Commencement Address - Four Practices

Last week I had the honor of being the commencement speaker at a local high school graduation. I had a great time and the students were fantastic.  Below is the draft of my speech.

When Dr. Laird asked that I speak to you on this exciting day, I was both honored and confused.  Honored to have a small role in this milestone event in your young lives.  Confused by what I could offer you on this day. 

I could tell you about myself, but really that story is only interesting to me and my parents.  So we will skip most of that.  The only thing about me that is pertinent today is that I am AN old (by your definition) former principal that has had success in both my life and career beyond anything I ever imagined when I was sitting at my high school graduation. 

So as we celebrate, what I consider to be the last day of your childhood, I want to share with you some guidelines for adulthood that I wish someone had shared with me.

Now I have graduated 3 times and I have to be honest I don’t remember one thing about any of the commencement speakers, much less the content of their speeches. Nada. Zilch.  And of course I blame them. They didn’t understand their audience.  I won’t make their mistake.  See, you don’t know me, you are not my students, and as of now you are not even in school.  You are, at least until the beginning of the Fall Semester, adults in the workforce.  So I don’t want to talk to you, I want to hire you for about the next 15 minutes. 

(Hand out note taking templates)

What you have just received is a note taking template and your pay for engaging in this task.  I going to talk, you’ll take some notes and then you will get to talk. 

Parents, family and friends, you can join us, but sadly you will have to serve the role of unpaid intern.  But I’m sure the experience will be reward enough.

Ready...

Let’s start with this, if in ten years you look back and think that your experience as a high school student is the highlight of your life, then everyone in this room has failed. Everything to this point has been to prepare you to be kicked out to where the action is, to climb to ever-greater heights, accomplishments and experiences. This has been the training wheels segment of your life. Now is the time to kick the training wheels off.

So write this down, if you ever hear yourself saying something along the lines of, “Back when I was in High School, those were the good times...” stop and instead say, “After I graduated from High School, then it really got good.”

So how do you make that happen?

First know this.  Hard work trumps everything.  Hard work trumps IQ. Hard work trumps connections. Hard work trumps luck. If it is work worth doing, do it hard at full speed.  Adult life is a tournament.  The harder you work, the longer you stick with it, the further you will go.  Slow down, coast or quit, and I guarantee that you will get passed by someone not quite as good who is still moving and breaking a sweat.

So let’s have a quick 30-second conversation with your neighbors.  What are you going to do this summer to get a jump on all the graduates from the other high schools in Texas who don’t know about the power of hard work?

Second, I want you to THINK... Think a lot and think deeply.  Think about what you are working hard on.  How can you do it better, more efficiently, more effectively? How does it connect with other things?  This is where you add to your value, make yourself more marketable and increase your competitive advantage in the tournament that is life and career.  Sweat and reflection is an almost unbeatable combination.

Now I have shared that hard work and deep thinking is key to success in the tournament of adult life.  But that success has to have context, which brings me to my next point. Third, you must have a generous heart.  Yes, life is a tournament, but those who are the happiest, those that create a legacy, they compete to make things better for others.  If you are playing just for you, that is a miserable existence and you will become a miserable person. Give time, give money, and give yourself.  You will be richer because of it and it will add meaning to your hard work and deep thinking.

Time for one more quick talk with your neighbors.  Do you agree with what I have shared so far? Why or why not?

Finally, vote.  Vote a lot. Vote in every election.  Vote so much that you regret some of the votes you make.  In this last primary only 4% of eligible voters voted.  Our community, our state and our country are stronger when hard working, thinking, generous people vote. Those in politics will only be responsive to the needs of you and yours, if you participate.  No matter what anyone wants you to believe, you are ready. Participate.

I ask you to follow your passion and follow the four practices I have shared with you. Work Hard. Think Deeply. Have a Generous Heart. Vote. Do these things and you can’t help make everyone in this room proud.

Graduates of 2014, thank you again for allowing me to share in this first, but not to be the last, of your major life accomplishments.  Good luck and God bless.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas ASCD Summer Conference; ESC 14 Sumer Conference (Keynote Presentation); ESC 11 Summer Conference (Keynote Presentation); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Top LYS Tweets From the Week of June 1, 2014

A number of you in the LYS Nation are now Twitter users.  If you haven’t done so yet, we want you to join us.  To let you see what you are missing, here are the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of June 1, 2014.

