Greatness is…

Redefining How to Bring Greatness Into Your Life

I love the absolute brilliance of variety and diversity in our world. Every sunset is a unique masterpiece. So many different and colorful birds. Music collections of countless genres and masters in so many differing styles, instruments and vocals. Galleries of enchanting art of differing styles and tastes. Social media content creators sharing their talents of seeming unbelievable abilities. I love them all.  I could write volumes on all the amazing varieties of our world.

(U2 at the Sphere in Las Vegas with my wife, Lori.)

What I call greatness may or may not be appreciated by those around me, and boy do we have the means to overshare about that. Still, what I call greatness matters to me, and it’s worth pursuing and worth sharing.

My thirty-three years in education and many travels have introduced me to so many who sadly believe there is nothing great about them, nor ever will be. A good part of my career and passion as a parent, educator, author and speaker has been to convince otherwise.

I remember teaching one of my daughters to drive and in that very special time being alone in the car and free from the chains of devices, she shared a thought on life, “I just want to be great at something, dad.” She was. She is. I told her.

We all want the experience of greatness. Society’s measurements of greatness are harmful. This toxicity spreads into our homes, workplace, leisure and it spoils the living of life in the sense that things we should be proud and happy about are soured by the awfulness of comparison. Comparison can paralyze and impede.

Greatness is not a template or scale that we stand upon to be measured and weighed. I do not need a publisher to tell me my story is worth reading. I do not need a gallery’s invitation to give my art value and meaning. I do not need a calculation of likes or hearts to make a post worthy of sharing. Greatness is not a number in a record book. No, greatness to me is in fact defined quite differently.

Greatness is…

  • triumph over your greatest challenge.
  • positively impacting the life of another.
  • the courage to share something of which you are deeply proud.
  • the pursuit of a dream or personal improvement.
  • helping others to feel valued.
  • deeply personal.

Find your greatness. It looks different for everyone.

Be kind to yourself as you pursue it and measure your greatness against no one but yourself.

Feeling a bit braver? Offer authentic encouragement and joy to another for their efforts.

Getting your feet on the floor in the morning or taking one small step to toward your greatest challenge may seem personally insignificant, but in reality its greatness is as significant as the Olympian who shaved seconds of their last time.

You have greatness inside of you at this very moment. It’s waiting to be released. At any moment you have the capability to do great things. Immerse yourself in the positivity of this knowledge. In that moment of choice to move forward and advance, something wonderful is happening. Greatness.

It takes to courage to be great. The only way we can find the courage is to say ‘yes’ and take action.

Always forward,

Kelly

I am a professional speaker, and I would like to speak at your event.

Order Kelly’s books, Along Came a Leader and Unthink Before Bed: A Children’s Book on Mindfulness for your personal library.

Educator, Author, Keynote Speaker
Twitter: @kellycroy
Instagram: @kcroy
Website: kellycroy.com and wirededucator.com
Podcast: The Wired Educator Podcast
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My Secret Board of Directors

A Collection of Amazing People Who Unknowingly Guide Many of My Decisions

I have a secret board of directors. They unknowingly guide many of my decisions. They are without a doubt the greatest assembly of mind, virtue and practice ever collected. I kid you not.

I assembled them years ago after being inspired by the writings of Dale Carnegie, Brian Tracy and Andy Andrews.

Just imagine if you had access to the sharpest minds in the world, or in all of history, to offer you advice in the areas of finance, health, relationships, professional success or whatever decision you are currently facing. Well, you do.

These board members I assembled were at first were just people I admired and whose point of view and values I would apply to major decisions I was facing. Some of them from history, long since deceased, and others so famous and successful that I would be unable to gain actual access to them. Still, I could study their lives. Their work. I could learn from their lessons, and I could apply their success and failures to my own life. And… I have.

This idea of a secret board of directors began to take on new iterations over time. I wondered, “What if I could ask them real questions and get immediate feedback?” I studied my friend circle and the connections I had made over the years and started categorizing acquaintances in particular categories that I admired. I would send them scenarios or questions and they readily shared their thoughts. I then shared their ideas with others in the same category of brilliance to gauge their response and development of the ideas.

 

In deep reflection, I would pose a questions to my diverse board. Perhaps I was making an expensive purchase for the family, what would my assembled board say, and how would they vote. These are big life questions, not grocery shopping mind you. I would journal the names of my ‘acting’ board. Pose the question. (Applying for a job, buying a home, etc,) I’d jot down notes of different perspectives, and tally the votes. Maybe this sounds crazy, but it works. You can’t consider every perspective or you’d remain indecisive.

My secret board of directors has served me well. Perhaps you are on mine. Seriously. You wouldn’t know. Click to Read More

 

Speaker at the COSSBA Conference in Tampa!

Honored to Speak at The National Conference for the Consortium of State School Boards Associations, Tampa, Florida

It was an honor to speak at The National Conference for the Consortium of State School Boards Associations last weekend in Tampa, Florida.

