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Vicki's Blog

My thoughts on education, improvement, and life itself.  Enjoy!

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Living the Dream:  The Little Engine That Could

1/26/2015

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In the last couple of weeks, I have been reminded of and inspired by the power of perseverance for problem solving, achieving goals, and even surviving.   I have so much respect for those who dream, get knocked down, and then get up to finish despite all odds. 

I think back to when I was a kid and how the story of "The Little Engine That Could," by Watty Piper, served as a teachable moment and a motivator for me when I would repeat to myself, "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can," and finally as I succeeded, "Look!  I thought I could!"  It seemed like such a silly thing to say to myself, but it was a reinforcement to the perseverance "gene" that I find absent from so many people today.  I wish more of us used self talk that encourages and helps us push ahead, instead of the excuses and negativity that makes it so easy to give up. There are many lessons to be learned from this children's story that was first written in 1930 and has since been the inspiration for many similar stories. 

The Yosemite Climbers' recent feat was amazing.  Almost everyone who goes to Yosemite and looks up at the 3,000 foot sheer cliff of El Capitan proclaims it's beauty but in awe says, "I'll have to find another way to the top."  But these veteran climbers said, we can do it - and we'll use the free climb method where we won't even use the anchored rope supports that others before them had used to conquer the seemingly unconquerable.  They planned and prepared for several years for this 19 day event.  It was supposed to take 12 days, and despite the setbacks along the way, they kept going, helping and encouraging each other to take one more step forward. Even the President of the United States tweeted, "You remind us anything is possible."  

My husband and I recently saw Angelina Jolie's movie, Unbroken, based on the life (and a book of the same title by Laura Hillenbrand) of Louis Zamperini, a bad boy turned Olympic athlete, who went on to survive against amazing odds during World War II.  He was lost at sea following a plane crash, afloat in a life raft for 47 days, only to be captured by the Japanese.  He endured wretched conditions, torture and survived it all, defeating horrendous circumstances and the atrocities of war.  He persevered because of his attitude and mostly because his will was stronger than all the obstacles that he faced.  He inspired his family, his fellow soldiers, and now a nation as his story is brought to life in print and film.


As a lifelong educator, I have witnessed many students and players over the years who pursued their goals with passion and perseverance.  Their shining moment was one of joy and true accomplishment that I was privileged to share.  There is no greater joy for a teacher or coach or even a parent than to see the look on a the student or child's face when they finally achieve that sought-after goal whether it's the first time they tie their shoes all by themselves, 3-step over all 1o hurdles without falling, or drain that winning shot to seal the come-from-behind win.  It's probably not even comparable to surviving the carnage of war, but it is the culmination of hard work and seeing it through to the end.

Just because we have the desire, the goal, or even the will doesn't mean we won't be faced with obstacles or even detractors.  People may not believe in us, but we must continue to believe in ourselves.  A recent high school classmate of mine posted a video on Facebook about firemen and commented how proud he was to be a firefighter himself.  He also noted that many people probably thought, as he was growing up, that he wouldn't amount to much, but he did and he was rightfully proud of his career path.  He is a perfect example of where there is a will, there is a way.  Traditional school might not have been the best predictor of future achievements for him, but when he tapped into his passion, he overcame any shortcomings he might have had and found the success of which he dreamed.  And yes now, he even teaches others about firefighting!

There are so many other examples of perseverance that I have witness and could share that would inspire you and help you believe that anything is possible.  But alas, there is not enough room in this blog space.... I would have to write a book - now there's a thought!  How many times have we given up when we were so close to completing our goal or task?  Edgar A. Guest is credited (although there is some controversy over this) with penning this poem that shows us the importance of perseverance:

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, 
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill, 
When the funds are low and the debts are high, 
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh, 
When care is pressing you down a bit, 
Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns, 
As every one of us sometimes learns, 
And many a failure turns about, 
When he might have won had he stuck it out; 
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow– 
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than 
It seems to a faint and faltering man, 
Often the struggler has given up, 
When he might have captured the victor’s cup, 
And he learned too late when the night slipped down, 
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out– 
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt, 
And you never can tell how close you are, 
It may be near when it seems so far, 
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit– 
It’s when things seem worst that you mustn't quit.

Look around you and find your inspiration that helps you keep going when the going gets tough so you can become The Little Engine That Could who turned failure inside out!  




