Archive for July 2020
Take A Step on the Moon
When I was entering high school the Soviet Union had just put Yuri Gargain into space on April 12, 1961. Americans were stunned that the Russians were capable of this and a young President, John F. Kennedy, captured the moment and inspired us to put a man on the moon by the end of the…
Read MoreBe Open to Outcome
Have you ever noticed how things don’t work out exactly as we’ve planned? Have you ever gone to the store, knowing exactly what you want, and come home frustrated because you just couldn’t find the perfect thing? And then you go another time with no real specifics in mind, and find many things that seem…
Read MoreFollow What Has Heart and Meaning
Working with children and youth cannot be successful if you don’t have an authentic interest in working with them and acting as both teacher and learner. To be successful with youth it is essential that you “want” to interact with them and be part of their lives. Working with youth is not for the faint…
Read MoreFirst Impression
A first impression is exactly that, a first impression. It happens within the first minute of meeting someone. In that moment we size people up and begin to “categorize” them and ask ourselves who they are most like that we already know. For youth, part of this sizing up is determining whether or not you…
Read MoreAsking For Help
One of the ways we can all put our best foot forward is by asking for help when we need it. There are many jokes about people who are driving and are incredibly lost, but refuse to stop and ask for help. I am reminded of the Vacation movie when Chevy Chase is “stuck” driving…
Read MoreStart With “Why”
Simon Sinek’s book, Start With Why discusses the importance of knowing why we do the work we do and then sharing that why with anyone who will listen. Sinek describes what he calls the Golden Circle. At the center of this circle is the WHY? This circle describes the reason we do what we do. …
Read MoreImportance of Mindset
Whether you call it your mindset, your paradigm, or your world view, we are talking about the lens that you look through, intentionally or not, and interpret the world around you and your place in it. Dependent upon your age, this lens has been honed by years of messages from those around you, your own…
Read MoreSeeing Youth As Assets
A youth development approach to working with young people is focused on the notion “youth are an asset to be developed” rather than a problem to be fixed. If you look at more traditional approaches to working with youth the pattern has been to identify a problem—for example using drugs and alcohol—and then developing a…
Read MoreStop and Smell the Roses
This is a very interesting expression and probably one that is even more important today than it was when it was first coined. Today it seems we get up earlier, spend more time working than with family, race from appointment to appointment or meeting to meeting, are highly overscheduled, and at the mercy of folks…
Read MoreThe Attitude Behind “Thanks”
As parents we teach our young children to say “Thank you” when someone gives them something. We call “Thank You” and “Please” magic words. Children learn to use these words more and more naturally, and parents discover they don’t need to remind them any more with the question, “What do you say?” I am wondering…
Read More