Leadership is a Choice

In senior year of high school I gave the “Leadership” talk at a retreat.

I’d been in student leadership positions since 8th grade when I was class president. That part of myself continued into high school, where I was a leader in different student groups, athletic teams, and for the school. I didn’t know much about what leadership actually was back then, I just knew I could do it. All it took was getting over the hump of being uncomfortable being the first to stand up, then having the courage to do what I said I would do. Not too complicated.

When researching for the talk, I came across this TED Talk from Simon Sinek where he said that leadership is a choice. That made sense to me. People fall into positions of authority, but nobody falls into leadership. To be a leader is to choose to do your best for the people you serve. It’s about building trust by being a good person, then helping others get what they want. That’s what I focussed the talk around–the idea that we can all be leaders if we want to. All leaders do is choose to make people’s lives better.

Fast forward through more student leadership roles in college and a Master’s Degree in Organizational Leadership where I studied leadership theory & practice for two years. I learned a lot, and my education became alive as I worked as a teacher at the same time. But nothing I learned was more important than that Simon Sinek talk. Leadership is a choice, and it’s all about trust. I now understand more about the why of leadership, but the that remains the same. To be a leader is to choose to be better for others.

Leadership is a choice.

Set and setting

“I can’t do work at home. I only get work done at school.”

“Why’s that?”

“School is just so boring. I’d rather just play The Game–it’s way more exciting.”

“Right. But at this point in your life you have to do school, and when you’re at home it’s actually not that long. 3 hours, an hour break for lunch, then 3 more hours. That’s all it really takes to be decent at school, just pay attention for 6 hours a day, then spend 1 or 2 on homework. Then you can play all the games you want.”

“But The Game is right there on my desk. It’s hard to sit through a boring Zoom class when I could play League of Legends.”

“Wait, why are you working on the same desk your Game is on?”

“Where else am I going to work?”

We’ve been “learning” in a pandemic for a year, but nobody’s suggested to parents or students that studying in the same chair you game–with your controllers and console two clicks away–might not be a good idea. Perhaps a simple “online learning hygiene” conversation at the beginning of each quarter might boost scores more than three tests a quarter. Maybe even a later start time–no, that would be too much of a change for these kids.

Too much of a change. For these kids. Do you hear yourself?

Most of our pandemic adjustments have been illogical. Scolding kids for high-fiving friends they only get to see for an hour in school, where they mostly sit in silence on their computers, is inhumane. Treating them like cattle is inhumane, too. But that’s easier than hearing them out (they might just know something).

Teenagers are more depressed than ever before, but don’t talk to them about that. All you have to do is make sure they’re working and staying on task, course material only. And follow the standards. This pandemic will be over soon.

That’s what they said last year.

First year teacher in a pandemic

I wear it like a badge of honor. It’s no formal credential but should be. I think I’ll include it under “Accomplishments” on my resume… which I’ll need to beef-up before I apply to other jobs… because there’s no way I can stay in this field. Not after seeing it like this.

I’m happy to contribute and do my best while I’m here, but the school building needs to change and I have other things to change.

Personal Studies

History is called social studies in K-12 education to focus people over facts. Social studies teaches kids how the world works so that, one day, they can make it better. Regardless of titles, content is king.

Imagine if we spent less time learning about how the world works and more time learning about how we work:

What we like

What we’re good at

Why we do the things we do

Where fear comes from

Why I can’t get over my grandfather’s death 15 years ago

If class was designed to help students learn about themselves first and how photosynthesis works second, maybe they would be set up for future success instead of a future test. Educators have the chance to change this. Now is the time.

Now is your time.

Learning and Execution

To be a human being is to learn. From birth to death, each day presents boundless opportunities to start learning new skills and fresh information.

But being human also means acting. Execution must be born from the learning, or else education is in vain.

The education system fails because it makes kids absorb information they don’t need so they can pass exams. But what if you learned about cooking in chemistry class and growing a garden in biology? How much would the world change if we stopped reading Shakespeare and started writing our own plays?

Learning is a waste of time without execution.

So fall in love with learning, but be diligent about executing. Consuming too much will cause you to overthink. I would rather know because I’ve lived it than wonder because I’ve thought about it.

Mr. Lemma

For the next two years I’m going to be a science teacher at a Catholic high school in Philly. This was made possible through ACESJU (Alliance for Catholic Education at Saint Joseph’s University). The only thing is, I have no idea how to teach young adults science.

At first I thought this would be a handicap. Then I realized it’s a superpower. Imagine a teacher who learns alongside his students and whose ego isn’t blasted when he isn’t correct. How different would a class be if the teacher encouraged students to ask questions he couldn’t answer?

What if, fresh out of college, this ambitious teacher didn’t teach kids science but taught them how to think and question and solve interesting problems? Imagine a teacher who made high school science what it always could’ve been: a chance to learn about how the world works so it could be changed by informed parties.

What if the focus was on learning instead of education?

Sure, every young teacher things they can change the educational system. I know I can’t. But I can help high schoolers realize what they’re capable of. I can help them change themselves for the better through curiosity and inspiring limitless potential.

We need some radical voices in every institution, working from the bottom up. This is how we can wake people up. This is how I can make a ruckus.