Comments on: Excerpt from “Meet The Boomer Sisters”

By: Rosa Say

Rosa Say — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 03:31:51 +0000

Aloha Gabe, welcome to Talking Story and to our Ho‘ohana Community. Maui does have a way of weaving its’ spirit into your heart, doesn’t it! The magic happened because you were most receptive to it though; having “mahalo” as a value that resonates with you tells me you do live it, being thankful for all those elements which make our lives so precious.
You can go “off topic” here any time you wish to, when it comes to the talk story of how we can bring more dignity, honor, and nobility to the world of business. It’s a world of faults with ever-possible improvements begging to be made, however I am an optimist at heart who loves the art and science of business, and the empowering dynamics of the workplace. The Hawaiian culture does give us the opportunity to view it through a fresh lens, and we are eager to welcome you into the conversation here. (We’ll keep Dan around too!)

By: Gabe Mounce

Gabe Mounce — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 03:00:29 +0000

Rosa,
Thanks for inviting Dan to contribute to your forum here. I wanted to share what I think is an interesting tidbit, although a little off subject. Dan informed some of his colleagues, including myself, of his invitation to contribute to your forum a little while ago. It just so happens that this month was also the month that my wife and I made a visit to Hawaii (Maui) ourselves for the first time. Having just returned, this link to your page has special significance…we absolutely fell in love with the Islands and the lifestyle. I suspect everyone says this, but how different and desirable it is than what my wife and I experience on a daily basis back home. How can you not be inspired by the Islands? I’m glad to see that you have injected this culture into the “business” world. That world so often takes things too serious thereby cutting off any real genuineness leaving me with the stale taste of fake bread. Business doesn’t need or have to be that way. It should be more. It should be about passion, energy, enthusiasm…things that are real. Thanks for being yet another voice calling for real conversations in the spirit of the “Bazaar”. And thanks for including Dan in your conversation. Mahalo! (I absolutely love that word!)

By: Rosa Say

Rosa Say — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 16:17:37 +0000

That word “cool” keeps coming up doesn’t it.
We need way more LtCol Joe Wottons, and that’s the “cool” thing about our Ho ‘ohana Community —we have a lot of them!
In business, this is the advantage of being in management and leadership positions: In the guise of being more “in control” at the top of the food chain, we have the leverage to be brave, and support our people when they live in the land of experiments, pilot projects, and test runs on whacky but loaded-with-potential ideas. The question is, do we seize this advantage, and use our leverage in the best sense of the word?

By: Dan Ward

Dan Ward — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 15:51:04 +0000

One of the coolest people I ever worked for, LtCol Joe Wotton, always used to say “it’s far easier to direct energy than create it.”
He had a real gift for saying yes to crazy projects and proposals, because he knew that a self-directed, self-initiated project would be tackled with passion and excellence, and that forcing people to do a bunch of stuff they don’t care about leads to apathy and low quality outcomes…
He also knew that if he let us do the cool stuff, we’d be much more willing to engage on the necessary-but-less-exciting parts of the job when he asked (and maybe even before he asked).

By: Rosa Say

Rosa Say — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 15:26:41 +0000

Ah Dan! Exceptional!
Core, core, crucially core message of my MWA philosophy — constant mentoring to the managers and leaders we coach (and to give credit where credit is due, major point in the Donald Clifton/Marcus Buckingham books): Don’t try to change people or put “in” what’s not there: Draw out, celebrate, and capitalize on what is already within them… Love them for who they are and what they are capable of. Believe in them, partner with them, and you set the best possible environment for their learning.

By: Dan Ward

Dan Ward — Thu, 07 Sep 2006 15:02:45 +0000

Thanks again for all the wonderful discussion about this stuff!
Someone once pointed out that the root of the english word educate comes from a latin term that means “to draw out,” but in our schools these days we often act as if it means “to stuff in.”
Drawing out is a fundamentally different activity than stuffing in… if for no other reason than we draw out the person, but stuff in data. It seems to me educators would do well to focus on dealing with the person rather than treating information as their primary area of attention.
Your thoughts?

By: tim

tim — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 19:46:09 +0000

Dan – What a perfect excerpt for this month’s learning adventure. It’s almost like you wrote it just for this time. I really like the concept of not just learning “how” to do something, but to actually “love” learning how to do it and “love” doing it.
That’s a little trickier isn’t it?
tim

By: Charleen Quella

Charleen Quella — Tue, 05 Sep 2006 04:36:29 +0000

As an educator and a lover of reading myself, how could I not applaud the Boomer Sisters? (Especially since I know them!) Great Job Dan!
Charleen Rose

By: Dan Ward

Dan Ward — Mon, 04 Sep 2006 21:21:40 +0000

Wow, thanks everyone for the fantastic response. I’m a bit overwhelmed, and am so glad to see how well received the Boomer Sisters are.
For those who are wondering, I do plan to have the second Boomer Sisters book done in time for Christmas – a perfect present for the little (and not so little) ones in your life.
A hundred thousand mahalo’s to you all (if I may mix my island thank-you’s, combining a little Irish with the Aloha).

By: Blaine Collins

Blaine Collins — Mon, 04 Sep 2006 20:26:45 +0000

Meet the Boomer Sisters sounds like a ton of fun, Dan! With back-to-school upon us, you picked a great time for the excerpt. I heard the same tone from my 4-year old’s Pre-K teacher at meet-the-teacher night last week.
“I want them to learn,” she explained, “But I want them to enjoy it, too. I like to give them plenty of time to explore the lessons, letters, words, and numbers. It doesn’t need to be like work. They will let us know when they are ready start reading and doing math.”
You have both suggested the same definition of a teacher – one who facilitates learning.