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What's Next? New Challenges and  Unforeseen Changes

1/13/2015

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Here we are, a couple of weeks into 2015.  "How have you been?  Have you recovered from the holidays and avoided the dreaded flu?  How are those resolutions going?"  and now what I really want to know is, "What's next?"

I'd like to update you on my progress but I'm pretty sure you aren't interested that I got my grading done, did some house cleaning, and made some headway on organizing my office. I will admit, the Christmas decorations are still up, but the tree is down. I love decorating the tree, and even taking it down, because it allows me to be nostalgic, recalling the meaning of each ornament and the lifetime of memories that they represent.  There is a story with each ornament drawing us closer to someone we love, a special event, places we've visited, or something we collect, all serving as reminder of days gone by.  All the ornaments are beautiful or precious in their own way, but there are no longer any ornaments on our tree whose sole purpose is simply for decoration.  Our life is full and so is our tree; reflecting great love and fond memories.

This walk down memory lane leads me to my real focus on "What's next?"  Nostalgia has its place, and represents a valuable part of us, but we can't live in the past.  As we turn the calendar, it reminds us that life is to be lived forward.  If you put forth a few resolutions to begin the New Year, you have probably already stumbled on that path to improvement by now.  It's OK.  It's part of the process.  Get back up, reflect, revise, and start moving forward again.  Failure can be some of our best lessons during the learning process... as long as we don't let failure stop us in our tracks.  I sound like a teacher or a coach, right?  

We often plan for our future....the development and desire to achieve goals keep us focused and moving forward in the "right" direction.  Aimless wandering may be fun for a brief vacation, but it's not an effective life path.  Attaining long term goals requires a short term plan too.  What can we do now?  I really like the concept of a 30-60-90 day plan.  Even if my goal is a year away or longer, there are steps that I can take right now to ensure I'm on the right path!  In education this might look like checking for understanding or formative assessments.  As a traveler we might call these check points.  Regardless, they let us know how we're doing and if we need corrective action or just to proceed full speed ahead.   What can I do in the next few weeks to get started?  What will come next?  No matter what it is you hope to accomplish, this kind of steady, deliberate focus will result in progress toward the end goal.  If you want to lose 50 pounds, can you do 10 in 30 days and how will you accomplish this?  in 60 days?   in 90?  If you want a better financial situation, what can you pay off or save in 30 days?  60 days? 90 days?  If you want to clean up your house or yard, what can I do to break up these tasks into manageable chunks and make them doable? The length of the time between these check points isn't the key to success...making the task/goal manageable and holding yourself accountable is. 

But we all know that sometimes it's just not that easy.  Sometimes life throws you curves you weren't expecting or detours that force you to change your strategy, timeline, or even your goal.  Now what?  Try as we might, we can't control everything that happens to us.  We can research options and make the best decisions possible at the moment.  We can anticipate obstacles and plan for their occurrence.  We can exercise and eat healthy food to reduce our risk of illness or injury.  But life sometimes throws us a curve ball we weren't expecting in spite of our best efforts.  Maybe an accident or illness puts the brakes on our best laid plans.  What if we lose our job or get our hours cut? What if a trusted relationship ends?  Even as I write this the timing couldn't be more perfect since my husband just walked into my office and told me the transmission in his Jeep is bad and must be replaced.  (sigh)  How we respond to that curve ball will determine whether we take a hit, or get a hit.  

If we use the same strategy to attack this new challenge that we just outlined to achieve our goals, we can turn these obstacles into something that we can overcome.  We may have to spend the first 30 days grieving or gathering information.  And we must view that as time well spent - progress if you will - and a necessary part of the process.  Then we can determine what we will do in the next 30 days, 60 days, and so on.  It may push our ultimate goal further out, or change it completely, but if we tackle those obstacles with the same strategic thinking that we originally planned, then we can determine a new path.

So take a moment to look in the rear view mirror and see where you've been, but then get your attention focused on what's in front of you.  The windshield is a lot bigger than the rear view mirror for good reason.  Where will you be in 30 days? 60 days? or 90 days?  How far will you have gone toward reaching that new goal or overcoming the latest challenge?  See you down the road!  I can't wait to see what's next!



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Where Have You Been?  Better Yet, Where Are You Going?

1/2/2015

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It's been a while since we've spoken. You might be asking, "Where have you been?"  I've been...well... busy. Too busy to stay in touch?  To write a few lines?  To say "hello?"  

