Who Are You Spending Your Time With?

More great advice from Kevin Eikenberry for all of us.  It's extremely important for Esperanza scholars to understand it. 

Who are you spending your time with?

How are they influencing you? What are these associations leading you to think about, read, listen, watch and do? These questions may take, and warrant, your time and attention.

Is this the influence you want or need? Are these associations and their influence helping you reach your goals? Maybe your reflection on these questions leave you with a resounding “Yes!” But maybe some of your associations aren’t helping – or are even hurting you.

With your attention to these answers, you can begin to handle or manage relationships or associations that are holding you back. Here are three possible next steps . . .
1. Move on. If your association with someone creates negative habits,thoughts or stress, you may have identified a person that you don’t want to spend time with anymore. This is not an easy decision, nor something you should take lightly, but in some cases it may be necessary. This difficult choice could lead you to much greater results, productivity, and happiness.
2. Limit them. Maybe you can’t or don’t want to remove someone from your associations or life, but you don’t have to invite them to dinner every week! Consciously spend more time with those whose influence is positive and affirming and less with those who have minimal or negative influence on you.
3. Expand and engage. I hope you focus here. Work to spend more time with those who support you, challenge you and spur you towards your goals. Since you know these associations are helpful to you (and likely this is true for the other person), look for more of them!

Our Potential--Leadership

Those within our stewardship must see us striving and improving so we can be an example that we are serious about what we are doing.  Our circle of influence will be enlarged as we improve our performance, even a little bit.  We can still be very effective, even though we are not perfect. 

Pur Sang

The "A. Word. A. Day" for today was pur sang (pyoor san), a French word which means something or someone who is genuine. It is my hope that Esperanza will be filled with educators who are "pur sang" and who are people of excellence and integrity. To me these qualities are more important than a list of skills for skills can be taught.

James Allen said, "We do not attract what we want, But what we are." If these words are true, and I believe they are, the leaders of Esperanza must set the example of genuiness, excellence, and integrity. If we can desire and work to be these kind of people, like minded people will want to join us.

Only then-- when we have a school filled with educators and staff members who are genuine, excellent, and have integrity-- can we have the greatest influence on our Esperanza scholars.