BFTP: Do you lead with your head or your heart?

Edmund Burke once wrote, “The true lawgiver ought to have a heart full of sensibility. He ought to love and respect his kind, and to fear himself.” Burke was emphasizing that leadership is a passionate activity. It begins with a warm gratitude toward that which you have inherited and a fervent wish to steward it well. It is propelled by an ardent moral imagination, a vision of a good society that can’t be realized in one lifetime. It is informed by seasoned affections, a love of the way certain people concretely are and a desire to give all a chance to live at their highest level.

This kind of leader is warm-blooded and leads with full humanity. In every White House, and in many private offices, there seems to be a tug of war between those who want to express this messy amateur humanism and those calculators who emphasize message discipline, preventing leaks and maximum control. In most of the offices, there’s a fear of natural messiness, a fear of uncertainty, a distrust of that which is not scientific. The calculators are given too much control.

The leadership emotions, which should propel things, get amputated. The shrewd tacticians end up timidly and defensively running the expedition. David Brooks "The Leadership Emotions," NYT, April 21, 2014

It's rare in day-to-day school operations when you see an adult speak with passion about a deeply-held belief.

Yes, emotions are often seen in schools - but too often they are fear, sadness, or anger. And we certainly discourage kids expressing these emotions and behave as good little robots whenever possible. Teachers are expected to model this. Acting from the heart gets a bad rap.

And I would say that the higher up the leadership level in a school, the less likely leadership from the heart occurs - at least visibly.  I often come away from meetings feeling somewhat embarrassed because I get passionate about ideas and philosophies and policies - either yea or nay - and showed this through public comment. With most of the administration in the district being more my children's age than my own, I'm quite sure I'm written off a senile crank. And I recognize that being eligible for retirement without enormous personal financial risk and not having to worry anymore about climbing any professional ladders allows me to be brave. 

Dispassionate decision-making is a dangerous virtue, as Brooks suggests. Especially so in education. 

At your next meeting speak out, just once, from the heart. The feeling embarrassment passes.

Eventually.

Original post 4/22/14

Has what you've read on Facebook ever changed your vote?

 

Harvard Professor Gary King at a recent Humphrey School of Public Affairs program asked an interesting question about how much influence social media really has on election outcomes during a discussion on the whole Facebook/Cambridge Analytics brouhaha.

How many times did your vote change during the last election period as a result of something you read on Facebook?

I know mine didn't. Russia could propagandize its little heart out, and I seriously doubt my views on most political issues would change one iota. So why, if I know I am more or less immune to propaganda, fake news, spin, and other forms of influence, am I worried about others being manipulated politically?

Is it because I just assume that I am smarter than the rest of the great unwashed public?

Here are a few uncomfortable truths I try to remember:

• Equally smart people can have very different political views. Politics are about values not intelligence.
• Both sides of the political divide use suspect tools of influence in attempting to sway opinion.
• We rarely seek unbiased information about controversial topics - we look for and read those opinions which support our values.
• No one makes completely rational decisions.
• Nearly everyone is a lot smarter and less-susceptible to manipulation than we give them credit for.
• We probably don't know when we ourselves are being manipulated.
• We are more likely to listen to defensively respond than to listen to actually learn.
• People enjoy stirring the pot with outrageous political statements and satirical humor. The bigger the reaction, the bigger the rush. People like attention.
• No issue can be explained in 140 characters or less.
• All communication has inherent bias.

As a life-long writer and speaker, I find how people attempt to influence others as or more interesting than why they want to change others beliefs.

What an interesting time to be alive! Or at least that's what I read on Facebook.

Isle Royale - mud, sore feet, and wonder

Back from a 5 day backpacking trip of Isle Royale. A bit footsore after carrying a 40 pound pack for 45 miles through mud, up steep hills, and over rocky outcroppings, but otherwise feeling proud of being able to carry a 40 pound pack for 45 miles through mud, up steep hills, and over rocky outcroppings. A few photos and observations...
 

The trip began with a rough 8 hour ride on the Voyaguer II which left Grand Portage, MN at about 7AM and arrived at Rock Harbor on the island about 3PM. Did I mention Lake Superior is rough? About 40 other adventurers were aboard the ship, backpacks stowed above. Drop off points included Windigo, Isle Royale is the least visited national park in the U.S. - perhaps this helps explain why. You can take a float plane to the island as well for about $320, I was told.
 

