Throughout my life I’ve grown into being a “look for the good” kind of person. This approach is a part of my school life as well as my daily living. It was a practice I learned as a yoga teacher when assisting my students with their various poses. Look for the good before offering a refinement. I’ve carried that into many aspects of being a school administrator. When entering into a situation that might need my input or assistance, I try to see what’s going well before offering improvement ideas.
Recently I read an article about a new weekly newsletter in the New York Times called The Good List. Here’s the writer’s description of why she’s choosing to write a good list: “We’re surrounded by “best” lists, and they have their place (thank you, best books and films of the 21st century). But I prefer a “good” list. In a world of bests, good is a relief. Best invites an argument; good is just a suggestion: Here is this thing. I think you’ll probably like it. Good is generous: This is one good thing; others welcome. You want to spend time with good. It says, Look, I am not making any claims to being the one and only. I’m not promising forever. Let’s hang out and see where this goes.”
A good list works for me. I’ve been looking around the Seed to create my good list for this week. Here are a few I’ve thought of:
- We reached and surpassed our Cool the School fundraising goal of $80,000.
- Outdoor areas have been prepped for the first phase of construction of the new shade structures.
- Many of the trees are bursting with new leaves.
- The writers I’ve worked with for several years are taking to heart many of the lessons I’ve imparted to them.
- SRP installed the new power poles during the night so Seed traffic patterns weren’t disturbed.
- Every day our students are learning how to regulate their emotions and be kind humans.
- The midday temperatures most of next week are predicted to be under 100.
- Playground and parking lot weeds are mostly under control at this point of the year.
In addition to the article about making a good list, another one caught my eye. It was called “The Kids Are All Right.” Basically, it describes research which shows that children in general are actually doing better in many ways than previous generations. Increased empathy, a willingness to help others, greater acceptance of differences in others, and more developed self-regulation skills are among the indicators of improvement. Researchers credit teachers and parents who are providing children with guidance and practices that promote emotional regulation as a significant part of this shift. When I read this it immediately made me think of the professional development work we’ve done and continue to do with Conscious Discipline. We’ve devoted time to supporting children to self-regulate, and simultaneously practice that for ourselves.
As I face each day with continually arising challenges, I take notice of items to add to my good list. I also remind myself that problems showing up are indeed opportunities for growth that make me stronger. The challenges are not roadblocks along my life’s journey…they are the journey.