1. Congratulations to LYSer, Mary Paul! She is the new Principal at Marfa High School, in Marfa ISD! Who will be next? (By @LYSNation)

2. Sometimes things you do will be challenging and unpopular, but if the goal is improvement it is worth it. (By @ONeilCHSprincip)

3. We must stop doing things that don't matter and use the time to plan for what does. (By @CabidaCain)

4. Change at scale requires a plan, on-going training, and significant coaching and feedback. (By @LYSNation)

5. The only time you run out of chances is when you stop taking them. (By @CoachKWisdom)

6. In the U.S. military, every time you get a promotion in rank, you're then presented with a list of jobs you no longer do. (By @MalachiPancoast)

7. Weekend Quote:  "A teacher who commits a mistake and doesn't correct it - is simply committing another mistake." (By @DrRichAllen)

8. What we are witnessing is not a failure of Texas public schools.  Rather, we are witnessing the failure of Texas public school policy. (By @txschoolsupe)

9. Thank you to all teachers: educating is an important mission, which draws young people to what is good, beautiful and true. (By @Pontifex)

10. We will read Fundamental 5 and I will tweet about it. (By @TammyTedwards)

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas ASCD Summer Conference; ESC 14 Sumer Conference (Keynote Presentation); ESC 11 Summer Conference (Keynote Presentation); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Resume Basics

LYS Nation, it’s time to think about your resume, whether you are looking for a job or not.  In fact, if you are not looking for a job this is best time to pull it out and polish it up a bit, when there is no pressure.  In my career, I have reviewed 1,000’s of resumes for the purpose of screening and/or hiring from the superintendent position to paraprofessional position.  Due to that, I was asked to share with a group of LYS assistant principals some resume basics and what would get me to spend an extra 30 seconds looking that one special resume in a stack of 100's.  Below are the highlights of that conversation.

There is just one purpose of a resume... to get the interview.  If your resume doesn’t do that it is worthless to you. If you have a flawed resume, all that does it make the job easier for the screener. Since in education we really are a profession of similar qualifications your resume has to set you apart, in a good way. 

Resume Set-up

1. Use good paper.

2. Use a good printer.

3. Have a clean format.

4. Use a clean font.

5. A little color is OK.

6. Skip the picture.

7. Tailor the resume to the position and organization.

8. Proof, re-proof, and proof your resume again before every submission (one typo might not hurt you, two will).

Resume Length

•  One to two pages. 
• Long enough to tell the story, not long enough to be boring
• No more than 400 words per page.

Experience Considerations

A. There is no need to list all experiences.

B. If more than 15 years ago, the experience is probably no longer relevant. Leave it out.  For example, if you are now a principal, what and where you taught 15 years ago is not what makes you a good candidate.  What you have accomplished as a principal is what makes you a good candidate.

C. If your experience is outside of the profession, list it if make you a better candidate. For example, military experience is a plus.  Feel free to skip the fact that you were a waiter while in college.

Writing Your Resume

A. An Objective Statement: Not necessary. If you have one, keep it short and sweet.

B. Put your most important information first.  Your most important information is your experience and your achievements. This is what sets you apart. Then list your education and certifications. Education and certifications are constants in the applicant pool.

C. Your resume should tell a story of your achievements. Consider the following format:

Position

Achievements and accomplishments while in the position.

D. Feel free to drop the throw away statements. We already know that your references are “Available on request.”

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas ASCD Summer Conference; ESC 14 Sumer Conference (Keynote Presentation); ESC 11 Summer Conference (Keynote Presentation); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

A Reader Shares... It's a Fundamental 5 World

Blog Post: A Reader Shares... It’s a Fundamental 5 World

A LYS Principal shares the following:

SC,

I'm currently at my state’s Principals Conference. It just delights me to hear about The Fundamental Five in our conference presentations.  I have been to three conferences this year and have heard The Fundamental Five mentioned at every conference. Hmmmmmmm...

Thank you, Sean and Mike

SC Response

Great to hear and you're welcome. Make sure you come to the Fundamental 5 National Summit in Austin, Texas on October 5 and 6, 2014.  I’m doing the keynote, but then teachers and campus administrators are the presenters for all of the breakout sessions.  Two days of real world implementation and discussion focused on getting the most out of classroom instruction.

