What are We Teaching Our Children?
I recently spoke with a school administrator who offered one more example of how parents today are choosing to lead their children. I’ve heard this example twice in the last month—and it’s illustrative of far too many parents. Evidently, a high school student recently brought a note from her doctor to school. The note requested that this teen be moved to
How to Develop Resiliency in Students: Podcast #36
Today, I’m thrilled to share a conversation with Dr. Wayne Hammond. Dr. Hammond is the President and Executive Director of Resiliency Initiatives where he and his team work to build resiliency in students to effectively cope with life’s challenges. Here are some highlights from our conversation. https://growingleaders.com/podcast/Resources/Wayne.Hammond.mp3 Tim Elmore: Wayne, you’ve worked in education and with educators for decades, take a moment
12 Biographies Every Young Person Should Read
At Growing Leaders, we believe in the potential and power of the emerging generation. Today’s emerging generation—the young people we call “Generation iY”—will carve a new path in history. Each new generation, however, is responsible not only to do something new, but to remember what has come before. Stories of great leaders from history personify an opportunity to learn what
What the Pope & Instagram Teach Us About Connecting with Students
I’m sure the headline above appears a bit random. Is there really a common denominator between the Pope and Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom? Apparently, there is. About a month ago, Instagram’s CEO and co-founder Kevin Systrom met with Pope Francis at the Vatican for the very first time. You already know, not everyone gets an audience with the Pope. What was the
The Case for Leaders at Every Level
Some say today that leadership development is overrated. Folks talk about it too much. After all, not everyone is supposed to be a leader. Right? I suppose if you define a “leader” in a traditional way, meaning it’s the person with a position at the top of the organization, then, it’s true. Not everyone will be the CEO, the president, or
Should We Ask Our Athletes to Give Up Their Phones?
I just finished spending time with three professional baseball teams at spring training. During meetings with all three teams, I had conversations with managers and coaches about technology and athletes. The players’ addiction to cell phones remains an issue of contention. If he took them away, one coach argued, he’d have a revolt on his hands. Minimally, the players would go through
I Want to Give My Kids What I Didn’t Have Growing Up
I recently finished speaking to a crowd of parents. My topic: “Parenting a Generation of Paradox.” I relayed the litany of new realities our children are growing up with today that we never had to deal with twenty years ago. An issue came up during the “Q and A” period that is worth talking about here. As Generation X gives birth
Five Ways to Increase Your Capacity
It happens every year. An incredible college athlete gets drafted to go pro, but one year into his career—it becomes clear he’s already reached his potential. He peaked in college. We’ve all seen a marvelous AP high school student—who everyone knew was going to take Yale or Princeton by storm— get stuck. She not only floundered at college, she dropped
Four Fears Generation Z Hides About Their Future
We are digging up research, at Growing Leaders, on students born since 2000, the ones researchers are calling Generation Z, or the Centennials or the Homelanders. They’ve grown up in a world of complexity, uncertainty and plurality. What are three words that describe them today? They are overwhelmed. More information and content is being consumed by students today than in
Five Shifts We Must Make According to Harvard
The Harvard Graduate School of Education just released a report, performed in collaboration with dozens of educators across the nation, called, “Making Caring Common.” Its concern was the current culture among students toward selfishness and personal success, instead of community success and the common good. Evidently, selfish ambition at the expense of the community has gone viral. In the words of the
Lies Boomers Tell Themselves About Millennials
This week, I’ve teamed up with my colleague, Andrew McPeak, to offer two lists you may be interested in. Andrew and I are from two different generations; I am a Baby Boomer and Andrew is a Millennial. We enjoy a great relationship, and felt we could explore the lies each generation tells themselves about the other—and often, don’t even realize
Four Lies Millennials Tell Themselves About Older Generations
Today, we hear from Andrew McPeak. Andrew is a writer, curriculum designer, and speaker who has served with a number of non-profit organizations (and has spoken to thousands of Millennials) over the last 5 years. He now serves on our team at Growing Leaders. Enjoy. Millennials are the largest generation in history. And being primarily in their 20s, they still have a