(It could be a new activity.)
Howdy Folks!
I hope you are getting to enjoy the holiday season and perhaps getting a little break in running programs. With this seasonal lull in professional activity, remember to Sharpen Your Saw. Now last time we went through our BOT and hopefully you did a little cleaning and added a few things to your bag. And hey, maybe if you're really good you will get a new bag for the holidays! But just re-organizing and cleaning out your BOT is not really sharpening your saw. It is more like gathering the tools.
Regardless if you spend most of your time running teambuilding/ ropes course programs or you are an environmental educator/ naturalist, you need to take care of your self as well as your participants. In Steven Covey's classic book on personal and professional development, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, the 7th habit is called "Sharpen the Saw". Covey uses the metaphor of a woodcutter who is sawing for several days straight and is becoming less and less productive. The process of cutting dulls the blade. So the solution is to periodically sharpen the saw. The same goes for ourselves. We need to keep ourselves, our greatest tool, sharp and ready to serve. In Ecological terms, sharpening the saw is similar to composting leftover food. You are giving back to the soil which produces food for you. You are giving back nutrients to the Earth. You need to give back to yourself as well.
I’ve found that in practice, many people, including myself, are not always clear on what sharpening the saw really means. If you’re overworking yourself and your productivity begins to fall off, common wisdom says to take a break, maybe even go on vacation. However, that isn’t sharpening the saw — that’s putting the saw down. When you put down a dull blade for a while, the blade will still be dull when you pick it up again. Now don't get me wrong. A vacation can be a component of Sharpening your Saw, but it is not the only one.
Sharpening the Saw is actually an activity, just as the metaphor suggests. Think about what it would mean to sharpen the saw of your life. Here are some saw-sharpening ideas:
- Exercise
- Improve your diet
- Educate yourself (read, listen to audio programs, attend a seminar)
- Learn a new skill
- Join a club, or start a club!
- Meditate, or attend a religious service.
- Write in your journal-Or get yourself one!
- Have a deep conversation with someone
- Set some new goals or review/update your old goals
- Organize your home or office- Or your BOT if you haven't already!
- Go out on a date
- Go and do some of the activities you teach. When was the last time you road a Zip Line or went on your own Night Hike?
You get the idea. In addition to cleaning out your BOT, I encourage you during this period of time when many of us are not at peak programming levels to choose a single activity that you do all the time. It could be a game, an initiative, a certain way you teach about photosynthesis, your night hike sequence, or something else, and really look at how you do it. Are there areas you could change? More information you could provide? Does it fit in well in your schedule of events? Please do not attack ALL of your activities at once! That might get a little overwhelming! Start small, and work your way through your collection of activities.
You can also consider making this a community activity. Gather some of the folks you work with, and as a group work on refining some activities or facilitation skills. You could also create a Mastermind group or partnership. A mastermind group or partnership is a connection and agreement that you make with other people to meet at a set time and do some growth work. It could be a session of sharing ideas, new books, great experiences, or not so great experiences. It can be more effective if you have mastermind connections that are outside of your daily life. By brining in outside resources or inputs, you can help build your own "biodiversity" and make yourself stronger and more resistant to stagnation. Have fun with the creative process!
You can also consider making this a community activity. Gather some of the folks you work with, and as a group work on refining some activities or facilitation skills. You could also create a Mastermind group or partnership. A mastermind group or partnership is a connection and agreement that you make with other people to meet at a set time and do some growth work. It could be a session of sharing ideas, new books, great experiences, or not so great experiences. It can be more effective if you have mastermind connections that are outside of your daily life. By brining in outside resources or inputs, you can help build your own "biodiversity" and make yourself stronger and more resistant to stagnation. Have fun with the creative process!
Some books to consider:
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven Covey.
Sharing Nature With Children by Joseph Cornell.
Processing the Adventure Experience by Reldan Nadler and John Luckner.
Nature's Revenge ( A book about Poison Ivy, Sumac, and Oak) by Susan Carol Hauser.
NEXT TIME:
The Group process and one activity for Teambuilding and one for Environmental Education to start the new year!
Please send me your ideas for topics to explore and any feedback!
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