This week, we facilitated several professional learning experiences for teachers across the district. Yes, not just me — WE. We are all hands on deck, not only because we need to be but because we want to be. Why? Because we are shaping learning experiences that will impact all of our students and their future. 

As I mentioned in my previous post, “Ask for Help,” Simon Sinek shared in a recent talk, “We don’t build trust by offering people our help; we build trust by asking people for help.” This idea ties directly into our work. Just like we’re all hands on deck for our teachers, we’re also asking for their input and support, creating a sense of shared ownership and trust that strengthens our learning spaces.

I am grateful to our team of reading specialists for collaborating, creating, being thought partners, and helping to roll out an essential resource for progress monitoring, assessing, and supporting our teachers in bridging assessment with instruction. We are all hands on deck.

I am grateful to our literacy coach for developing resources for our teachers in real-time as we engaged in productive conversations about what might best support our students. She collected feedback, refined it and it was ready to use immediately. We are all hands on deck.

During that same meeting, another teacher stepped up to facilitate a professional learning experience, aimed at creating a classroom organization system for new resources that will be shared with all teachers, ultimately benefiting all students. Another teacher jumped in to help co-facilitate.  We are all hands on deck.

I am grateful for my colleague, a fellow leader in our district who has shared a similar path in education. We complement each other well, with her having more expertise in some areas and me in others. We work as thought partners, thinking through ideas and taking action together. That action helps turn potential into reality. We’re all hands on deck.

As I write about these moments, I can’t help but smile. This is what education is meant to be—all hands on deck. As my friend and educational leader Stephanie Rothstein says, “Education should be less competitive and more collaborative.” Collaboration creates opportunities for us to unlock the greatness within our learning spaces. Lainie Rowell captures this so well in my book The Leader Inside: “When someone sees great things in you, and takes the time to share it, believe them and lean into it” (p.28).

We are in the business of growing more leaders in this work. Individually we shine, but our lights shine brighter together. 

In this work, we can feel more calm, capable, and confident together. When this happens, so will our students and our learning communities.

We can’t do this work alone, and we shouldn’t have to. The people we work with have invaluable expertise to share. As you reflect on your own role, how are you inviting others to the table, and how can you create more opportunities for collaboration and shared growth?

In Will Guidara’s book, Unreasonable Hospitality, Simon Sinek shares more words of wisdom, “And the reality is, we are more likely to build this world if we commit to building it together.”

Find the gifts that live in your learning spaces.  Leverage them. Work together. Think together. Create together. 

Collaboration and action will define the legacies we are building together. We are in the business of we. Invite others to have a seat at your table. There’s something about that idea that feels different. It elevates the way we approach the work. It just hits us differently.

That’s because we are all hands on deck.

Actionable Ideas to Implement Tomorrow

Invite Input and Build Trust
Actively seek help and input from colleagues, as Simon Sinek suggests. During meetings or planning sessions, ask questions like, “How can we work together on this?” or “What ideas do you have to make this better?” This creates a sense of shared ownership and builds trust within the team.

Leverage Collective Expertise
Identify and celebrate the strengths and expertise within your team. Encourage others to step up and lead, just as one teacher did during the professional learning experience. Tomorrow, consider asking, “Who has expertise in this area and can share their insights with the group?” This empowers individuals and ensures everyone’s talents are utilized.

Create Opportunities for Collaboration
Proactively create spaces for collaboration—whether it’s setting aside time for team discussions, organizing a mini-brainstorming session, or encouraging peer-led learning. Ask yourself, “How can I create more moments for us to collaborate tomorrow?” Then, schedule a time for a short, focused session to generate ideas or solve challenges together.