Jonathan Haidt’s, “The Happiness Hypothesis,“ presents a helpful metaphor for coaching: the elephant and the rider. The elephant symbolizes our emotional, intuitive self—the instinctive reactions that show up when a lesson flops, a student refuses to engage, or a new initiative feels overwhelming. The rider represents our rational, planning, problem-solving self that sets goals, analyzes […]

Walk into a school with a high Emotional Intelligence (EQ) culture and you notice it quickly by how people respond, especially when things don’t go as planned. Conversations feel purposeful rather than rushed. When concerns surface, they’re acknowledged instead of deflected. Disagreement doesn’t immediately trigger defensiveness, and emotion isn’t treated as something to manage away […]

I recently read Jonathan Haidt’s, “The Happiness Hypothesis” and pondered several times how elements from his work apply to coaching teachers. When might increased teacher happiness lead to increased student learning? What role can coaching play in that connection? Haidt presents a metaphor that can be helpful in a coaching approach: the elephant and the […]

Reading the blog, “The Art of Soulful Listening” by Greg Thomas, introduced me to a musical concept that immediately resonated—what jazz musicians call Big Ears. Thomas describes his deepening appreciation of jazz through immersive listening… “The more I listened, the more I recognized patterns and devices of the music. The more I listened, the more […]

Dr. Kim Richardson describes that change is inevitable and manageable. As coaches and school leaders we need to be competent in guiding ourselves and others during change. Kim describes the need for emotional intelligence and resilient leadership. Knowing people are unpredictable requires coaches to observe and communicate. Change is a process not an event. Visit […]

“Emotional intelligence (EI) is being smart about your feelings in the service of your goals. Using your thinking to inform your feelings, using your feelings to inform your thinking, and all the while keeping in mind where you’re going with it. So, emotions are information, and they are data we collect just by listening to […]