The central theme of this discourse revolves around the metaphor of the eagle and the crow, illustrating how educators can elevate themselves above negativity, distractions, and criticism. Mr. Funky Teacher, Nicholas Kleve, elucidates that rather than engaging with every crow that represents negativity, it is imperative to choose altitude—focusing on one's purpose and safeguarding one's tranquility. This approach underscores the necessity of maintaining a positive mindset and embracing a growth-oriented philosophy, which ultimately enhances resilience in the teaching profession. As we traverse the challenges inherent in education, we are encouraged to rise above petty grievances and cultivate an environment that fosters inspiration and motivation. By doing so, we fulfill our potential as educators and leaders, guiding our students toward greatness.

Through a compelling narrative, Mr. Funky Teacher, Nicholas Kleve, invites educators to reflect on their approach to the inevitable negativity encountered in their professional lives. The eagle-and-crow metaphor serves as a poignant illustration of how one can choose to ascend above distractions rather than engage in fruitless conflicts. Kleve emphasizes that the act of rising above negativity is not merely a passive avoidance but a deliberate choice to cultivate a purposeful and peaceful environment. He articulates that every educator has the capacity to determine their altitude—whether they wish to engage with the crows or soar with the eagles. Furthermore, the episode encourages educators to harness adversity as a means for personal and professional growth. By embracing challenges as opportunities for elevation, educators can transform their experiences and contribute positively to the learning environment. This narrative ultimately champions the notion that educators are not only tasked with imparting knowledge but also with inspiring greatness in their students, thereby fostering a culture of resilience and empowerment.

Takeaways:

• The eagle-and-crow metaphor serves as a profound reminder for educators to transcend negativity and maintain focus on their overarching mission.
• In the realm of education, distractions often manifest as negativity, gossip, and internal doubts that can impede our progress.
• Fighting back against distractions can be a futile endeavor; instead, we must ascend above them, preserving our energy for more constructive pursuits.
• To achieve resilience in teaching, it is imperative that we prioritize our mental altitude, starting each day with gratitude to ground ourselves in positivity.
• Surrounding oneself with supportive colleagues, or 'eagles', is essential, as their uplifting energy can significantly enhance our teaching experience.
• Lastly, we must recognize that adversity can serve as a catalyst for growth, enabling us to rise higher in our educational endeavors.

Links referenced in this episode:

• beafunkyteacher.com

Companies mentioned in this episode:

• Be a Funky Teacher

Yeah, he's Mr. Funky.

He's Mr. Funky Teacher.

Mr. Funky Teacher inspires greatness.

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If you're seeking the best bunkiest, he is it.

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He's Mr. Funky Teacher.

Yeah, he's Mr. Funky Teacher.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

This is Mr. Funky Teacher with Be a Funky Teacher dot com.

I'm coming to you with another Be a Funky Teacher podcast.

Welcome back everyone.

Today's episode is Be the Eagle Rising above negativity and staying focused on your mission.

That's what we are going to be focusing on.

But before we get into it, let's talk about three things that I'm thankful for.

First thing I'm thankful for is warmer days this time of year.

That's right.

Those unexpected warm fall days remind me that even in seasons of change, there's still comfort.

Sunshine after a stretch of gray can even lift the mood of those around us.

And sometimes we just need a reminder that that warmth always comes back.

So I'm, I am thankful for warmer days this time of year.

Second thing I'm thankful for brooms.

Yesterday I had.

I had to use a broom to sweep up a smash glass bottle that was on the street.

And it actually made me think that sometimes leadership looks exactly like that.

Quietly cleaning up a mess that it's not yours.

But because you care about safety of others, yet do it anyways.

And so the broom is simple.

It's symbolic.

It's a small action that can bring a big difference in the paths of those around us.

Third thing I'm thankful for tasty snacks.

I'm grateful for those mid snack.

Those really a midday snacks that can keep us fueled through lesson planning and grading.

It's okay to find joy in those little comforts.

Whether it be a handful of trail mix, a granola bar.

I I love a delicious dried mango.

You know, something like that can just be a pick me up.

Life's better when we let ourselves appreciate simple pleasures.

So let's get into the main topic.

The main topic of course we are digging into rising above negativity and staying focused on your mission.

First thing I want to Talk about is, I want to talk about the story of the eagle and the crow.

Now, nature gives us this metaphor if we're willing to notice them.

Nature always gives us metaphors.

We just got to pay attention to them.

There's one particular metaphor that comes to mind, is the story of the eagle and the crow.

Now, the eagle, it's the highest flying bird.

It faces a strange challenge.

It's the only bird, the only bird that attacks the eagle is the crow.

The crow actually lands on the eagle's back and it, it pecks it, it claws it, it tries to distract the eagle from its flight.

The eagle never wastes energy fighting back.

It just simply flies higher.

And as the.

As the eagle climbs, oxygen thins the.

The crow actually cannot breathe that high and eventually falls away.

Now, the lesson is simple, but I think y', all, I think it's extremely powerful.

We don't have to fight every distraction.

We don't have to match low energy with more low energy.

We don't.

We can rise to the altitude where only your purpose can survive.

See, what happens is that fighting back costs energy, and rising up multiplies energy.

So as educators, we encounter our own crows, don't we?

We, we encounter negativity, we encounter gossip, doubt, criticism.

And when we let every small irritation pull us down, we ultimately never reach the heights we were built.