I started this blog nearly 2 months ago, and today it is time answer these questions and to finish it!  Yes, I have been busy.  Yes, the holidays have come and gone, my grading is done, and yet there is so much to do - to catch up on what I didn't get done while I was being "too busy."  But I have missed writing.  I felt guilty wanting to blog when so many other deadlines were pressing.  I also think I  let the search for the perfect topic come between us, when all I really need to do is just sit down and say hello.  So here I am.  "Hi!  How have you been?"

So... Where Have I Been?  In between all the projects I've graded, the conferences I've attended, and the presentations I have made, I have been searching for something to inspire me to write again.  I considered a lot of ideas, but nothing just sent me rushing to the computer to begin composing a new post.  Sometimes Facebook is my inspiration because people share photos or words of wisdom that get me to thinking.  "Liking" it isn't enough.  But with all the New Year's resolutions and advice that people put forth I've found a couple of gems.  I feel like some of those deadlines that have come and gone served to repress my creative spirit, and now the words are starting to fill my head again (not just come out of my mouth!).  So this morning when I finally sat down to write, I found this short draft in my blog spot and it was a perfect fit to begin writing what I wanted to say!

Now... Where Am I Going?  My first piece wisdom for myself (and others who want to benefit from my experiences):  You Can't Do It All!  I love being busy but I didn't like some of the results of the last 3 months because I was TOO busy!  I wasn't a very good friend or family member.  Conversations started with, "Hi, what are you doing?"  Working.  Grading.  I have a conference call in 20 minutes.  I will be gone to provide training, attend a conference, meeting, etc.  At no time did I say, "I just finished reading a great book!" (I have several on the shelf waiting for me to take a break); or "I invited the grandkids over for a play date" (not a babysitting day); and even worse, I did not ask, "How are you?"  I whined too often.  I made excuses.  I squeezed in lunches and baking days with my friends and family by putting them on my calendar so I wouldn't schedule something else.  I stayed up late most nights, too late in fact, grading or picking up, because there just wasn't enough time in the day.  My house didn't get cleaned unless we were having company, and the clutter on the counter only moved when it was time to bake or be the hostess.  I was still wrapping gifts Christmas Eve!  I did a lot of things for others that were important and worthwhile, but.... At some point, I have to say no or at least maybe.  I have to realize the world will go on even if I'm not involved in every decision or every activity. I have inadvertently trained people around me to expect that I will do it and that they are not needed.  That is on me and I shouldn't complain about being too busy or no one else stepping up.  I have to change and be willing to have others look at me funny when I say "I can't do that today."  Most of all I have to stop SAYING I'll find some balance and actually start DOING that!

The second piece of wisdom I am committing to is to Be Present.  I know you think that since I'm involved in so many things, so how could I not be present?  But I'm not.  I play on my phone too much.  I am constantly thinking about what else I have to do, and when I'm going to get that done.  I am a planner (some would say control freak).  I am not as good of a listener as I could be because I often am thinking of a response instead of truly listening to what the other person is saying.  When ideas pop into my head, I start mulling those over even if it causes me to be distracted from the task at hand which leads to mistakes or forgetting.  (That's different than walking into a room and wondering what it was you came in here to do!)  I think the first thing I will do is when I'm talking with others, I will put my phone away - not just down, but out of sight.  I think I have a relationship with my phone because I'm by myself a lot during the day and it allows me to check in with the world or provides me with a break from my work through some entertaining game that I rationalize as beneficial to my brain. That is a habit... like chewing fingernails, or opening the snack cabinet every time you walk by.  You have to find ways to change your behavior.  Put it down.  Don't touch it.  Do something else.  Look at the other person in the eye.  Be present.

My final piece of advice to myself is to: Be kind; make a difference; clean my office; get organized; be a better friend, wife, mom, grandma; learn something new; read more books; find time for me; clean my house more often; exercise more; watch what I eat; call my mom; grow my business; blog every week...... Oh NO!  These habits are going to be hard ones to break... or should I?  Maybe I just need to aim for balance and moderation!  Welcome to my world!

I'll be back next week with an update on my progress!  In the meantime, have a great week.  It's been nice to talk with you again!  


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    Author

    Vicki Bechard, 
    Owner and Lead Consultant

    I express myself best when I write, even though most who know me think I talk quite a bit!  

    I'm an educator first and foremost whether my students are kids, teachers, or my own children and grandchildren.  

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