What is success?

14/07/06 11:44 Filed in: Think clearly
Everyone wants success. The questions is, “What is success?” Defining success will help you work smart. Consider the following possibilities, develop your definition of success, and share your definition with colleagues.

Success is...
  1. Joining God is what He’s doing, not starting down your own path.
  2. Achieving your mission, not implementing a Christian philosophy of education.
  3. Using diversity to achieve one mission, not using unity to achieve diverse missions.
  4. Building community in order to achieve the mission, not achieving your mission in order to build community.
  5. Caring for others as you do mission, not doing mission as you care for others.
  6. The Parable of the Talents, not the Parable of the Good Samaritan.
  7. Getting targeted results, not getting results.
  8. Reaching a pre-determined destination, not reaching a destination.
  9. Getting it done, not getting it perfect.
  10. Batting 300, not getting a 98%.
  11. Distinction, not perfection.
  12. Displacement, not distance.
  13. Direction, not motion.
  14. Hitting the bulls-eye, not going the distance.
  15. Doing right things, not doing things right.
  16. A program that is exemplary, sustainable, and replicable; not a program that is exemplary.
  17. Quality outputs based on quality inputs, not quality outputs or quality inputs.
  18. Increased student learning, not increased teacher learning.
  19. A Christian who teaches Christianly, not a Christian who teaches.
  20. Learning, not being learned.
  21. Getting experience, not getting knowledge.
  22. Doing, not knowing.
  23. Using learning, not getting learning.
  24. Professional development that targets mission achievement, not professional development that targets teacher knowledge.
  25. Adding 1 best practice per year, not adding 5 best practices per year.
  26. Asking questions, not dispensing answers.
  27. Working smarter, not working harder.
  28. Increasing “face” time, not increasing email.
  29. Using data, not collecting data.
  30. Maximizing strengths, not remediating weaknesses.
  31. Reaching potential, not achieving at a high level.
  32. Adding value to student learning, not students achieving to a high degree.
  33. Getting things right through repeated failure, not getting things right the first time.
  34. ReadyFireAim, not ReadyAimFire.
  35. Using documents, not having documents.
  36. Productivity, not effort.
  37. Effort, not productivity.
  38. Talking about student learning, not talking about schedule changes.
  39. Looking at student work, not looking at teacher work.
  40. Students learning, not teachers teaching.
  41. Students learning, not students behaving.
  42. Students behaving, not students getting good grades.
  43. Students on task, not students wanting to learn.
  44. Students achieving, not students trying.
  45. Students trying, not students achieving.
Work smart. Define success.