At Rock Harbor, our small group of 6 picked up its back country permit, made a few last minutes adjustments to the packs that held all we would need for the next 5 days, and glanced longingly at the inviting lodges and camp store. We weren't there long since we had to cover 3 miles to get to our first campsite.

For the most part, the trails were good, but there were plenty of muddy patches and streams that had to be crossed on slick rocks or planks. I was happy I brought my hiking poles for support and balance. I saw only one of our group of 6 slip while on the trail. Helicopter evacuation for broken limbs is expensive. Roots and rocks, of course, were always present. As one gets tired at the end of the day, even the smallest object can be tripped over.
 

The first three days provided some nice vista of the island, Minnesota, and Canada. (Except when some dummy is blocking the view.) After the relatively short hike of 3 miles the first day, we hiked a 12 mile day, a couple 8-9 mile days, and a final 12 mile day, primarily following the Greenstone Trail along the backbone ridge of the island. Our campsites were 3 Mile, West Chicken Bone, Hatchet Lake, South Desor Lake, and Windigo - all quite nice although some were a steep half mile off the trail.
 

Our higher route kept us mostly out of the low, swampy lands which the 2,000 moose on the island find appealing. While a lot of other hikers I met saw moose, I did not. Other than a few squirrels and birds, there were no animals at all. Maybe I walk too loud. 

Our group of six soon broke into two groups of three each. A fast group and a really-fast group. (Hah) I was part of the slower group who liked to go at a more relaxed pace, stop for photos, pause for an appreciation of the scenery, and to take a break now and again. The hiking was by no means the hardest I've ever done, but there were enough elevation changes to make the days challenging. We met as a full group at a midpoint each day, and then the faster crew went ahead to secure a good campsite for us. Most days we were at the campsite about 2pm.

Interestingly, our six member group had one person from each decade of life from 20s to 70s - and the 71-year-old was in the fast pack with the 29-year-old. Maybe age is just a state of mind.

Foliage was not at peak, but stunning nonetheless. Red maple leaves often nearly obliterated the trail. 

Our weather was good for the most part. A few evening showers (just enough to make the wet tents heavier to carry), but never enough to bring out the raincoats or rain pants. It was really quite warm and humid during the day and all of us went through a lot of water while hiking. The humidity kept us sweaty and our clothes and shoes from drying out completely. Oh, I love the beauty of a good misty morning.

Camping was pretty easy. I am not the world's lightest packer carrying close to 40 pounds when food and water is included. I packed my own tent, stove, and water filter. One of my goals was to NOT be the person remembered as being a pain in the ass on the hike. I think I succeeded. I was careful about taking only the amount food I thought I could eat and came home with only two packs of instant oatmeal and four packets of instant coffee - not bad.

On the ridge line it was sometimes easy to lose the trail, but for the most part the trail was clear and well marked. We encountered only one or two junctions most days. The ridge stone made for a hard walking surface and sore feet a couple days, but I still thrilled at these sidewalks in the sky.

Our campsites were on or near a lake each night. This access to Desor Lake from the south campsite was a regular swimming beach with a gradual sand bottom far into the clear waters of the lake. Three of the five days on the trail, I took a very cold bath in a lake - including a polar plunge into Lake Superior off the dock at Windigo. Makes one realize how spoiled one gets having the luxury of a hot shower every day. But somehow, one feels even cleaner coming out of an ice cold lake...

Just a pretty view of another of the inland lakes near which we camped. Getting water to filter in the evening was never a problem.

 Just a view.

Maple forests were our view for the last day and a half on the trail. I often wonder how I would do on a very long hike like the AT. I suspect I could adjust to the physical challenge, but I don't know if I could cope with the mental tedium of hiking hours each day, just looking at beauty hour after hour. Does this mean I find myself boring?

Our final night of luxury at Windigo included being able to secure a shelter in which we could spread out our sleeping bags instead of setting up a tent. We were a compatible group, despite there being those who snored and those who didn't think they snored, early risers and night owls. We enjoyed games of cribbage and Farkle (dumbest game ever.) We told jokes. We shared food. We doctored each others' blisters, fixed broken shoes, and sympathized with others' aches and pains. We enjoyed each other's company enough to have supper together even after returning to the mainland. I think that's saying something.

I know I have at least one more backpacking trip in my future - Philmont with younger grandson in July 2020. But I wonder if that may be it. I do love a hot shower at the end of each hiking day that inn-to-inn hikes provide.

But I am very glad I experienced Isle Royale.

All of my photos of the trip can be found here.