Episode 291: Live Your Passion Out Loud

Darrin Peppard (00:00)

Alright, my friends, welcome into episode 291 of the Leaning Into Leadership Podcast. Have you ever noticed that you can tell almost immediately when somebody truly loves what they do? Yeah, you don't need them to tell you. You can just hear it. Like you see it, you feel it. And if that's true, the opposite is probably true as well. So look.

Today's my birthday, as I'm recording this. And I spent the day doing something I haven't been able to do in almost five years. And somewhere between the mountains, the roads, Rocky Mountain National Park, the shores of Grand Lake, I was able to think and was reminded of something that every leader needs to hear before the school year begins.

And we're going talk about passion today. Now, before we dive in, I want to thank the sponsor of today's episode, Hey Tutor. You see, Hey Tutor does incredible work helping schools that are continuing to search for ways to accelerate learning without placing even more demands on already stretched teachers.

See, high impact tutoring continues to stand out as one of the most effective strategies available to improve student learning. Hey Tutor partners with districts across the country to provide consistent high-quality tutoring that helps students grow academically while giving educators the support that they need. If your district is looking for a proven way to improve student outcomes this year, visit Heytutor.com or hit the link down in the show notes because that'll let them know you heard about them here on Leaning.

into leadership to learn more. And again, a huge thank you to Hey Tutor for being a sponsor of the Leaning Into Leadership podcast. Now, let's lean into leadership. Let's get right to it.

Well, as I said before, today is my birthday. And I gotta say first and foremost, thank you to everybody who reached out with messages, the phone calls, the DMs, the texts, everything. they truly, truly meant a lot. But for me, instead of working, instead of spending any time working on content or checking email or anything like that, my wife and I got to do something today that we haven't been able to do.

In years. We took the doors off the Jeep. We took the tops off the Jeep and we headed to the mountains. You see, from our house, it's just under an hour to Estes Park and to the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park. So we left early this morning. We drove through Rocky Mountain National Park and just had an absolutely incredible morning. As we left the park,

We made our way down to Grand Lake. Now, we used to live in the area. We used to live about 20 minutes from Grand Lake, and we hadn't been there in about five years. So we went and walked around that main street in Grand Lake. Had a wonderful time. The weather was absolutely beautiful. And then after going down to the lake, we decided let's go to Granby. Granby is one of our favorite towns in Grand County. And

One of our favorite restaurants, Brick House 40. Make sure you check it out if you're ever in Gramby. We decided let's go to Brickhouse 40. Let's have lunch there in Gramby. And again, just an absolute incredible day. But we decided at that point it wasn't over with. And instead of coming back home through the park, we decided let's head east. Let's let's continue on on Highway 40. And we made our way through Winter Park, up over Berthett Pass.

Back down I-70, and we jumped off early from I-70 and made our way home through Boulder. It was an absolutely incredible day for us. We had so much fun. And you know, sometimes that's what you gotta do. But if you've ever driven roads like that, you know that being in the mountains.

That that fresh air, the this the smell of the pine trees, seeing the wildlife. And and we did get to see a lot of wildlife today. we saw a handful of deer, we saw moose. but just all of that. It it doesn't take very long before you're not thinking about work at all. You just you're focused on being in the moment.

And and I'll be honest with you, at one moment in time, one of our first stops as we were making the climb in to Rocky Mountain National Park, we stopped, we got out, we took a few photos, and genuinely I got emotional because it means so much to me to be able to do those things and we haven't done it in so long.

But as we continued our drive, I I realized something. It started to cross my mind a little bit. I wasn't just having fun. I was reconnecting with a part of myself that I haven't been able to experience in a really long time. Heck, it reminded me of who I am outside of work. And again, I I got emotional a couple of different times today, not not afraid to admit it.

And I I think leaders, we need that reminder every now and then. I think it's just something that helps us reframe who we are. Now let's connect that back to leadership. Earlier this week, I was working with a group of administrators. I worked with three or four different groups through the course of the week. And in this particular group, we were working on

What they were preparing for for the course of the year. Essentially, I had done a a one-day retreat for this particular group. And as we're going through some of their expectations and some of those kinds of things, one of the administrators said something that just really grabbed my attention. He started talking about students. And really where he was going, you know, we were talking about this expectation of

holding high expectations for kids and he went somewhat on a tangent and the thing was what he was saying was just so powerful. Yeah he he was talking about how every adult in the building has to show up for kids. He talked about how excuses don't help kids.

