Learn. Lead. Sparkle.: Stop. Collaborate and listen.

This post is a throwback-- to the 90's and the days of Ice, Ice, Baby. Wiser words have never been spoken.

All right, stop

Collaborate and listen

This post is a throwback, the idea born before I ever had a blog, before I discovered Twitter.

All right, stop

Collaborate and listen

This post is a throwback to the summer of 2012 when I realized that learning was about more than sharing. It was about listening, too.

All right, stop

Collaborate and listen

Imagine a room full of 20 passionate teacher leaders reading professional articles, watching demonstration lessons, learning, writing, and reflecting. For four weeks that summer I spent my days and nights learning, having my thinking and my limits challenged in a way I could never have imagined. Along with the learning, we had lively discussions with voices chiming in from around the room. And then one day the director said something that I will never forget. I don't remember her exact words, but they went something like this...

If you are someone who thinks quickly, or who responds first in a discussion, I challenge you to wait. Sometimes people need time to process before jumping into the conversation. If that's you, you might try waiting until a few have responded and see what you notice.

Of course, anytime something like this is said, I always think it's me. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. But I definitely started to wait. And I noticed that she was right, it did seem like there were a few who always had their hand up first. I hadn't really noticed that before. Mentally, I made a rule for myself to wait until three other people had shared before chiming in.

All right, stop

Collaborate and listen

And I learned. I learned that learning isn't always about sharing. Sometimes, it's more about listening. I discovered that I heard different voices, and that sometimes they shared the same idea I had been thinking. I learned that I didn't want to be the voice that everyone tired of hearing first. I learned that sometimes, I didn't need to say anything at all. I learned that I enjoyed hearing the voices of others.

Not that sharing is all bad. Sometimes, we can't wait to share because we are excited or totally inspired by the conversation. This happened to me recently when the first question was posted for the School Admin Virtual Mentor Program that I am participating in.

Yes! The first question! I had been waiting for it! I couldn't wait to respond and I loved the topic. I sat down that night and wrote my first post. I was so excited and I tweeted it out to the hashtag and waited for the others to appear.

Crickets.

I had done it again. I should have waited. I was just excited but all of a sudden I felt awkward after posting first. Since then, there have been several posts on the topic and the awkward feeling is gone. Maybe no one noticed or even cared that mine was first. But I'll definitely wait next time until I see a few posts before adding mine.

I need to remember that it's not all about sharing. It's about listening. I want to listen more and I want to learn. I'm going to try to apply this idea of waiting and listening to any conversations whether they are face-to-face, on Twitter, Facebook, Voxer, and even email. I'm going to try more to listen and learn before throwing my thoughts out there. I look forward to hearing the voices of others, and I can't wait to see what I notice.

All right, stop

Collaborate and listen

Who knew Eminem was so wise?