What I’ve observed from the readings this week (especially from Chapter 6) is that many of Ben’s philosophies about putting others first and living your life in a positive way have been in the Bible for thousands of years. The problem is, most people (including me) have not been so good about reading these principles and applying them to our lives. I believe that if we all spent more time reading and applying THAT guidebook that we would be able to show much more love and genuine concern for each other.
That aside, I particularly liked the discussions in the book on opening up your thinking to possibilities and using the word “and” instead of “but” to describe our current situation. I think it’s this type of positive thinking that can really help make or break your day and your outlook on your current situation. I also liked the discussion of leading from any chair. I think this idea is especially important to share with a classroom of students that might have confidence issues (which, for most teens, is almost a given). To understand that your contributions are valued no matter what your role is, is a very important concept to get across to a class and I appreciated the authors insights and stories about this idea.
(image by: Jacob Botter, "Thinking RFID", Jan 17, 2009, Creative Commons License)
Brian,
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely right on so many occasions throughout your post. I think that we are all guilty of not putting others first. I think that I was at the opposite end of the spectrum. There were times where I thought I should help any and everyone that I thought needed it while neglecting the things I needed and being heartbroken in the end. With that said I think that everything is great in moderation and we should have a good balance of doing for ourselves as well as for others.
Leading from any chair is important. I know that in my undergrad years while attending a traditional university, there were many instances where I just was not confident about the subject and I found myself "hiding" in the back of the class on numerous occasions. Maybe if more educators used "rule number 6" they would be less intimidating to their students and encourage more students from hiding in the back and moving up to the front of the class.
Brian, how true we should all follow the best selling guide book of all times. Sometimes it is very difficult to try and do the right thing and not wallow in self pity yet we should always try to do what we believe is right not matter how difficult it may be. This fits right in with teachers in the classroom. It may be easier to do just enough for the children that fold their arms and fight not to learn anything, and that may be easy, but not right. Those are the children who should be worked with the most in trying to realize what the barrier is and the best and safest way to help them. I have found doing this can be very hard to do and even caused bumps and bruises but in the long run a has a positive outcome.
ReplyDeleteI agree that many of the principals in the book have been in the bible and, for that matter, components to most world religions. They are about as close to universal "truths" as it comes. Like you, I often fall short. That is where religion and philosophy come in to guide us.
ReplyDeleteYour comments about leading from any chair made me think of the idea in a new way. As educators, we promote a community of learning where we are all seeking knowledge. What better way than for the teacher to physically put him/herself in the seats with the students and let the student become the teacher and treat them as an authority in the field. How powerful!