Joy Is In the Second Mile

Another teacher once asked me why I put forth so much effort in my teaching. After thinking about it for a few minutes I responded, "Because the joy is in the second mile."

As I have worked on my doctorate this past year I've found the work we are required to do to be quite grueling, and more often than not I feel like I'm just trying to keep my head above water so as not to drown. Yet, what is keeping me motivated is when I stay focused on the learning rather than on the grade or degree.

When I stay focused on the learning I do things like:

• Share studies, books, articles, and other info with classmates, professors, and/or others related to the research work they are doing
• Meet people, like researchers and "shakers and movers,"--- learning from and sharing with them, even if it is just through email
• Share ideas and thoughts with classmates, professors, and/or others on how to apply what we are learning
• Use the papers I write and other assignments to launch real life applications to make a difference
• Attend conferences, seminars, speeches related to my topic of interest
• Stay passionate on learning from all kinds of sources
• Accept feedback as an opportunity to improve and grow in order to do excellent/quality work
• Write articles with professors who have similar interests

While doing all these things maybe I'll eventually be able to also earn that PhD. In the meantime, I'll just take one step at a time putting one foot in front of the other....and keep on learning with a joyful heart.

"Playing" to the Level of Those Around Us

As I watched the Utah Jazz basketball team the other night lose horribly to one of the worst teams in the NBA I was reminded that all of us more often than not "play" to the level of those around us. Pondering on this brought to remembrance the following:

• If we want to become a better tennis player choose to play with those who are better than we are even though we always lose.
• Take the harder classes from the hardest teachers who push us to be and do more in order to learn more even though we may sacrifice an A and our grade point average.
• Choose peers who have high standards and strive for excellence as we usually attain the same academic level and character level as those around us.
• Seek out those things which are lovely, of good report, and praiseworthy--such as the best books that inspire us.
• Remember that less is more such as being willing to pay a higher price for quality even though it means we can afford less items.
• Seek out the best mentors who drive us to reach our potential.

Academic Rigor With Heart

I am choosing to take a detour today and save until tomorrow the further conversation about civic learning.


Yesterday for class Dr. Hite took us to BYU's (Brigham Young University) library to meet with Rachel Wadham, the library education specialist. Just being in a library inspires and awes me. Yesterday's experience was no exception as I caught Rachel's contagious enthusiasm for learning and accessing information.


When I first discovered libraries as a young girl, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I couldn't read enough books or gather enough information fast enough to satisfy my curiosity or desire to learn. The more I learned, the more I knew there was to learn, and I wanted to know it all. This insatiable appetite to learn it all is even harder now to address with the rate at which knowledge is expanding exponentially and when it is so accessible through so many avenues.

In spite of this strong desire to use my mind and to learn from books and other sources of intellectual knowledge, that alone won't quench the thirst or feed the hunger. The heart must be included in the search.

A few quotes to explain the importance of the heart in regards to learning:

• "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye." Antoine de Saint Exupéry from The Little Prince.
• "The heart has eyes which the brain knows nothing of." Charles H. Perkhurst
• The human heart knows things the eyes don't see, and feels things the mind cannot understand."
• "..it came to a time in my life when my heart told me things that my mind did not know...." Harold B. Lee quoting a prominent university professor
• "When we understand more than we know with our minds, when we understand with our hearts, then we know that the Spirit of the Lord is working upon us." Harold B. Lee
• "The heart is wiser than the intellect." J. G. Holland
• "If I create from the heart, nearly everything works; if from the head, almost nothing." Marc Chagall

In order to learn from the heart and allow it to guide our rigorous intellectual and academic pursuits, it is imperative that we take time to be still and to listen. The heart whispers so we have to listen closely.

It is important that as we pursue the getting of intellectual knowledge with academic rigor that we don't look beyond the mark by being past feeling. There will be times our hearts will provide answers to questions such as how to best meet the needs of our diverse learners that all the intellect and all the knowledge in all the libraries of the world won't provide.

Wisdom About Learning from Kevin Eikenberry

Kevin Eikenberry has inspired me with ideas about leadership at least weekly over the past year. Below you will find the message I received yesterday. It fits perfectly into what I've posted the last few days.

Human beings are natural learners, and yet we don’t always harness that ability in a conscious way to help us achieve greater results. These approaches are meant to help you become a more conscious, intentional learner. Consider these approaches as habits that you can add to your daily or weekly regimen to improve your learning ability and agility.

The Three Approaches

Two articles.
I’ve already partly described this first approach. Take two articles (any two articles), read them and then look for the similarities and differences between them. Consider where they are in alignment, and consider the basis of the story or argument to see if you agree or not. This may be easy if you read two articles from a favorite trade journal or publication, but let me encourage you to consider branching out for your sources. This approach can lead to wonderful and serendipitous results when the articles come from more disparate sources. How about a newspaper article and a blog post in a different topic area? How about a trade journal article and a piece from Ladies Home Journal? Some of the best results (beyond the practice you gain from doing the exercise) will come when you haven’t “planned” your two sources upfront.


Two people.
You can do a similar thing, substituting people for articles. Have lunch with different people each of the next two days, or schedule a meeting with someone interesting. When you meet with these two people (whether planned or not) don’t focus on small talk, but get them to talk about their passions. Talk about ideas and plans. Learn more about their interests. After having done this, apply the same thought process we discussed above. Compare and contrast what you heard and discussed. Look for common lessons and ideas. Look for new ideas that might come to you with these conversations as fuel for your creativity and learning.


One of each.
Don’t have time to visit with two people today? You can use this same approach of comparing, contrasting and reflecting using one conversation and one article as the fuel for your thinking.


All three of these approaches require one important component – you must do more than read and listen, you must think. Thinking is a critical part of the learning process, and one many of us don’t truly do enough of!

[To learn more about Kevin's work, visit www.kevineikenberry.com]