How to Love the Wind & Deep Work

 "Wind extinguishes a candle and energizes a fire. Likewise with randomness, uncertainty, chaos: you want to use them, not hide from them. 

You want to be the fire and wish for the wind."  - Nassim Taleb - Antifragile

Feeding the Fire with Clear Priorities

As you know, a fire must be fed. In our work as team leaders, clarity is an essential ingredient to feeding the fire. In particular, clarity of purpose, priority, process, and performance. 

How does "Feeding the Fire" apply to today, tomorrow, next week? What are your most important priorities to focus on for students and families during virtual learning schedules? Your local priorities during this time give permission for everyone to pursue them together.

How does "Feeding the Fire" apply to the next few months & years? 

As we give clarity to our team priorities in Backpack Plans we create depth, specificity, and awareness. In so doing, we provide both explicit and implicit permission and freedom to invest in and strengthen those priorities! Quarterly and annual backpack planning elucidate clarity blind spots and force us to simplify and clarify the 4 Ps!

“Difficulty is what wakes up the genius” - Taleb

 

Embracing the Difficult, Deep Work, & Seeking Clarity 

As we move into the weeks and months ahead we have to pursue the "Deep Work" that brings our priorities to life further. I can assure you, Deep Work demands that we embrace the difficult process of clarifying and simplifying the many layers of of clarity that exist. 

The image below represents the our District Priorities for the last 2.5 years (top row) and currently aligned Deep Work (bottom row) that demands we embrace the difficult. In many ways, we are just beginning the journey! 

What does priority clarity look like for your local team? 

Where does it exist? 

Where does it not? 

How do you know?  

Good news - the fight for clarity is our most important and complex job as leaders and it doesn't end. :) 

Thank you for your leadership.