Yesterday I was lucky enough to have the chance to appear on a podcast where we were talking about the best (and worst) advice we’ve ever received (or given) as educators.
There was a lot to say, and I found my responses to be particularly short, and to the point. It wasn’t that I couldn’t think of anything meaningful to expand on, but rather, that the most life-changing advice I’ve ever received has been, often, simply a few words.
For instance, an amazing mentor and colleague of mine, Frank Zamperlin, shared with me after a particularly rough day the first year I was teaching:
“It’s all about the Relationships”
Those five words are core to what I do, and I make every effort to always put people first. At times, I slip, but the simplicity of Frank’s statement always serves as a grounding point to help me get back in the right frame of mind to move forward effectively.
An area for me to continue to work on is to be as “short and sweet” in my talking and responses as I am in my mantras. I can get long-winded, so I need to regularly remember that if a five-word statement can shape my professional career (and my personal live as well), then surely I can trim down the amount of words I choose to speak in conversations.
Brevity is often the best medicine, and when it comes to sage advice, I have Frank to thank for teaching me that the number of words is rarely equal to the power of the statement.