The Why, How, and What

When was the last time you thought about why you teach? Today? Yesterday? Last Month? Simon Sineks states, “If you don’t know why you do what you do, how are you going to convince others?” Establishing a clear “why” statement can inspire others to join your cause. Your goal should be getting people to believe what you believe in order to lead change in your organizations. “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it and if you talk about what you believe, you will attract those who believe what you believe” (Sinek, 2016).

Dr. Kotter states one must, “win over the hearts and minds” before one can attempt to change the behavior of an organization. If you know your why winning over their hearts and minds should follow suit. Many people are caught in the whirlwinds of everyday tasks and sharing your innovations appear to be a waste of time. Your task is to create an influencer that is designed to assist your wildly important goal (WIG). Unless you share a common, belief system designed on urgency your WIG may not be attainable.

I have designed a plan that I believe can target both ideas (hearts and minds). My innovation plan of a blended learning environment is designed to give back the time that teachers need to connect and build strong relationships with students. When educators connect and build relationships with students (through creative learning environments) the mind will follow. In a case study done by Patricia Brady Gablinske (The University of Rhode Island) she stated, “strong teacher and student relationships revolve around how it affects the teaching.” This leads me to believe that students tend to perform at higher levels because they know someone truly believes in them.