My One Word for 2018

The end of the year is one of my favorite times for reflection. I don't like to set resolutions.

Of course, I always want to better myself...somehow, someway.

I have been inspired this year by some friends that I have met along the way, and that is why I am writing this post about my one word for 2018.

My word is: Hope.

If you know me or you don't, 2017 was a year that rocked me to my core. It started out with some news that changed my life. I will spare you the gory details in this blog.

Why did I choose hope?

Well, on Christmas Eve morning, I could have been feeling sorry for myself. My girls were gone, my sister was out of town, it was definitely not how I thought I would be spending the day. I decided to go for a walk. I went around my neighborhood toward the golf course and I caught the most gorgeous picture. The sun was coming up through the trees, there was a lovely reflection, and to me it was just perfect. Then, not 25 feet later in one of the lawns I saw the word, hope. It was part of a holiday decoration, but to me, that sign was placed there for me to see it.

I do have great hope for 2018. I hope to be a better person. I hope to learn more. I hope to read more. I hope to enjoy the sounds of my girls laughter, more. I hope to laugh at myself more. I hope that I might even be able to love more.

No matter how bad your day might be, have hope. Hope and knowledge that tomorrow will be better. Know that you can make it better. You have the power to choose.

So, have hope.

Who needs a Life Coach?

To start, me.

I. Need. A. Life. Coach.

2017 was kind of a crazy year. I will spare you the gory details, but just know that I am no longer the person I was a year ago. My life has changed tremendously, the only thing that has stayed the same is that I am in the same job from last year: STEAM/Elementary Science Coordinator. I love my job. I have learned a lot about content, curriculum, standards, and even about myself as a leader.

That being said, I just got off the phone from my first conversation with a life coach. It is really awesome that this is part of my job, and I am very thankful to have the opportunity to speak with him.

I pride myself on being introspective. I also pride myself on being a nice person.

For many years I thought that being very nice was a weakness. Well, no more is that the case.

Some of my big takeaways from todays conversation were as follows:

1. Kindness and wanting to be liked are not bad things.
2. There is a difference between sacrifice and service.
3. Compassion and authenticity are not traits that are easily developed in a leader.

And, now for my new mantra. I am debating on printing it out and taping it to my mirror.

"I am a nice, kind and powerful leader. And, I am effective in what I do."

(This can only be said in a superwoman stance.)

Lastly, I have to remember there are things I can control and things that are outside of my control.

https://pin.it/55s4hgw3vqdhog

Presenting at TCEA

I absolutely love presenting at conferences and when my boss last year encouraged his staff to present at TCEA, I excitedly put in 3 proposals. I did this in May before I went out on maternity leave. Guess what? All three were accepted. 

Then, I got a new job as the elementary science and STEAM Coordinator. I was worried I wouldn't even be able to attend, let alone present at 3 sessions. However, I have been able to and I am so thankful. 

Yesterday I got to present on my favorite topic, "Recruiting and Retaining Girls in STEM." I have tons of videos and love talking about this. I love sharing stories about my own 4 year old and the things I observe as her mom and as an educator who is aware of how girls can be treated in STEM fields. 

Today, I got to present with my good friend and we talked about, "Bringing the World into your classroom." We did not use Google Cardboard, but we left our participants with activities that they could use to create their own Virtual Field Trips. We had tested our activities out, and were ready to share. I had made 30 copies of the elementary activities and 30 copies of the middle school activities. With 15 minutes to go, we had about 100 people in our room. By the time the presentation started, there were over 200 people. Needless to say, I was embarrassed that I only made 30 copies--but everyone seemed to be happy...and they laughed at our jokes--even when the internet didn't work properly. 

Standing room only for my presentation with @CalebHudgens. 

It is always nice to be able to reflect on what you would do again after you present. I know that next time we will explain just a few more of the tools and we will definitely make more copies! 

It has been a great two days. Tomorrow is my last day at TCEA and I am so excited for more learning. I hope to catch a session by Leslie Fisher as she was one of my favorites when I attended the year prior. 

If you have been to TCEA and presented--or even just attended--what kind of advice do you have? Feel free to leave me a comment! I would love to hear from you!