"Labor of Love Weekend"

You have to admit…we have it pretty nice in education. What other profession begins a year only to have a holiday weekend following their GRAND OPENING???

I hope your GRAND OPENING was indeed Grand, and that you take time this weekend to perhaps give some attention where attention may be needed the most…with your family.

With the hustle and bustle that a new year brings, many, if not all, work long hours well into the evening and even into the weekends, to insure a smooth start. The craziness of a new school year hits you in the workplace as well as on the home front.

This Labor Day, I’d have you to consider making it a “Labor of Love Weekend.” Reconnect with your family, leave your cell phone on mute, resist the urge to go into the office to “catch-up” – I guarantee your building WILL be there on Tuesday and will pay $1,000.00 to anyone who’s building explodes because they didn’t go in or respond to an email or text immediately.

As a kid I worked in a cemetery during the summer months…NEVER did I read “I wish I would have spent more time at the office” on ANYONE’S tombstone…just sayin…

Be good to yourself…be good to your family…enjoy your Labor of Love Weekend…

Peace and all good things…

Coffee Anyone?

Don’t know about you, but I’m a morning person…always have been.  I love the peace and quiet of a new morning enjoying a cup of coffee, my mind wandering…wondering…no phones ringing to distract me, my cell phone on silent…just thinking…about everything…about nothing.

Have you ever given much thought of why our eyes are where they are? Of ALL the places on our body they could have been they ended up where it is they are…looking FORWARD…looking ahead.

As leaders, I find this particularly important! As leaders, our focus must be on the road ahead, anticipating, calculating, preparing for where our path is leading and searching for better paths as we move forward. I find it curious, that when we’re forced to look back, we must stop our forward progression to do so. On OCCASION, this is a good thing, as at times, it is important to look back to see how far we’ve come.  We just need to be careful that we don’t spend too much time looking back…our eyes face FORWARD for a reason…

Enjoy your cup of coffee…

Take care of yourself…

On your mark...Get set...

On your mark…Get set…

As the starting gun is poised to begin a new year I’d like to remind each of you that this race is meant to be run as a marathon…not a sprint.

For those of you entering your first year, be careful not to exude all your efforts in the first few weeks, or you’ll surely “crash and burn” sooner than expected. The year will be grueling, filled with unexpected twists and turns and HILLS…those blasted hills…but with each uphill battle there IS relief as the road flattens or even gives a brief respite as the elevation declines. Regroup, gather strength, take care of yourself physically and mentally, pace yourself accordingly, and enjoy the journey…learn…grow…there WILL be a new race next year, and you’ll be expected to do better as each year should prove to be a “Personal Best.”

For those of you entering this year with experience behind you, armed with a few secrets and self-confidence I urge you not to be complacent or caviler as you step up to the starting line. As you know, each year brings on new challenges, new unexpected potholes that can easily take the most experienced warrior down a path of despair. I have found that it’s the new experiences that can either excite us down our trail or wear us down. Ask any marathon runner; they’ll tell you running a marathon is just as much about your attitude and your mental conditioning as it is about your physical strength and endurance.

And for those entering your final marathon, your wisdom, courage, and stamina are to be celebrated. Many have started, but few have finished the entire circuit. I hope you consider modeling and coaching the less experienced, let them learn from your experiences, and perhaps you might be able to renew and learn from them as well.

To each and every one of you…enjoy your journey this year; set attainable goals and when you go out and exceed those goals take time to celebrate your accomplishments! If you fall and stumble…GET UP – KEEP MOVING FORWARD… there will be many on the sideline…myself included, cheering you on to the finish line…

…GO!

Be good to yourself…

Top Three Qualities In A Leader

Not sure how many of you are using LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) as an outreach to various professional organizations, but I routinely follow discussions and various blogs through this professional social media.

A question was raised in one such discussion as to what the members felt were the three most important qualities a principal (leader) should possess. Realizing that entire books and dissertations have been written on the topic; it was an interesting exercise in prioritizing and identifying where my beliefs and values rested.

I’d urge each of you to take a reflective moment and consider…of all the great leaders you know, what qualities drew you to them? If you had to identify three and only three of the most important qualities, what would make YOUR list?  As you review your list, how do you measure up to these qualities? If I were to ask your followers what qualities you model, would there be similarities while comparing their list to your list?

As you begin a new year, ask yourself what changes HAVE to be made this year??? And then follow the advice from Gandhi, who is given credit of saying, “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

What were my top 3? Not that important…What IS important is that you search YOUR heart…YOUR beliefs…YOUR values…

Be good to yourself…

Welcome Back!

Welcome Back!  The Krause Quips have returned. These reflective Quips are written weekly August through June. They are simply intended to add some humor, encouragement, and/or topics for your consideration.  Sharing is encouraged; just give credit where credit is due.

Recently I read an excerpt from Seven Choices for Success and Significance by Nido R. Qubein. The first thing that struck me was a word in the title. Can you guess which jumped out at me? As a leader, there are times when there’s an overwhelming feeling that events dictate to US our course rather than the importance of the CHOICES we make!

He goes on to highlight strategies which we’ve all heard ad nauseaum, but are worth repeating for reflection as a new year is about to begin.

1.    Have a clear vision of what it is you want to accomplish – and share the vision OFTEN with those who are expected to carry it out.

2.    Develop a solid strategy that answers – Who or what are we TODAY? – Who/what do we want to become? – How do we get there - and how do we know we arrived?

3.    Employ PRACTICAL systems to achieve goals.

4.    Commit to consistent execution.

He goes on to simply boil things down to the three “Ds”:

·      Decide what you want most to achieve

·      Determine the first steps of getting what you want.

·      Do the first thing that will start you moving toward your goal.

As things begin to swirl about you, as they certainly will do in these 1^st few weeks, CHOOSE what it is you’re really focused on this year, stay focused…you DO have a choice!

Be good to yourself…welcome back!