8 to Great: The Foundation

These are notes and reflections on the book by MK Mueller that may 1) inspire you to purchase it for yourself or 2) tell you that it's not for you, or 3) if you already own and read it, engage you in a conversation that you can continue in your head or in the comments below.

Like most first nonfiction books, the first chapter has flab--trying to sell you on the book, saying how wonderful it is. But it also has some food for thought: that your power is dependent on your attitude or your mental state. If feeling 95% good, you're working at 95% efficiency. There's some truth to this, but at the same time, teachers (or students) will have bad days. The main thing to focus on is that not everyone has the same opinion. Try not to let one poor encounter infect other encounters. Keep smiling. If you pretend like it's not there, the feeling will go away faster.

In summary, Mueller advises we imagine the future we want, take risks to get it (overcome fears), own past mistakes, don't bottle up feelings, and communicate honestly.

FGH: Mueller says to Forget the past, be Grateful for something in your present circumstances, and maintain Hope for the future. Great idea, but can you access this info while preoccupied with teaching? That's the key.

I'm supposed to write down three things I'm grateful for, everyday:

1. I'm not dead (yet)
2. Yeti have not clobbered me (yet)
3. My parents love me (Aw. Isn't that sweet? I had to say something nice).