Hope to see you there.

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas ASCD Summer Conference; ESC 14 Sumer Conference (Keynote Presentation); ESC 11 Summer Conference (Keynote Presentation); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

PowerWalks Hero School (May 2014)

In furtherance of a LYS Nation tradition, we will take this time to tip our caps to the campuses that have embraced the most important step in creating and maintaining an action oriented professional learning community.  These are the campuses that have conducted an extraordinary number of formative classroom observations in a given month.  There were a total of 2,323 PowerWalks conducted during the past month and the May targets for Hero School designation were:

Big Schools – 175 PowerWalks Observations

Medium Sized Schools – 120 PowerWalks Observations

Small Schools – 75 PowerWalks Observations

Very Small Schools – 40 PowerWalks Observations

Now without further ado, here are your thirteen PowerWalks Hero Schools for the month of May 2014.  Congratulations!!!

Elementary Schools	Junior High and Middle Schools	Alternative Schools	Combined Campuses	High Schools
Frazier ES (CFISD: mid-sized school) - 422	Dublin IS (DISD: very small school) - 42	San Marcos (JWJPCS: very small school) - 149	Louise Schools (LISD: small school) - 79	Kennedale HS (KISD: mid-sized school) - 120
McFee ES (CFISD: mid-sized school) - 383		Afton Oaks (JWJPCS: very small school) - 56
Bell’s Hill ES (WISD: small school) - 285
JH Hines ES (WISD: small school) - 218
West Ave ES (WISD: small school) - 119
Dublin ES (DISD: very small school) - 113
Crestview ES (WISD: small school) - 113
Marlin ES (MISD: very small school) - 53

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas ASCD Summer Conference; ESC 14 Sumer Conference (Keynote Presentation); ESC 11 Summer Conference (Keynote Presentation); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook

Top LYS Tweets From the Week of May 25, 2014

A number of you in the LYS Nation are now Twitter users.  If you haven’t done so yet, we want you to join us.  To let you see what you are missing, here are the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of May 25, 2014.

1. Congratulations to LYSer, Jason Johnston! He is the new principal at North Forney HS!! Who will be next? (By @LYSNation)

2. Congratulations to LYSer, John Jenkins! He is the new principal at Indian Spring MS!! Who will be next? (By @LYSNation)

3. If you're not willing to put in the effort, don't expect anything in return. (By @CoachKWisdom)

4. There are more cell phones in the world than toothbrushes... maybe it’s time to stop banning them in schools. (By @justintarte)

5. Texas Kids Can’t Wait issued a report card for legislators early in year. Dan Patrick got THE WORST rating of any member of the Texas Legislature. (By @TXKidsCantWait)

6. "The only thing better than winning is more winning."--Astros manager Bo Porter. (By @richardjustice)

7. The "Fundamental Five" (Cain & Laird) is another excellent and quick read to fine tune our craft. (By @teachkiwi)

8. Kids learn less in classrooms with too many decorations. (By @SueWilsonDASD)

9. Attending a two-year for-profit institution costs a student 4x as much as attending a community college. (By @usedgov)

10. The Fundamental 5 (Cain & Laird) just cruised by 58,000 copies sold! Thank you, LYS Nation!!! (By @LYSNation)

Think. Work. Achieve.

Your turn...

• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “The Fundamental 5: The Formula for Quality Instruction.” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/Fundamental5 
• Call Jo at (832) 477-LEAD to order your campus set of “Look at Me: A Cautionary School Leadership Tale” Individual copies available on Amazon.com!  http://tinyurl.com/lookatmebook 
• Now at the Apple App Store: Fun 5 Plans (Fundamental 5 Lesson Plan Tool); PW Lite (Basic PowerWalks Tool); PW Pro (Mid-level PowerWalks Tool) 
• Upcoming Presentations: TASSP Summer Conference (Multiple Presentations); Texas ASCD Summer Conference; ESC 14 Sumer Conference (Keynote Presentation); ESC 11 Summer Conference (Keynote Presentation); NEASP National Conference; The Fundamental 5 National Summit (Keynote Presentation) 
• Follow Sean Cain and LYS on www.Twitter.com/LYSNation  and like Lead Your School on Facebook