Message in a bottle may be something that sounds familiar to you. It is an excellent book by one of my favorite authors Nicholas Sparks. His mother and father inspired the story after his mother’s death. You can go to his website to read more. It is one of my favorites.
Messages are sent to us in many ways. Some are very direct, a few are indirect through others, and sometimes confusing in their delivery. Social media platforms allow a great deal of feedback to flow freely, which may not always be positive.
My friend Danny Bauer author of Mastermind: Unlocking Talent within every school leader, shared his thoughts on reading about a Superintendent receiving a great deal of criticism through social media and at board meetings. As leaders in any profession, we know we will receive negative comments and criticism sometimes. It is when we receive so much at one time it can be challenging to handle.
As a teacher, I used to carry those little poker chips in my pocket. I always made sure everything I wore had pockets. Pockets are very important to have, I think! Whenever I could, I would make sure to say something positive. When I was able to do this, I moved a chip from left to right. Then if I said something negative, I would move it from right to left. Maintaining more positives in the day is the goal. I always told myself if you say to a child a negative, it takes three positives to take it away. At the end of everyday, I wanted all of my chips to end up on the positive side. If they did not, my goal was not reached.
Danny suggests utilizing the Jar of Awesome he learned from Tim Ferriss.
It is a simple process to utilize. Every time you receive a positive note, place it in the Awesome Jar. Then when some negative things come your way, pull out one of the Awesome Jar notes and remind yourself how awesome you are!
Danny is offering some free training for six days. He is a strong believer in helping to find more thinking time in developing this time he invites you to MAXIMIZE YOUR MARGIN CHALLENGE.
For 6-days, I’ll host live group coaching calls where I’ll do a bit of teaching, share a thinking tool, answer any questions, and help you create more margin so you can live and lead on your terms.
It’s free to join and only take a few seconds to register: https://betterleadersbetterschools.com/margin
Here is a challenge from me, place a jar in the workroom with a message inside. Then place a sign in front of the jar which reads: Place all of your positive messages inside; take one out when you need a reminder of appreciation, gratitude, encouragement, how amazing you are, and a big thank you for being you! Make it a goal to put a positive message in the jar daily! Someone needs it, and maybe one day, it will be you!