Parenting

Climbing the Mountain is About Believing It’s Possible

/ Dave Eberwein / Leave a comment

You hear it.

No one else hears it, yet it can be quite loud — as well as effective. ‘Self-talk’.

And, it’s critical for effective Leadership.

When we talk about Leadership qualities, most of the conversation tends to be about what an effective leader DOES. Leadership is certainly about doing good stuff but, at the heart of it is having the right inner voice. Leaders who have it propel themselves through a solution-seeking lens of optimism and hope and are the ones who lead us through difficult times.

There’s an interesting article on self-talk by Dr. Shonna Waters (The Power of Positive Self Talk and How You Can Use It, June 2021) where she discusses this strength.

WHAT IS SELF-TALK?

Self-talk is the stream of consciousness that runs through our head every day. It can be positive or negative — and typically falls in line with whether you are a positive or negative person. Successful people use positive self-talk to overcome the stray negativity that enters their mindset from time to time.

I’d rather be optimistic and wrong than pessimistic and right.

Some people don’t like change, but you need to embrace change if the alternative is disaster.

Elon Musk

Besides the obvious benefit of using positive self-talk as a spring board to create solutions, there is some research that also points to some interesting physical and psychological benefits:

benefits-of-self-talk

These are big WINS that are worth paying attention to!

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I’m Positive About Being Positive

/ Dave Eberwein / 2 Comments

I think I’m a fairly positive person.

I tend to stay relatively calm even when the seas are choppy. I try to look for the learning in a situation rather than creating a complaint when things don’t go well. I look for reasons when I see someone’s behaviour that is rude or negative. I try not to jump to conclusions by assigning intent when I really don’t know.

Babies are Positive When it Fits – Adults can Make a Choice

But, by no means am I perfect. I’m quite imperfect actually.

I have my moments of frustration and if you hang out around me often enough you will see me get a tad ‘grumpy’ every now and then. I get like this when when I’m especially tired or overwhelmed — or when everything around me seems to be an overly dramatic soap-opera.

Being positive is often a choice. So, I work to choose positivity whenever I can. I think better. I respond better. I know I make better decisions.

But, can one’s positive mindset actually make a difference in other areas?

  • Physiologically?
  • Emotionally?

Research seems to think so. We’ve all heard of the placebo effect and how someone with a positive mindset about a drug or therapy can help overcome a physical ailment of some kind. And while it might seem obvious, I went looking for some evidence to see if there is any link between a positive attitude and a better educational experience.

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Seasonal Traditions – At Home and at School

/ Dave Eberwein / Leave a comment

Last year at about this same time, I wrote a blog post about the importance of hope and light in many cultures around the world (‘Tis the Season for Hope). This year, I want to continue along that theme and discuss the importance of traditions or rituals at this time of year. Things like festive music, seasonal food and decorations make this time of year truly sparkle.

In education, we also have traditions at this time — Report cards and Parent-teacher Interviews come to mind.

I know, I know, I know — WOW! We really know how to capture that festive spirit!

Elf on a Shelf

Actually, I was in a couple of schools recently and they already have some decorations up for the season. The mood was festive, fun and happy. One little girl was so excited to tell me about the Elf-on-the-Shelf that just showed up in her classroom — “It’s magic. She just appeared out of no where!” Seeing that pure joy reminded me that traditions are so critical to that sense of belonging.

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