He talked about how everybody has a responsibility to find a way for every student to experience success. He talked about we have to celebrate every single win that we possibly can. And the thing was, what he was saying itself was absolutely incredible, but that isn't what stood out. It was the passion that he spoke with.

He really leaned in. Heck, he he stood up like he couldn't have this conversation sitting down. He had to stand up. His voice changed, his eyes lit up. He was animated. He was living it out loud. I mean, you could tell this matters to him. And when he was done, I said, I need you to promise me something.

And he kind of looked at me funny. I think he was a little confused. And I said, You're gonna talk about this. You're gonna talk about this exact expectation with your staff next week. And and the team said, Yeah, of course we are. And I pointed at him and I said, I need you to say the exact same thing with your staff on opening day.

Don't don't scrub it down. Don't soften it. Don't think it back through. Don't even try to rehearse it. Just say exactly what you said the way you said it.

Let that version come to life because that's the version they're going to believe. That's the version they're gonna remember. That is the version they're gonna follow. Because the passion you're bringing right now is real, and that's who they need to hear, that's what they need to see. Whatever you say about the expectation is just words up on a screen.

Man, if it's something that you care that much about, let them hear that. Because the lesson is this, I think somewhere along the way, leadership gets polished. It gets professional. We get scripted. We spend so much time trying to sound like a leader that we don't sound like ourselves.

And I'm sure that people notice that. Here's something I have learned speaking to thousands and thousands of leaders over the last five years. People aren't looking for perfection. That's not what they want to follow. They want to follow somebody who's truly, truly invested, truly convinced, truly bought in, truly sold on.

This is what matters. Because people don't get they don't get inspired by a crafted message. No matter how much time we spend on it, that isn't what inspires them. They get inspired by people who genuinely care. And your passion gives them permission to care about it too. When your staff sees that excitement, that fire, that belief, that energy.

Yeah, it becomes so much easier for them to believe it too. Because passion is contagious. Unfortunately, so is indifference. Think about the best teacher, the best coach, the best principal, superintendent, whatever, the best leader you've ever been around. And I would bet that you don't remember them because they had some really great strategic plan.

No, you remember them because they cared deeply. And they wore it on their sleeve and they lived it out loud. And everyone around them, they knew it. So here's the challenge. As you are preparing to welcome your staff back, I want you to think about something. Don't just spend time thinking about slides. Think about your heart. Reconnect with that thing that burns inside of you.

When you think about this work, the thing that you care so deeply about, the thing that lights you up. Maybe that thing is helping a student who struggles. Maybe it's building incredible teachers. Maybe it's creating a culture where people love coming to work. Maybe you're like me and it's all about pouring into leaders and seeing them.

Be so clear and so intentional and genuinely walk in their purpose. Look, whatever it is that lights you up, don't hide it. Share it. Talk about it. Live it out loud. Because if you don't share with people what you're truly passionate about, how will they know what really matters most? You gotta let them know.

I mean again, today reminded me that leaders need passions that are outside of leadership. I mean, I'm so passionate about leadership. You know that. You just heard me say it. But I'm telling you what, I'm awfully passionate about my Jeep. I'm awfully passionate about my mountains. And I'm awfully passionate about that time I get to spend with my wife. Those things aren't distractions from work.

Those are the things that fuel me. They remind me who I am. And today I got to reconnect with those passions. I know I am going to show up differently now. I'm going to show up differently with the people that I serve because of those passions. So here's what I want to encourage you to think about. Find again what it is. Get reconnected with whatever it is that makes you come alive and don't apologize for it.

And certainly don't keep it to yourself. Passion isn't something leaders should manage. It is something they should model. Hey, thanks so much for spending a little bit of my birthday with me. I appreciate every one of you that continues to listen to the podcast, to share the podcast, and honestly, that just simply invest in becoming a better leader for the people that you serve. As always, rate, review, subscribe.

Share this episode with somebody else who might need to hear it. And get out there. Have a road awesome week.