The beauty of variations

Silver Soldier
Originally uploaded by ttsweet

OK, the first order of business is to give credit where credit is due. This photo is titled "Silver Soldier" and was made by the outstanding professional photographer, Tony Sweet. I encourage you to jump over to Flickr and view some more of his amazing photos. You can also view his work at his personal website.

Now, let's examine this photo for a clear life lesson we all need to remember -- variations around us often serve as essential ingredients in the creation of beauty. Variations create harmony, often.

Notice, also, the various color elements in "Silver Soldier" and how they don't fight each other. Rather, they come together, with their own characteristics, and contribute those various characteristics to result in a visual masterpiece.

Another life lesson: Where does one color stop and another color start? You can't really tell. Instead, there's a "blending" of colors. And, although some two or three colors may appear to be the same, upon closer examination, we discover that they really are different.

Where do you see yellow? Yes, it appears in several places.
Where do you see gold? Yes, in several places.
Where do you see brown? That's right -- in several places.
And what about silver? Yep, again, it's in several places, even though our eye is drawn to the silver as though it were one discrete element. Yet, as we examine closer, we discover that some of the lines around the silver are not clearly and distinctly defined. The silver contributes its beauty to the whole by blending in -- and at the most appropriate location.

Now, for the "transfer of learning" part to teach us what we need for beautiful planning within our group/team....

The composition of your technology planning team is crucial. This is definitely not a one-person job! And, not everyone on the team has to view things in the identical fashion. Variety of opinion, talent, experience, work ethic, endeavor, and zeal has the potential for making a planning team strong and resilient when some of the problems buffet us. And, those problems will definitely come!

Just imagine that your committee is made up of both seasoned teachers, as well as the novice. They have different perspectives on many things, yet each of them has valuable input for the whole committee.

You will need not only teachers, but also administrators, civic leaders, parents, students, professionals (doctors, lawyers, insurance executives), retired individuals, .... well, you get the point. You need a veritable cornucopia of people with a broad range of talents, experiences, and opinions. However, your role as a committee leader is critical.

You have to know how to take the best parts of each person's contribution and meld that into a meaningful whole.

That's precisely what Tony did for us in this photograph. First, he had to stop and take notice of this beautiful image. Then, he had to use his best skills in photography to know the proper exposure, shutter speed, and position in order to yield the best image. The result is that we have a thing of beauty to admire. Other passersby might have thought that was just an ugly rust spot, but Tony incorporated the strength of his talent and composed the photo that magnetizes our appreciation. All those elements that contributed to making this photo a lesson for us were brought together at the right time, in the right proportions, from the right angle. Such a great lesson for leadership!

None of this information is news to us. Yet, we have to be reminded of this frequently. Amidst the hustle and bustle of our daily lives, trying to coordinate the work of our planning committee, even as we go about managing the technological uses being applied in our schools or organizations, we often allow the beauty around us to get lost in the seemingly overwhelming "jobs" that consume our time.

Hence, I encourage you to look carefully and closely at the beautiful photograph that Tony Sweet has given us...and ponder the beauty lying around you in the form of people's talents, opinions, etc.

Isn't it really a thing of beauty that we have the combination of people working in harmony with us. (Remember, too, that "harmony" is not the same as "unison." Harmony in music comes from various tones, but combined in proper proportions. The same is true among people.)

Now, it's your turn.

What do you think about this?

What has "the beauty of variations" meant to your work?

How can you use this photographic image to help your work with your technology planning and implementation efforts?

Please contribute your thoughts. They will help make this blog more beautiful, too!

Encouragement: A Planning Vitamin

Encouragement!

How often do you feel like you're just paddling in still water?  Using up loads of energy, but not getting anything for it?  

Have you ever seen one of those little mechanical horses out in front of a discount store?  Children  can pop in a coin, then climb aboard the horse and ride, ride, ride while music plays.  But, no matter how long they ride the horse, when the time runs out, they're still in the same place as when they started.  

They've ridden a long time, but made no progress.

Do you ever feel like that?

I do.

So, what's the antidote?

Recently, I was feeling a bit unproductive--and the more I thought about it, the more unproductive I became.  I felt myself slipping into a feeling of depression, actually.  I wanted to shake it all off and move forward, but somehow, I just couldn't jump free of the grasp that feeling had upon me.  The clock kept ticking, but I wasn't making progress.  Then, it happened.

My cell phone rang.  The caller was a dear friend, Kristi Brown, who was calling just to see how things were going.  After we had our usual "hello" exchanges, she immediately began telling me how proud of me she is, because she knows I am accomplishing so much.  What on earth was she thinking?  She couldn't have known that I needed that call.  Yet, there she was, encouraging me and telling me the exact things I needed to hear so I could realize how much I was capable of accomplishing.

Encouragement!  That was the precise vitamin I needed.  And, it didn't take her but just a couple of minutes.  However, it made all the difference in my day.

Before the call was even over, I had risen from my chair and had begun organizing some materials on which I had needed to be working.

When we hung up our phones, I was like a windstorm.  I believe I accomplished more that day than I had the entire previous week!  What made the difference?

For me, it was someone else taking a few moments of their time and giving me a positive word.  She was telling me, perhaps in different words, that she believed in me and knew I was capable of making a significant, positive difference in the world.  She told me of ways I have meant a great deal to her.  She reminded me of impact I have had upon others' lives.  I didn't even have to tell her that I was in a "funk," because there was neither time nor need for that.

Her actions turned my day around.  Kristi's simple act moved me from apathy to activism -- from complacency to achievement.

Think of the other people on your team.  Are they achieving at the levels you wish?  At levels they wish?  Are they tired?  Or, are they losing focus of the project?  Are they becoming distracted?  Is their participation waning?  Perhaps, they are still working hard and seem to be productive team members, but they just need a little boost from someone else who can help them understand that their efforts are valued and are of great benefit to the team momentum.

You need to give someone that little push -- that little "lift" -- that can make all the difference.

Now, what can we learn from this?

I encourage you -- right now!  Actually, I encourage you to think of someone who means a great deal to you, then contact that person and thank them for what they mean in your life.  Send them the gift of encouragement.  You don't have to wait in long lines, run up charges on your credit card, or worry about the color of the gift wrap.  Just contact someone today.  Share with that friend your personal gift of encouragement.

See what a difference it makes in not only the life of the other person, but also in yours!

I encourage you to take action!

Let me know what happens.  OK?