Second thing I want to talk about, second big idea here is what this means for teachers and leaders.

See, in a school, the crows can show up in many forms.

Can.

Might be a colleague who always points out what's wrong.

Boy, I've been there with, with different people in 23 years where, where there's a colleague that everything is wrong, everything is pointing.

There's flaws in everything, and those are pointed out.

The maybe constant noise of social media comparison.

It really, if you get in social media, that can really bum you out.

If you get on there and look at what's sometimes said about teachers or schools, even, it can be, even the crow can show up in as an internal voice that whispers, you're not doing enough.

That inside internal voice.

The key isn't pretending negativity doesn't exist.

It's choosing not to live there, not to live in that space.

Because every time you redirect your focus from frustration to purpose, you rise higher, you fly higher.

You don't owe anyone a reaction.

You owe yourself peace.

See, leadership isn't about controlling others.

It's about controlling your altitude.

Altitude is how high you go.

And I'd encourage you to ask yourself, is this Battle worth my oxygen.

Does this conversation lift my team or does it drain it?

So for example, when gossip starts in the teacher's lounge, let's say rising above might be walking out, kindly refilling your drink and heading back to class, just not engaging in it.

Rising above doesn't make you distant, it makes you dependable.

You become more the steady one who brings calm instead of chaos.

Third thing I want to talk about the third big idea is how to fly higher in education specifically so how to fly higher in education.

First and foremost, we you have to protect your mental attitude altitude.

Rather, you have to protect your mental altitude.

So start each day grounded in gratitude before you open your inbox or you know, I I like to do that with starting my day with thinking about three things I'm thankful for.

And, and I don't just stop there.

I actually expand it also into my list of things I'm thankful for is much longer than three things.

I just prioritize thinking about three things.

And that's a part of me protecting my mental altitude so I can I can get myself grounded every morning.

I want to encourage you how to fly higher in education.

Choose your purpose over proving you don't have to win every argument or justify every decision.

The the work you do daily is proof enough.

And I want to encourage you to surround yourself with eagles.

Spend time with colleagues who lift, not drain.

Energy is contagious, y'.

All.

Energy is absolutely contagious.

Choose wisely.

Who gets your time and then refocus on students.

When adults, when adult noise gets loud, walk into a classroom, see a student smile, and remember your why.

I know that seems almost cliche, but we as educators have to remember our why.

I think about my why all the time.

It's easy when people say, oh, remember your why?

Well, it's, it's it.

Sometimes people say it in almost like a toxic way or in a way where there's not a lot of context to it.

I'm trying to give context to when we might want to remember our why.

And so I'm going to tell you when I'm thinking about it can get really noisy.

The, the adult noise of, of a school can get almost get overwhelming.

And, and I, I tell you when I'm walking through the hallway greeting, saying hi to students, when I walk into a classroom and I have students walking in and seeing their smiling faces, they're they're excited for the day.

They're wondering what what we're going to be focusing on.

That's truly where my my why I, I try to focus on that why the, the, the purpose of what, what, what am I doing?

What are other people doing?

What, what's this all about?

So I, I do spend a lot of time focusing on my why.

It doesn't, focusing on our why doesn't take away all of the challenges that we face in education.

However, it definitely can help us fly higher.

As teachers and as teacher leaders, I encourage us also to use adversity as altitude.

See, every challenge, it's, it's like a thermal current, something you can use to rise even higher.

So use adversity.

Use those challenges that, that, that we face as opportunities to push us higher, to soar higher to our purpose and celebrate the quiet winds.

Not every victory is public.

Sometimes it's actually, it's, it's a moment where, where you stay calm under pressure or are offered grace instead of anger or celebrate those small wins.

It doesn't have to be some big fancy win.

It can be those small quiet wins that can mean the most in a day to day ins and outs of teaching.

Now remember eagles, they don't avoid the storms.

They use the wind to climb higher.

So some reflective takeaways here is that the world will always have crows.

The world will have critics, complainers, distractions.

But they can only ride with you if you stay low.

Your strength isn't in fighting back.

It's in focusing up every time you choose.

Peace over pettiness, purpose over pride.

You fly higher, you are created to soar.

Stop fighting on the ground with crows that were never meant to breathe your air.

So one, one practical challenge I want to encourage you to think about as we wrap up here is maybe identify one crow.

Maybe it's a, a habit or a person, or maybe it's a, a situation that drains your focus.

I want, want to encourage you to decide your altitude.

How can you respond with, with calm professionalism or grace instead of frustration?

Because when we respond out of frustration, nobody wins.

And then I want to challenge you to even write one line of gratitude each morning.

Or, or even how I do, I do three.

I identify three pieces of gratitude or the three things I'm thankful for my life.

So I, I try to show gratitude every morning, thinking about three things I'm thankful for.

By starting to do that, that's going to, to impact your wingspan.

It's going to lift you higher above the noise.

So those are just some practical challenge as I'm thinking about my reflective takeaway here.

I hope you found value in this episode, y'.

All.

Hope it gave you something to think about.

If you found value, jump on over to Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your podcast episodes and hit me up with a five star review and let me know what you think.

I want to thank you for your time and teachers, teacher leaders out there.

I want you to remember to inspire greatness in young people.

And don't forget to be a funky teacher.

Bye now.

He's Mr. Funky Teacher, yeah he's Mr. Funky Teacher, oh, yeah, yeah.