Culture, Education, Parenting

Follow @TimElmore Benjamin Franklin said, “The things which hurt, instruct.”  Your attitude towards failure determines your attitude after failure. The same is true for students. It’s all what they allow to reside in their mind. I think Warren Wiersbe was right when he said, “A realist is an idealist who has gone through the fire and been purified.  A skeptic is an

Culture, Generation iY®, Generation Y, Parenting, Students, Youth

Follow @TimElmore Recently, I spoke to a university professor who teaches freshmen students. He mentioned that last year was an especially challenging year for him. His explanation had nothing to do with argumentative kids or even students who wanted to negotiate their grades after an exam. Instead, it was an increasing problem among adolescents today. Case in point: Brandon was one of

Culture, Education, Generation iY®, Generation Y, Leadership, Students, Youth

Last week, Growing Leaders hosted our 2014 National Leadership Forum. For the second year, we held it at the Georgia Tech Conference Center in downtown Atlanta. Hundreds of administrators, educators, coaches, and campus staff attended as we wrestled with the topic: “Adjusting the Sails—Making the Course Corrections Needed to Connect with Students Today.” It was a genuine “forum,” as several leaders

Culture, Education, Generation iY®, Generation Y, Habitudes, Students, Workplace

Follow @TimElmore The newest findings were just released from the Barna Research Group on college students and their prospects after graduation. Let’s just say that while they remain optimistic, they’re a bit more skeptical than their earlier counterparts in 2004. After platitudes like “change the world”, “make a difference” and “follow your dreams” were made on the graduation platform, young grads enter

Culture, Leadership, Parenting

Follow @TimElmore One question I hear often when I speak at parenting conferences is: “If today’s parents have been ‘helicopter parents,’ what will these young Millennials be like as they grow up and become parents?” Well, the first report is in…and it is good. A Canadian survey published last week reveals that a new generation of laid-back mothers is rewriting the playbook on parenting.

Athletics, Education, Habitudes, Leadership

Follow @TimElmore A story unfolded last month that got little attention but actually deserves front-page headlines. Why? The story illustrates a desperately needed model for teachers and coaches today. Derek Herber, a high school track coach, cost his team a state title but won a huge victory for sportsmanship and values in the process. You might say he traded a “title” for

Habitudes, Leadership

For years, we have read about national champions, most valuable players and top-level performers in every sport. Two years ago, the NBA chose to honor a different award winner — the best teammate. Shane Battier called it one of the biggest honors of his life. The Miami Heat forward was announced recently as the winner of the league’s Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year award,

Habitudes, Leadership

Follow @TimElmore Have you heard the news? It would be hilarious if it weren’t so tragic. The Internal Revenue Service just released the numbers on those who’ve failed to pay their taxes. Believe it or not, federal employees actually owe a total of $3.3 billion in back taxes to the federal government. Yep. The very people who take your money are

Culture, Generation iY®, Generation Y, Students, Youth

Follow @TimElmore Last week, one of our team members at Growing Leaders directed me to an Op-Ed article in the Washington Post by Ann Hornaday. She’s an entertainment writer who, for years, has unpacked movies and their impact. In this article, however, she mused about the impact of the current entertainment industry on Elliot Rodger, the young gunman who killed six

Habitudes, Leadership

This blog is part three of a series on what we can learn about leadership from birds. I know it sounds funny, butI believe there are fundamental leadership lessons humans can learn from nature. Specifically, there are instincts in various types of birds that teach us what kind of predisposition we must cultivate in our lives as leaders. In part

Habitudes, Leadership

I believe there are fundamental leadership lessons we, humans, can learn from nature. They’re everywhere, yet we often fail to heed them. Over a period of three days, I’m doing a series on the tutorials we gain about leadership from birds. Yes, you read that correctly. If you care about leading effectively, there are some fundamental practices we must learn

Habitudes, Leadership

I’m always intrigued at how much we can learn from the instincts of animals. So often, humans can discover life-changing lessons simply by watching creatures in nature and emulating them. Somehow, fish, plants and animals know how to function without ruining the environment or igniting a world war. It may be true that humans are, indeed, the only “wild” animal. Over

Culture, Education, Generation iY®, Generation Y, Habitudes, Parenting, Students, Youth

Follow @TimElmore I recently met with an informal focus group of educators from colleges and universities in the Midwest. My sole purpose for the conversation was to get a read on how the school year went, as well as what they had learned as educators. One common theme emerged from our discussion: incoming criticism. Every one of these deans, provosts, directors, faculty members

Education, Generation iY®, Generation Y, Leadership, Parenting, Students, Youth

During the 2012-2013 school year, we assessed 8,500 students who attend 29 public high schools. We discovered several realities, including their low view of morality, their assumptions about leadership, and how much their aspirations and goals played a role in graduation rate and their life after high school. One discovery I made after a year of examining the results of our