Category: Motivation

Life is Simple…

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I’m not a philosopher.  (It would be tough to call anyone who often quotes Rocky Balboa as someone who philosophizes…). Still, I do try to share some ­­deep thoughts on these pages.  As I have aged, and collected a lifetime’s worth of knowledge, I have been drawn to some great thinkers.  For example, I have grown very fond of Ralph Waldo Emerson. I recently purchased a text (“Self-Reliance and Other Essays”) penned by Emerson that I greatly look forward to reading.

Confucius is one of the great minds of history.  His philosophies, written 2600 years ago still resonate today.  I figured that I’d take some time to examine just a few of the many statements left to us from Confucius to see how they relate to our lives as educators and teachers of children.  We’ll begin each section with a quote from Confucius and follow that up with my own thoughts and reflections.

“Life is really simple but we insist on making it complicated.”

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June 11, 1995

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This is one of those stories that, at once, is hard to believe, but is the absolute truth.  This is one of those stories that remind us all that failure is part of success.  This is true even for people who are considered the greatest of all time, for, you see, they weren’t always considered as such.

This seems like a story about baseball, but it’s not.  It’s a story about failure.  And success.  Great success. 

Great success that came only after dismal failure.

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Fail Thee Well

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I had a great idea for this blog post, but I just couldn’t put it together in a coherent way.  As such, I was forced to scratch the original and find another idea to write about.

I tried a second time, and the words, again, just didn’t come.

If you can’t get it right the first time, try again. 

And again.

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The Mystery Tour

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This is the third installment of a three part series that discussed the creative competition between the Beatles and the Beach Boys in the mid-1960’s.

Please click here for Part One – Getting Better

Please click here for Part Two – The Power of the Individual

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Ramanujan!

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It has been said, although I would hardly claim this as an absolute fact, that a person only will need to read a year’s worth of my blog posts to learn, as much, or more than any traditional four year program at Harvard University or Trinity College in Cambridge.  

It has been said, although, I have never had the theory tested, that readers of this blog will see their IQs grow by no fewer than 25 points over the course of a calendar year.

Mind you, these are just claims with no definitive proofs.  Because we’d need proof.  Or so they told Srinivasa Ramanujan.  But, alas! I am getting ahead of myself.

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The Power of the Individual

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(If you missed Part I of this series, you may wish to go back and read it.  This passage builds off a central theme of that first piece.)

Sometimes when we hear the exploits or passions of people or groups that are highly successful we think, “That’s great, but that can’t be me.”  We often tend to downplay our own impact on others.  We doubt our abilities to make a positive difference.

And, bluntly, sometimes that is easier.  It is much easier to say, “I can’t” than to go out and try to change the world, or if not the world, something in your own life.  Often times, we look at the roadblocks, real or perceived, that will prevent us from working towards a worthy goal. 

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Getting Better…

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The following is a true story about how when one strives to be the best, he brings himself, and others, to heights previously unimagined.

Our story begins with the most successful band in the history of rock and roll, the Beatles.  The year was 1965.  The Beatles were sitting on top of the musical world.  In the previous three years they had charted no fewer than 40 songs.  24 songs of those sings reached the Top-40 with 11 becoming number-one hits.  In that short time the Beatles released no fewer than six albums that also reached number-one on the charts.

The Beatles “yeah, yeah, yeah” style and sound was a defining aspect of popular music, yet, all of that was about to change…

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Kintsugi

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My son came home from college, and in a discussion with me brought up a Japanese word, Kintsugi, that immediately opened up my mind to many thoughts.

It’s wonderful to find new words, new ideas, and new ways of thinking.

And, just for the record, kintsugi is now my new favorite word.

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Running is Hard. Life is Hard. It’s all Good!

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I like to run.  A lot.  I like running very much (so I like running a lot).  I also like to run a lot of miles (so I like running a lot).   (I like when a sentence such as “I like running a lot” can be interpreted two different ways.)

When I run, which is most often on a treadmill at irrational hours of the early morning, I usually listen to music on my iPod.  I often get inspired by inspiring songs.  (I wonder how many other obvious statements I can write in this passage.)

I find every run, no matter what the distance, to be hard.  Every single run presents a challenge.

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What Classical Music Can Teach About Quality Instruction

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I enjoy music. Most people do, of course.  Depending on our mood or purpose for listening, we enjoy different music styles at different times. When I run, I usually like up-beat fast paced music that will energize or inspire me. I look for songs with motivational lyrics or songs with a great beat. (Or songs from the Rocky movies.)  Other times, other music will suffice.  Sometimes a little Sinatra goes a long way as I complete some of my daily routines.

Over the past few years, I have found that listening to classical music also provides me with a certain peace and tranquility. I have found that the more I listen to classical music, the more I enjoy it.

For much of my life, I tried to enjoy classical music, but a few things got in the way.

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