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For years — literally years! — I wrote each blog post on the day it was to be published.
I wanted to “get ahead” and have more posts in the queue, but I just didn’t quite have the capacity.
The downside to this approach was that I was always in emergency mode. That gets stressful.
Read MoreA friend is starring in a play that relates to a controversial issue.
So controversial that the actors in the play are fearful for their safety. They’re asking for security measures to be put in place to ensure that they are not risking their lives by getting onstage.
The producers of the play are wringing their hands. Apparently, they can’t afford the cost of the increased security.
Read MoreA friend of mine is starting a new business.
However, he’s a little self-conscious about calling it a business. That’s because it hasn’t made any money yet. But, strictly speaking, it’s not a hobby. The intention is not to just have fun. The intention is profit, eventually.
How do we bridge that gap? How do we launch the thing if we aren’t sure whether it is going to work?
Read MoreEvery semester, the team at The Little Middle School lovingly prepares a detailed progress report for each of our students.
And every semester, I work so hard to ensure that I do not leave them until the last minute. If I do, I am absolutely sunk.
With twenty-something progress reports to perform the final edits on, they cannot be left until the last minute. You can’t leave twenty hours of work until the last minute — you’ll run clean out of minutes.
Read MoreTeachers and other authority figures sometimes get criticized for their arbitrary rules.
When I began my teaching career, I vowed that I would always give students the benefit of the doubt. That’s still true, on an individual level. But at the very same time, I prepare for the worst. And that means anticipating where the behavior of a group, or individuals in a group, can go wrong, and building in safeguards.
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