One Parent Addiction that Produces Regrets
Here’s a twist to our traditional thinking. In a recent survey of 2,000 secondary school students, responders felt their parents were using a mobile device too much. I am not joking. The tables have turned and the kids are asking for the adults to fight the addiction to technology. You’ve got to hear this. According to a report by the BBC, more than a
A Graduation Speech You Can Believe
I just gave a commencement speech for my daughter’s graduating class. I’m a proud dad. She just finished three grueling years as a graduate student going into the field of counseling. I believe in those young professionals as they enter this vital field. But reflecting on what words I would share with those young grads made me think about the stereotypes
Three Mindsets to Build in Students and Athletes: Podcast #47
Today, I’m excited to share with you a conversation with Joe Castiglione. Castiglione is currently the Athletic Director at the University of Oklahoma and the Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletic Programs. In 2009, Joe Castiglione was named National Athletic Director of the Year by the Sports Business Journal. Here are some highlights from our conversation. Tim Elmore: Today, the umbrella that
How The Last Five Generations Have Changed Us
Folks talk a lot today about Millennials. For that matter, we’ve talked about younger generations ever since the Baby Boomers introduced the “generation gap” in the 1960s. The unique realities each generation faces as they come of age (shared tragedies, heroes, milestones, music, television shows and economy) shape us into the people we are as we enter adulthood. These realities,
How to Get Your 20-Something Out of the Basement
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. Here’s a story that goes a step beyond just living in your parents’ basement. Last week a judge in
How to Say “No” Without Damaging Morale
Let me ask you a question. How do you suppose you’d feel if you offered several suggestions to your supervisor, only to have every one of them rejected? It’s a rhetorical question. We all know it doesn’t feel good. So—how do we lead our teams, and even more so, our students, to remain motivated even when some of their ideas are…well…somewhat useless? Students
Six Questions That Help Students Exceed Expectations
We’ve developed terms in our English language to describe certain mindsets. I decided to create one of our Habitudes® from two of them: Shortcuts and Second Miles. The Short Cut. This is a term we use to describe the act of getting around the system. When we find a way to shorten the process or reduce the labor—we say we found a
Two Worlds to Understand When Leading Generation Z
Insead Emerging Markets Research recently released a report on the multiple generations who are now consumers worldwide: Baby Boomers, and Generations X, Y and Z, using the most popular tags the last four generations have been assigned. In the report, Executive Director Vinika Rao writes: “Poised to enter the workplace soon, Generation Z was born into a tumultuous world, demonstrated to them in
The Ingredient that Moves a Teen from Mediocre to Excellent
Growing up, my hero in major league baseball was Pete Rose. He played baseball with speed and energy. When at bat, if he was walked, he would run (not walk) to first base. He stole bases and popularized the head first slide back in the late 1960s. His sense of passion gave the Cincinnati Reds an invisible but tangible advantage
Four Paradoxes in Successful Learning Environments
Educator Tim Walker just reminded me about what really works when teaching students. Like many other U.S. teachers, Walker thought the schools in Finland sounded almost “mythical.” The rejection of high-stakes testing, a curriculum based on critical thinking and problem-solving, smaller classes, and time reserved for collaboration between teachers – these are just few of the pillars of a system that has
Two Elements That Make Relationships Work
My son, Jonathan, just got engaged. He and his fiancé are absolutely head over heals in love with each other and will likely plan a wedding over the next twelve months. Our family is excited for them and their future. Jonathan and Ashley Mae have made me think about relationships in our 21st century culture. Today, I want to provide fodder
13 Reasons Why: How to Talk to Your Teens About the Show
Suicide. It’s never a happy topic to talk about. And now, Netflix has sponsored a television series called, “13 Reasons Why” to showcase the issue. I am hearing more and more high school and college students talking about it, too. In the show, Hannah has committed suicide, but has left tapes describing why she felt it was necessary and all the
A Lesson in Child Development from the French
Pamela Druckerman is an American mother, who’s lived in France for some time. She and her British husband are raising children there, but they soon realized they were different than French parents. Sitting in a restaurant one evening, she noticed it was only her daughter that was unruly; throwing her food on the floor or making loud noises. As she
How to Lead a Student You Just Don’t Understand
I recently spoke to a collection of high school and college students who most would describe as “unconventional.” They wore very different clothing, sported piercings in a variety of places on their body, as well as tattoos that covered a lot of real estate. As we discussed their social and political views, some of them could be called “radical.” (This may