Welcome to my ramblings!

Welcome to my Blog. Here you can find the ramblings of a old high school principal. I've created a number of blogs over the years for a variety of reasons. A large number of them I use with my staff which are password protected from the outside world. This blog is for my fellow educators and anyone else who wants to read the ramblings. I guess my target would be building administrators, future administrators, teachers and educators in general.

Monday, February 10, 2014

Windshield Time - is that the right name?


Should I change my blog title?  Since I started my blogging (Windshield Time) many years ago around the time I spent behind the steering wheel things have changed.  I no longer spend near the time behind the wheel. It got me wondering if I should change my title? But as I reflected on this I broke down how I used my time.   

Let's exam the different components of Windshield Time. For the reader, I've added some reflective questions.
  • Internal discussions/thinking - spending time talking through issues in your head (maybe out loud). My discussions helped me exam possible solutions of issues I was facing or planning next steps. I realize I still have these discussions but now they are more spread out, when I find myself alone. Do you have these internal conversations? If not, how to you reach your decisions?
  • Organizing thoughts -  When I was driving I often used my cell phone (thanks Siri) to record voice memos to help remind me of things. Reflecting I realize I still record my thoughts now more often with a note pad (digital or paper) and occasionally with the phone. What do you do to organize your thoughts? But then, maybe your better at remembering then me.
  • Rehearsing - I use to drive and practice what I wanted to say. This might of been a rehearsal for a one on one meeting or it might of been preparing for a group. Working through the details. I still do this at home and on rare occasions in my office. Probably my number one location for this is still behind the wheel of my car. I sometimes just go for a drive now to do this.  Do you rehearse for meetings or presentations? What is your best way to rehearse?
  • Knowledge - One of my favorite benefits of driving involved listening to books. Honestly, I really haven't found a good replacement for this. I try to read books on my iPad but I don't seem to read as many as I did when I listened to them.  Are you a reader? What is the best way for you to gain additional knowledge?
  • Decompressing - This was a huge benefit for me when I took my new job 5 years ago. For year I had a 45 minute drive one way. This was great (except those real late nights) for decompressing. I could reflect on what I needed to do on my way to work and about my day on the way home. Now, my drive takes less then 5 minutes. My method of decompressing now is to go out and sit by my Koi fish pond (when it's nice). I go out before work and steal 10 minutes before leaving and go home after work and just sit. How do you decompress? Hopefully, you have something in your life that allows you to let go.
So after writing (reflecting) this blog I believe I'll just leave it titled "Windshield Time".  While I may not be driving as much I'm still doing what matters - reflecting.  Besides what else would I call it "Ramblings of a Crazy Man"?

Previous Blog - iPads Oh My (some true insight to our 1 to 1)

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