And finally....

Reflect on a successful experience you had managing someone else? What made this successful? What could you have done differently?

I manage all of the time: myself, my students, my team, and more...I would have to say that my growth and maturity in managing my cross country team over the past few years is my most successful managing experience. It's not so much that I am a great coach, but that I have been growing and learning along with the team. Coaching is a different type of management from what people are used to, but it's a very important type too. Seeing that my team is improving and they are all leading one another shows me that my management style (coaching style) has been successful. I look forward to growing every season and hope that my teams grows with me

More...

Reflect on a great manager- what made he/she great? What does this tell you about yourself?

I've had many good managers in my young career-life, but my current boss stands out as a really phenomenal manager. Not only does he manage teachers well, but the students in our department. He is very hands-on (even though he is a director and doesn't teach). Being hands-on at that level and making connections with staff as well as students is huge and i respect it and aspire to be that way very much. His managing inspires me to strive for that level of expertise and excellence. And now he was just promoted to building principal. This shows me that he is still growing and moving up in his career...that you don't have to stall or plateau ever.

More Catch-up....Kevin = fails at blogging on-time

How can management be innovative? Does it then become leadership? Where do the lines intersect between management and leadership?

Managers have to be leaders. There is no way around this. Do they have to be GOOD leaders? No, but leaders nonetheless. Innovation is key in management, also. There is no use to be a manager whom manages exactly the same as someone who came before them. So, this is where innovation comes in...being new, exciting, powerful, motivating, and so on...in a new way...innovative. The lines intersect at success. Wherever or whenever a manager is a leader and finds success is the moment that a manager is a leader...it's a sort of Nirvana.

Blog Catch-up...oops

Blog: How does motivation translate into technology design and success? Think of an example successful technology, and share how motivation was a factor in its success.

I think that motivation leads to the chouce to seek out and use successful technology. We are motivated either intrinsically to seek out and use something and make it successful, or extrinsically by a boss/coworker/peer/etc who force, or convince, us to use or try something. I would not use a new technology in my classroom if I didn't feel it was important, pertinent, interesting, or required. It's my motivation that leads to my students trying and using new things!

Week of 5/31

What tools in the Drive Toolkit most interested you? How would you use these tools to motivate those around you? To be personally motivated?

I personally had my attention piqued by the Six Business Figures Who Get It tool...only because I teach business classes and always look for new stories and examples of success and greatness to share with my students in hopes of inspiring them.

These 6 figures were all new to me and provided interesting insight to motivate me and which I could share with my students to inspire and motivate them. Particularly ROWE seemed interesting and relevant and worthy of some additional research and reading to apply to my classes and my teaching. Customers of mine are my students, so I can apply business concepts in the classroom!

Week of the 17th!

How do we know what learning is necessary within ourselves and those impacted by the change?

We know it is necessary when we feel that 'something' inside that causes us to seek out further learning. Whether it is to stay ahead in our professional lives, or to stay current with world/national events or even Pop Culture, we always seek out ways to learn.

Whenever there is change in our situation, there is new learning which takes place within us and the affected parties. This change is in direct relation to the Change. There may be additional learning that takes place which underlies the aforementioned change, but that is on a case-by-case basis.

Week 1 - Managing Tech for Change

Identifying opportunities for change. How do you know when change is needed? How do people become passionate about change?

I don't think you do always know when change is needed, sometimes it just has to happen. However, some key signs of when it is indeed needed would be when things aren't working, people are disgruntled or unhappy, productivity is down (in business or in learning), and so on. Often too many years with the same things happening is a good reason for change. Change doesn't always have to be the right thing, it's just a NEW thing, a NEW face, a NEW voice, etc.

People become passionate about change when it hits a note with their morals and beliefs, when they are sick and tired of the way things have been going. Use the last Presidential election. Not every one wanted President Obama to win, but people knew they wanted something different and they could get that in him! It's a good example of the CHANGE being what we voted on, rather than just the person.