Design, story, symphony, empathy, play and meaning.

"The last few decades have belonged to a certain kind of person with a certain kind of mind... computer programmers who could crank code, lawyers who could craft contracts, MBAs who could crunch numbers. But the keys to the kingdom are changing hands. The future belongs to a very different kind of person with a very different kind of mind - creators and empathisers, pattern recognisers and meaning makers. These people - artists, inventors, designers, storytellers, caregivers, consolers, big picture thinkers - will now reap society's richest rewards and share it's greatest joys."

If you haven't read 'A Whole New Mind' by Dan Pink you have missed an extraordinary book that looks at how we have moved from an agriculture age through an industrial age to an information age and are now entering a conceptual age. The challenge we all face is to understand that abundance, automation and the impact of globalisation means that knowledge workers need to develop skills and abilities to make them unique and different.

Dan Pink's brilliant book offers a fresh look at what it takes to excel in this new conceptual age. 'A Whole New Mind' identifies the six skills on which, Dan argues, our professional success and our personal fulfillment now critically depend, and includes a series of hands-on exercises to help us develop the necessary abilities. These six skills are design, story, symphony, empathy, play and meaning.

This book not only changes how we see the world but how we experience it as well. Read this book and visit Dan's website at http://www.danpink.com
Chris

It's only a Game!

Last night's European Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United was a fantastic advert for the beautiful game and funnily enough someone had asked me in the lift yesterday morning what result I wanted...

I said I'd like a 3:3 draw after extra time and penalties and to be honest it certainly could have been 3:3... first half to Manchester United, second half to Chelsea... and anyone could have won it. The person I feel for this morning is John Terry who played brilliantly and then slipped and missed the penalty. The sign of true greatness is how he manages to pick himself up and get back on the field to do better... and we can all learn from his example, his courage, his passion, his commitment and his despair. Someone told me once that it doesn't matter whether you win or lose until you lose!
Chris

Attitude

I received a card from an old colleague today...

Sue Matthews, a colleague from my days in York, sent me this message...
Chris, Read your blog... saw this... and thought of you! Sue
P.S. Great blog!

The quote on the card read...
"ATTITUDE
Things turn out best
for people who make the best
of the way things turn out."

Thanks Sue
Chris

Don't Quit!

It has been tough recently so if you don't know this poem it is worth a read as we all struggle through the challenges life throws at us...

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don't give up though the pace seems slow--
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out--
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit--
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

- Author unknown

You can watch a brief presentation based on this poem at http://www.thedontquitpoem.com/

'Mavericks at Work'

I read this great book over the bank holiday weekend...

"Mavericks at Work' by William Taylor and Polly Labarre is a wonderful read and explains the success of companies across the world whose unconventional ideas and groundbreaking strategies help us to think bigger, aim higher and deliver better services.

They ask us to consider these questions:

• do we have a distinct sense of purpose that sets us apart?
• do we have a unique and compelling language and vocabulary?
• are we sufficiently focused on the long term mission?
• why should great colleagues join us?
• do we know great colleagues when we see them?
• do we teach our colleagues what works and what wins?
  
• if we disappeared tomorrow as a company who would miss us and why?

Answers to chris.edwards@educationleeds.co.uk
Chris

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than success, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, gift, or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change
our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10 percent what happens to me and 90 percent how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes."

Charles Swindoll

Do things to make people feel special

"Think, reflect, research, analyse and learn.
Be visible, accessible and available;
Walk the talk and constantly connect with colleagues;
Tell stories; celebrate, praise and challenge;
Teach, coach and model behaviours you want to see;
Get a life... live, love and regularly escape;
Do things to make people feel special."

The Future!

"The future is a blank canvas, you’re free everyday to paint it as you wish."

You can choose to paint a bleak picture…but is that's your choice? The Investment in Excellence programme teaches us that if you can see it, hear it or feel it, you can go to it.

So what you want in the future?

Be grateful!

What are you grateful for in your life right now?

One of the most uplifting qualities I know of in any of my colleagues and friends is gratitude... simply recognising that you are blessed in so many ways and saying thank you to everyone who in some small way does it for you. No matter who, where and when you are, the fact that you’re here at Education Leeds, means that you have at least one thing you can be grateful about in your life right now. Not talking about settling for what you have, but acknowledging it, appreciating the positives, knowing that there are so many good things in your life, will help you attract even more. Your attitude makes a real difference, and if millionaires can be depressed, and prisoners of war can be cheerful, you have enough power to change how you feel about yourself, your life and your work.

Problem Solving

Most people believe that it’s essential to know everything about a problem before they can change or sort things out. ‘If only I knew why I’m so... unfortunate, unlucky, unsuccessful... I’d be able to change my life’. Unfortunately, this isn’t true because understanding does not always create change. Solutions are usually new ideas injected into the existing situation. A belief like this often fosters the ‘paralysis of analysis’, encouraging too much navel gazing that makes people do the exact opposite of the following belief you need to overcome difficult times… Remember that it is not necessary to understand the cause of a problem to solve it.

The 80:20 Rule

If you spend 80% of your time focusing on the problem and only 20% on the solution what do you think is going to happen? It’s easy to complain. It’s easy to be a defeatist. You need to make it so it’s even easier to answer the question ’so what are you doing about it?’
Spend only 20% of your time on what’s wrong, and 80% on what’s right.