Summit. Monday was a morning full of connecting and learning from dedicated, inspiring, educated women who want to move our profession forward. I listened, took notes, and was thoroughly engaged with every word said at every session I attended. Afterwards I again met with Jennifer and I am so dedicated to bringing an event like this to Ohio that I have already started making contacts back home!

As women in education, and leadership, we have to continue to build and support each other. There is a wealth of knowledge available to us, not only in our buildings and districts, but through social media and through PLNs (personal learning networks) and we have to start sharing our message with others. 

We have to start growing our next generation of female leaders as well. We need our students to share their voice and start dreaming about their future. We need to encourage, support and be mentors.

I highly encourage looking through the #wmnleadsummit18 hashtag and start thinking about what you can do to make this happen in your area for 2019! We are better together.

Dream Big!

Interviewing Tips (Aspiring Leaders Webinar)

Last week some of the Aspiring Leaders mentors (Dr. Asia Armstrong, Theresa Stager and Karen Wood) shared their best tips for interviewing on a must see webinar (will be posted soon on www.dreambigmentorship.com/webinars)

Their tips are definitely worth sharing to all job seekers though! Check out these tips to ace your next interview!

#My3Words for 2018

This year I have decided to follow Chris Brogan and choose three words to guide me through 2018. Last year, I chose believe as my #oneword, and as I allowed myself to believe in myself and others, I grew. Reflecting on that and what may help me this year, I choose dream, evolve and reflect as #my3words for 2018. 

DREAM

For those who know me, in 2017, I took some of my dreams and turned them into reality. I am truly humbled by the support and the outcomes of the projects, but, I’m not done. I have a lot more dreaming to do! There are many ideas I have jotted down in notebooks and my ultimate dream of becoming a school leader is still something I am working towards. NOTHING is out of our realm of possibilities, and we need to believe that hard work will make these all attainable! I will continue to dream and will encourage others to #DreamBig with me.

EVOLVE

I plan to evolve as an educator and learner this year. I will grow with and from my PLN (Personal Learning Network) and refine my practice. As I move towards a new journey into leadership, there is no doubt that I will evolve. I have more professional goals, and as I work on these, I will evolve. I am confident that the connections that I have made with the many wonderful educators throughout the US will help me evolve this year. I’m counting on all of you!

REFLECT

I am a huge advocate for personal reflection to help growth. This year, I will reflect more often and do so with intention and purpose. I want my reflections to drive my growth and thoughts towards improvement. I plan to journal my reflections better and share with others so they can foster my growth as well.

I am so excited about the possibilities of 2018. 

It is sure to be another year of learning, newness and excitement! 

Journey in Learning

I never would have thought that when I named my blog “Journey in Learning” that I would write an entire post on it, but 2017 has definitely been a Journey in Learning! 

In 2017, after, well, many years, I found my personal strength, my voice, my passion. I found my fight, my determination and my resiliency. I found me! I encourage others to do the same.

Build on Your Passions

Special Education will ALWAYS be a passion of mine. I’ve taught Special Education for over 15 years at various levels. So this spring I ran with it! I am humbled to share that I was able to create, organize and run Ohio’s first SpEdCamp! In its first year, over 75 educators came together to talk about supporting students with special needs. SpEdCamp 2018 is already being planned with plans to be bigger and support even more people and students!

What’s your passion? Turn it into reality!

Take Risks - Try Something New

This year I took risks and tried new things! I hosted Twitter EdChats, mentored, presented at a conference, switched jobs, created an online mentoring community (see below), hosted book chats, started a website, and attended conferences.

Spread your wings -- fly!

Things to try in 2018:

• Voxer Book Chats 
• Twitter Chats (host or co-host one!) 
• Attend an EdCamp 
• Present at a conference 
• Create a MakerSpace 
• Blog 
• Try a new teaching strategy or implement something new in your building 
• Join a committee in your school/district 
• Volunteer 

DREAM BIG

This summer I dreamed of creating a mentoring program for aspiring leaders such as myself. Waiting to be mentored until I got into the field seemed counterproductive. I want to learn and better myself now. So, I put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) and created the #AspiringLeaders cohort! We are a small, mighty group of dedicated future and current school leaders that are learning and growing together through organic mentorship relationships (connecting through email, voxer, telephone) and bi-monthly webinars! Check us out - Dream Big Mentorship

The biggest thing I learned in 2017 is that you need to have a vision and you can’t lose sight of it! People may tell you no, that you won’t be successful, that you lack skills, etc. Nonsense. Go after it! #DREAMBIG

Reflect and Be Resilient

After another round of applications and unsuccessful interviews, I reflected and realized that what I thought were the “perfect” jobs, probably weren’t the right ones for me after all. I learned from all of these. After each interview, I took notes. I’ve refined my portfolio and resume. I’ve increased my skills. I’ve talked to my mentors. I’ve read, and read, and read!

I’m ready to conquer 2018!

If I had successfully found a leadership job I’m not sure the 2nd half of 2017 would have been as epic as it has been! Good things come to those who wait, right?

My Journey in Learning has been filled with many other life lessons this year. I grew. I continue to grow. I am happy, but I am also ready for 2018! How would you define your Journey in Learning this year?