Expect problems, and eat them for breakfast!

[#quoteoftheday💬] “Expect problems, and eat them for breakfast!” - Alfred A. Montepart. 💭 This quote, and tip #2 in my post about #facilitation yesterday (link is in the P.S. here), remind me of this: That we need to keep our feet on the ground, and be a reliable and prepared source of stability as a teacher/trainer/facilitator. We need to be ready for the inevitable crises that will appear throughout each day. I think the same is true for any professional, actually. For everyone. If we planned with awareness that we are bound to meet a few problems today, how much more calm will our nervous system be when the inevitable happens? How much more clarity will we approach those problems with? Further, consider this: If you don't plan for problems: when they crop up, will the learners in your class feel safe with a teacher who is emitting nervous energy? Will they feel safe with someone who is shaky, flaky and deferring decisions or avoiding giving an answer and unsure in the face of simple questions? Someone who is unable to formulate a plan mid-crisis? Someone who freezes? Energy and actions speak. Children, especially, are very, very, very smart: they can smell a scaredy cat from a mile away. Your learners will sense every cell in you that is quivering. Regulating your ability to look a problem in the eye - or better yet, prepare problems as your morning meal and eating them for breakfast, is a great habit to get into as a teacher and leader of your students. Because I know this for sure: you will meet with the most heartbreaking situations as a teacher. From cases of safeguarding, violence and abuse to tricky inter-departmental relationships, prejudice and bullying, right in front of your eyes. You will have times when you feel helpless. You will feel alone. You'll need a strong, steady heart to face such matters. Your learners depend on you. Society depends on you. So have your Plan B, Plan C, Plan D, always, always, always. And prepare those problems in a yummy way to eat for your breakfast…. before they eat you for their lunch or dinner. 🤣 💡To me, this quote is about: #leadership #selfreliance #resilience #discipline #preparation #planning #personaldevelopment #planning #girlscout #boyscout #teaching #growing P.S. Here’s yesterday’s post with the rest of the facilitation tips if you missed it: https://lnkd.in/dZXry_2Y - have a read of the comments if you can, too - so many great facilitators generously shared their own helpful tips.🥺🙏🏼💛🙋🏻‍♀️✨

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sumbella_quoteoftheday-facilitation-leadership-activity-7021723518530662400-H4rK