Questions to Ponder - Quotes to Inspire - Moving Into 2013

Happy New Year!  Here's to a year of joy and meaning, good health and good work and so much more.

I participated in some good work this past year. One of my last opportunities was with Bob Garmston as we co-led a workshop at the Learning Forward Annual Conference titled Breaking Through Conflict and Hard Conversation Barriers to School Improvement. Our session host, Cathy Gassenheimer, from the Alabama Best Practices Center, asked us a question. What important conversations do educators need to have with themselves when critical issues are on the table?  The answer led to a blog post, and it also led me to think about additional questions I am asking myself at the start of 2013.

In no particular order, I have placed a few of the questions here.  I have also added in two inspirational quotes that served me well in 2012.  As Sam Keen says, "Searching, longing, questioning is in our DNA. Who we are and what we will become is determined by the questions that animate us, and by those we refuse to ask. Who are you? What are your questions?"

• What catalytic experiences did you have in 2012? 
• What catalytic experiences did you create for others? 
• What is your Work?  How do you bring it more vibrantly and authentically into your workplace? 
• "It is legacy work time.  What do you want to unequivocally confront?"  - Rosemary Campbell-Stephens

And to sum up - two quotes...

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. – MLK

When death finds you, may it find you alive.  – African Proverb

Here's to being alive and finding our voice in 2013.

If you have any questions, comments or topic suggestions, please feel free to email me at Jennifer@jenniferabrams.com. I look forward to hearing from you!

Cool Resources

1) Thinking Schools International is an expanding group of educators from around the world focused on developing, implementing, documenting, and openly sharing the practices of explicitly improving all students', teachers', and administrators' thinking abilities. 

2) Being Buddha at Work:  108 Ancient Truths on Change, Stress, Money and Success by Franz Metcalf and BJ Gallagher.  Amazon's book description states, "The authors emphasize practical learning and coping, not esoteric insights or metaphysics, applying concrete solutions from Buddhist teachings to real problems in easily digestible chunks."

3) International Futures Forum "restores practical hope and provokes wise initiative in challenging circumstances. We address complex, messy, seemingly intractable issues – local, global and all levels in between. We respond to the conceptual emergency, wherever it shows up. We develop the capacity for inspiring and transformative innovation rather than simply propping up the old system."  IFF also sells an e-book (available on Amazon) entitled "Ten Things to do in a Conceptual Emergency."

Upcoming Events

Each month I will share with you information about a few of my upcoming trainings.
If I am going to be in your area, contact me so we can say hello, hopefully in person!

January 10
Having Hard Conversations
Utah Mentor Academy
Utah Personnel Development Center
Salt Lake City, UT

January 25
Having Hard Conversations
Diocese of San Jose Department of Education
San Jose, CA

January 30-31
Having Hard Conversations
Site Administrators & BTSA Support Providers
Orange County Department of Education
Costa Mesa, CA

February 2
Having Hard Conversations
iLeadAZ Leadership Training Program
Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College
Arizona State University
Phoenix, AZ

For additional upcoming events, please visit my Web site.

Until next time,

Cheers,
Jennifer

Feel free to forward this newsletter to friends and colleague. You may reprint this newsletter in whole or quote with attribution to Jennifer Abrams and a link to www.jenniferabrams.com