Archive for July, 2009

Making Change Unstoppable

Wednesday, July 8th, 2009

Although I don’t think social change is for everyone, I do think you need the following ingredients in place before anything can happen:

  • Some “thing” worth getting behind (e.g. the song in the video is worth dancing to),
  • At least one incredibly confident individual willing to go it alone (e.g. “Dancing Man” from the video),
  • At least one or more people ready to stand behind ‘the leader’ and show the crowd, “Hey, this is good, come on!” (e.g. the first two guys to join Dancing Man).

Check it out:

So, the next time you’re thinking of instigating or supporting some type of social change – whether it be big change like starting an industry trend or small change in your school or workplace – be sure you have the necessary ingredients.

You’ll be “unstoppable.”

And you’ll have people like the woman at the very end of the video asking, “How did he do that?”

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What’s Your Time Perspective?

Monday, July 6th, 2009

In an earlier post, I explained how I begin all my courses – regardless of the subject matter – with a lesson that challenges my students to think about their lives into the future in order to make what they’re doing today more meaningful. It makes my teaching more effective. It makes their learning more relevant. It makes education more meaningful.

This TED Talk on “Time Perspective” not only supports that lesson, but it’s given me lots to think about – both personally and as an educator.

  • It’s fast; you’ll likely need to pause it (like I did) several times to read the charts.
  • It’s a super simplification; I’m suspecting that it’s the tip of brand-new iceberg.
  • It’s largely common sense; we’ve all thought of this stuff before, but now it’s in tidy tables and supported by academics.

I hope this provides you with some new insights both personally and professionally; especially if you’re an educator or manager looking for new ways to approach your lazy or directionless students/employees … because helping them think about time a little differently could be the best thing you could do.

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Posted in Research / Findings / Literature, Teaching Ideas | No Comments »