Author: Nelson Coulter Trees come in lots of flavors and styles. Some trees… Grow best in dense forests; others survive best in complete isolation. Have deep and strong tap roots; some exist with shallow roots near the surface. Have massive trunks and impervious bark; others have wispy and tender trunks. Have leaves that are broad and expansive; some wear leaves that look …

Author: Nelson Coulter Sarcasm generates giggles. Tackiness scores laughs. Insults get chuckles. Condescension delights. Disrespectful snipes entertain. Mockery amuses. Ridicule gets likes. Almost always are those effects short lived, among the watchers. Almost never are those efforts forgotten, by the targets. Civility and respectfulness come with their own rewards. And, generally, those rewards compound over time.

Author: Nelson Coulter Most of us want to accomplish a couple of things in life: Have meaningful impact Be effective in our undertakings To be sure, there are a lot of sub-objectives to both of those endeavors, with nuances and webs extending from each. Constant reflection is required to optimize our impact and effectiveness. And, impact necessarily implies connections and relationships. Some important …

Author: Bambi Teaff, Dean of Elementary Education, Hamlin Collegiate ISD As a kid, I grew up in a low-income family home with 3 brothers, my mom and an alcoholic step dad. We lived in south Texas near the coast in a very small town. I never thought of myself as being poor. My mom never really allowed any of us to …

Author: Lindsay Freeman, Principal, Roscoe Collegiate Elementary As the school year closes and the summer months begin, I reflect on the journey from beginning to end. Being a principal has blessed me. I have been able to help students and adults in ways that I never could in the past. I have been an advocate, a listening ear, a supportive …

Author: Nelson Coulter Sometimes we get stuck. The rut seems to grab hold and won’t let go. Getting stuck happens to everyone. Getting unstuck is not rocket science. Try this recipe: Get off the accelerator. Spinning the tires even faster won’t get us out of the rut. Reflect carefully. Figure out what got us stuck in the first place. Seek …

Author: Nelson Coulter Football can serve as a nice metaphor for organizational endeavor. The VISION of the football team is to win games and championships. The MISSION of the offense is to make first downs and score points. The ACTION PLAN of the offense is to effectively executive plays in a coordinated way. In football, there are many offensive schemes that can …

Author: Nelson Coulter I recently read God, Human, Animal, Machine: Technology, Metaphor, and the Search for Meaning by Meghan O’Gieblyn (2021). My top takeaways: Science presumes a third person perspective, yet consciousness is a first-person experience. We have yet to understand the phenomenological experience—the entirely subjective world (color, sensations, thoughts, ideas, beliefs) The “hard problem,” as described by Chalmers, Chopra, and others, …

Author: Nelson Coulter Blessings come our way in a multitude of forms: kindness extended, forgiveness offered, assistance, deference, prayers, time given, a listening and nonjudgmental ear, a simple smile, an encouraging word, ………. the list goes on and on. Most (and some of the most meaningful) cost not one penny. Blessings have a boomerang effect. The more we choose to …

Author: Nelson Coulter Little children, pets, and visionaries often share a similar trait. They see a person, object, or objective of great desire. They accelerate quickly in the direction of that person, object, or objective, gaining unbridled enthusiasm and speed in the pursuit. Then…..they crash — either into the apple of their eye (the teacher? the wall? the organizational resistance?) …

Author: Nelson Coulter Organizations are actually living, breathing organisms. They have health markers, just like us humans. Leaders are in particular need of being able to assess and address organizational un-health. Consider the following graphic conception for viewing, thinking about, and discussing the health of your organization.    Healthy <<——————- Blah ———-———>> Toxic   – Transparency <<——————————————————>> Secrecy Trust <<—————————————————————->> Distrust Collaboration <<—————————————————–>> Isolation Service <<———————————————————>> Self-Interest Equality <<———————————————————->> Hierarchy Support <<——————————————————–>> Destruction Macro-focused <<——————————————–>> Micro-focused Freeing <<———————————————————->> Oppressive LEARNING <<—————————————–>> Imposed …

Author: Nelson Coulter As a school principal, and as a school superintendent, and as a teacher of those who aspire to the same, I have often said the following: “School” is a sanctuary of learning. It exists for the sole and sacred purpose of LEARNING. If the leaders of the school — teachers, administrators, school board members — are not learning …