Getting Unstuck – Cultivating Curiosity

Today I'm joined by Erica Nelson, a member of the Navaho Nation. Erica is a fly fishing guide, host of the "Awkward Angler" podcast, and a contributor to the "Awkward & Clueless Beginning Fly Fishing" show on YouTube. She is a Brown Folks Fishing ambassador, a community that cultivates the visibility, representation, and inclusion of people of color in fishing and its industry. She is also the passionate co-founder of REAL Consulting, which focuses on bringing diversity, equity, and inclusion to the world, including the world of fly fishing.

Bill Whiteside is a sales and marketing executive turned software salesman turned writer of narrative non-fiction, specifically a forthcoming book about an incident in Winston Churchill's tenure as Britain's Prime Minister during World War II. Our conversation explores the incident, which we then use as an opportunity to examine what makes a great leader great, what constitutes the art of writing great, truthful narrative non-fiction, and Bill's personal journey to satisfy his curiosity.

We rarely reveal our true self to others, and sometimes (very often?) we don't reveal it to ourselves. Sadly, we can't interact effectively with others if there are layers of our personal onion between us. Diane Wyzga, a self-described story doula works to help professionals pull back the curtain and get to the heart of their message — their authentic story.

What can we learn from non-traditional sources if we're willing to look at things differently? How can we break out of our often self-imposed boundaries to see what the universe is offering us? For example, this podcast is broadly about "K12 education," but it's really about thinking and doing things differently to get different results. And in the case of this episode, what can a fly fishing guide, Spencer Seim, tell us about leadership? And what can we learn from seemingly random events?

The "Trauma in Schools" podcast series focus primarily on the trauma that students carry with them into the classroom. But, many school faculty, staff and administrators are also experiencing trauma. COVID has dislocated relationships and put pressure on educators to quickly address "learning loss." There is a critical need for school leaders at any level to promote self-care through mindfulness training. Mindful leadership expert, Michael Bunting, explains the first safe steps.

Those who work for substantial educational change, do so within the context of today's heated nation and world. Two thought leaders are adept at shining a light on those educators who are trying to lead their communities out of darkness. Dr. Michael Fullan and Dr. Mark Edwards have penned an argument for change that highlights how eight districts are combining the emotional and scientific basis for how educators and communities can work together to address the problems we face.

If students are in a state of high stress or trauma, the part of the brain that facilitates learning is inaccessible. Thus, student academic achievement rests squarely on the shoulders of student wellness. Neuroscience researcher, Melissa Hughes, Ph.D., explains.

One of the goals of our series is to raise awareness and the level of discourse around student trauma and mental health in general. And if we're not bringing these subjects out into the open, kids keep all those emotions bottled up inside of them. Dr. Glenn Albright and Kim Weiland from Kognito, a firm that develops avatar-based simulations to help develop trauma-informed educators, explain.

Periodically on Getting Unstuck, we welcome a change maker to tell their story of personal transformation: how a specific event or catalyst propelled them into a different role or way of thinking from where they once were. Today, we hear from Suzanne DeMaillie who went from being the parent of three children to someone who led a four- year crusade to bring about a specific educational change. And as we've learned from countless other examples, bringing about an educational change isn't always easy.

Some students from low-income communities – often kids of color – may lack aspirations for a post high-school future because they feel it's simply unrealistic to think of life outside of their current situation. But many students from low-income communities do have aspirations, yet they are sidelines because of real or perceived societal barriers blocking their way. The organization OneGoal helps them find a pathway. Priya Linson, OneGoal's Executive Director of its Chicago chapter, explains.