I am sitting here at 6 a.m., staring at a blank computer screen and thinking that there is so much to say, and yet, wondering if saying anything will just add to the noise. We are living in a crazy time – where a few poorly constructed sentences and the ill-conceived perceptions of a narcissist create daily opportunities for concern and the need for “self-care” has become another layer of anxiety that we have added to our already busy lives.
I would like it to stop. And I would like us to all go back to Kindergarten.
For real. Go back to the fundamentals of Kindergarten (and don’t get all hung up on the fact that Kindergarten now is different than it was or that you don’t understand number bonds – email me and I will explain them to you).
First off, we should all be friends. My favorite thing about Kindergarten classrooms is hearing the teachers remind everyone that they are friends. Everything is taught through that lens of how we treat our friends. Yeah, we definitely need more of that.
Kindergarten is also about taking risks and having it be okay. It’s okay if you have never held a pencil before – we can show you. We assume that all Kindergarten students need practice in everything. We should assume that all adults need practice in everything as well.
When Kindergarten teachers want your attention, they whisper. I love that. What would happen if tonight when you turned on the news you saw the people being interviewed whispering instead of shouting and interrupting one another?
It’s okay to take a quiet minute. Taking a moment in Kindergarten is about purposefully shifting gears. We close our eyes, we take a deep breath, and we practice shifting from one experience or activity to another. What if we each allowed ourselves and our colleagues to take a quiet minute without judgment or the fear that someone would think we were losing it?
And in Kindergarten, anything is cause for celebration. When you bring home a paper with an attempt at writing a word, it’s still awesome. No one is going to criticize you for just learning a new skill. Yet, we criticize ourselves, our kids, our co-workers, our spouses, the trainee in the drive-thru line every day for learning a new skill. Stop. Think about what it actually takes to learn something new – how many new neural pathways have to be formed and how much time that really takes to make an automatic response. Just start celebrating the sh** out of things.
We need more Kindergarten in our every day lives. Bring the patience of a Kindergarten teacher with you today as you wait in the world’s longest line at Starbucks or to cash a check at the bank. Bring the wonder of a Kindergarten student to the beauty of the sunrise or the pattern of the clouds in the sky. And bring the energy and enthusiasm of a Kindergarten child to your work and reconnect with your love, your passion, and your creativity.
The world needs a lot more Kindergarten. Let’s start today.