National Conferences are particularly inspiring because of the opportunity for people across the nation to share, inspire and network solutions to our greatest challenges.

This conference was memorable because I co-presented with my superintendent, Pat Adkins. Our presentation highlighted the great work our district’s staff is doing at Port Clinton Schools. Pat led the presentation and absolutely inspired our audience with the amazing initiatives happening in our district. Our title was “Safe, Healthy and Learning! How Leaders Can Prioritize and Implement Solutions to Improve the Safety and Wellness of Students, Staff and Family as a Crucial Component of On-Going Learning.” Click to Read More

3 Things You Own That Are Keeping You From What You Want

We own a lot of stuff.

I recently looked at a house for sale, and two thoughts immediately came to my mind, “Wow! These people own a lot of stuff. If we were to buy this house, how would they ever pack it all up?” The second was, “My family sure owns a lot of stuff, how would we ever pack it all up?”

Among all of the physical trinkets, items, and perhaps even necessities in our life, there are other ‘things’ we own that we are not even aware of that have a negative impact. They aren’t packed in a box or sitting on a shelf. We carry them with us everywhere we go.  Becoming aware of the ownership of these things and taking small steps to remove them will go a long way in our own personal success and happiness, as well as the happiness and success of all the people around us.

There are three things that you own that are keeping you from everything that you want.

That’s a pretty bold statement, but it’s true, and one of them is a goat. Yep, a goat.

I’m as guilty as the next person. Owning these three things have prevented me from the relationships I want, the opportunities I want, and even the things I want in life.

Here are the three things you own that are keeping you from what you want, and what you can do about it: Click to Read More

Books I Read in 2022 and Some Thoughts on Reading

I find great enjoyment and personal growth in reading every day. I am not a fast reader. I tend to take my time with my books, and I really try to apply what I am learning.

I am including a list of the books I read in 2022 in this post, but first some thoughts on reading:

Reflecting on my reading for last year I have three takeaways:

  1. First, I would like to read more fiction. I think we all need a story in our head. We need a diversion from the seriousness and busyness of life. We need to see there are problems bigger than what we are facing. We need to be inspired. I only read one piece of fiction last year. I will do better.
  2. Next, reading a lot is NOT the goal. I am not trying to read for mileage, but for enjoyment and to learn. If I can read more, wonderful! It’s not a competition. One book can change a life. I want to read those books. I want to write those books.
  3. Finally, I resolve to mix up and diversify my reading for this year. I read too much in the same categories, same authors, and my reading is pretty predictable. I did a little better on this last year, but I hope to discover some gems outside my wheelhouse of reading.

Five things I read reach day: Click to Read More

My Habit Trackers, To-Do Lists and Journals

If you want something done you either do it now or you schedule it. Since you can’t do everything at once, you might be creating a pretty long list.

I’m proud of the accomplishments in my life, but I’ve got more on the way. In fact, I think I am just getting started.

I’m proud of what I accomplish each year, month, week and most days. It’s not luck. What I finish is the result of goal setting in my journals, habit tracking, and a daily to-do list.

I am sharing with you the exact tools I use, both physical and digital, of how I work in hopes you will find some value in them and try them out, as well as share some of your tools and processes in the comments.

Click to Read More

My One Word for 2023

A few years ago I added an important ingredient to my annual planning and goal setting process, the ‘my one word for the year’ theme made popular by writers Jon Gordon, Dan Britton and Jimmy Page in their book, One Word That Will Change Your Life.

The concept from the book is that the properly chosen word can summarize our goals and resolutions for the entire year into a single word. A single word allows focus, simplicity, determination, and according to the authors, a greater percentage of success than just making a list. I however do both.

Their book guides you through a helpful process centering around three questions:

What is needed? What’s in my way? What must go?

I have improvised my own method of getting to my own word that works well for me. My method centers around the guidance in the book, my journaling, a deep reflection on the previous year, and listing words that I believe are suitable and choosing among them.

Click to Read More

When Imbalance is Needed

This evening I received a wonderful email from someone who read my book, Along Came a Leader: A Guide to Personal and Professional Leadership. It is always awesome to get a message like this, and this email from Devon asked a great question.

“What measures can I use to prioritize the dozen areas of my life I am passionate about? There are so many projects in which I long to go full speed ahead. However, I have only so much gas and horsepower.” ~Devon

This was my reply:

A balanced life? Hmmmm…

I wish I knew that secret but I will share some of my thoughts on this.

I keep a journal. It helps. I track some basic daily habits in a grid.
I write down my goals for the year. I write monthly goals as the months arrive.
I have a daily to-do list of a few items.
There is honestly always leftovers.

I review my goals often.

The problem I have noticed is that some years my goals are the same as the previous year.
That is when imbalance is necessary.

Click to Read More