I have often mentioned the importance of telling one’s own story. I learned this years ago from a gentleman who was leading a leadership professional development. He commented that oftentimes we are our own worst enemies, and we become so through our rhetoric. He provided several examples such as “now that I’ve left the classroom and went to the dark side” and things of this nature. It seems so small and insignificant; however, it does establish a kind of narrative that administrators are an adversarial group. This is also true when we talk about our schools or what we do in general. We often inadvertently establish a narrative that only makes a tough job tougher. Recently, Mrs. Parrish shared with me a video that addressed the rhetoric in schools. And, I don’t mean solely by the students. We feed into this as well. In the video, Jennie Young establishes how easy it is to establish an image or a narrative through metaphor. How often do we hear folks refer to schools as prisons or institutions? Once that image is out there, it becomes easy to feed into it. Our challenge is to change the narrative. What we do everyday is what Ms. Young mentions in her talk. We tend a garden. We provide them with what they need so they can grow in their own time and into their own talents.
Being mindful of how we tell our story is just as important as remembering to do so. So, to extend the metaphor even further, be the gardener, not the warden.