The Straw That Breaks

"Human spirit is the ability to face the uncertainty of the future with curiosity and optimism. It is the belief that problems can be solved, differences resolved. It is a type of confidence. And it is fragile."

-Bernard Beckett

Last week, I wrote about the grind of excellence. Leading a building of dedicated educators who are willing to grind it out every day for the good of our students is awesome, but I also realize it comes with a tremendous responsibility to protect them from their own willingness to persevere. We have a lot of changes on the horizon, and they come with a fresh set of obstacles. I know that no matter what comes next, my staff is up for the challenge, but I have to make sure that I preserve their spirit through the chaos. 

The great thing about team players who are willing to do whatever is needed is that you can accomplish so much. The bad thing is that people like that won't likely let you know that you've broken them until it is too late to stop it. I have to keep that in mind as we move into whatever transitions lay before us. I know that when I put forth the vision for what is coming, I will be met with optimism and a resolve to conquer the world... until I'm not. 

It is easy to sit in my office and see all of the ways in which we could better serve students, but I have the room number from my last classroom hanging on the wall in my office to remind me that every decision I make affects the teachers in their classrooms who are already doing so much for their students. Finding that balance of doing all that we can without breaking the mechanism by which we can do it (great teachers) is the hard part. I just hope I'm up for the challenge.