Education is a Team Sport

By nature I am a competitive person. I want to arrive to work first. I want to be the best assistant principal. I want my favorite sports teams to always win. I want to pick the shortest and fastest moving line at the grocery store. I want to beat my son at FIFA '17. I think there are many examples where being competitive is a good thing. Recently I have reigned in my importance on competition, especially at work. It is more important for me to be a good teammate than to out perform anyone. I believe one of the most important character traits an individual can possess is to be a good teammate. Being able to lift up those around us is so important. Offering others kind, encouraging words costs nothing. Being a good teammate allows us to add value to our teams, organizations, and schools at no cost. When our teammates improve, we improve. 

Collaboration and communication make up two of the "Four C's" of 21st Century Learning. They are as important skills for educators to display as they are for us to help students develop. How can we expect our students to be help each other if we do not model it for them?

I should support fellow assistant principals, not compete against them. They are not my rivals, they are my teammates. I should communicate with them. There is plenty that I can learn from them. By supporting each other we all benefit.  In education, we must remember that we are all on the same team. Everyone in your building is your teammate. The bus drivers, the cafeteria staff, the custodians, and the office staff are all your teammates working towards a common goal:  We want to make our school the absolutely best that it can be! Everyone who works in your school has something to offer. We shouldn't think of the other schools in our districts and state as competition, either. 

Our district's superintendent reminded the administrators at the beginning of the year that the time for pulling against each other in public education is over. He did this by having a few schools challenge members of the district office in a match of tug-of-war against. When the match was over, he asked who won. When a few people pointed at the winning side, he poignantly pointed out that when we pull against each other no one wins. This example, was powerful. Over the last few months, this message remains strong and relevant.     

So this week and every week concentrate on being a good teammate. Make those around you better. Support your team. Give them a boost through your positivity.

  The competition that we benefit from the most is within ourselves.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”-Margaret Mead

"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." -Helen Keller