Limiting beliefs get into us from a young age—how the heck can we undo or at least disarm them? In this Monster Baby episode, Ted and Lisa play with some tools and generate some hacks from the worlds of mindfulness and improvisation. The episode begins with a check-in from Lisa’s recent junket to Singapore (1:39) [more…]
Monster Baby #20: Adventure Time!
For their first podcast of 2017, Lisa and Ted venture into the world of adventure. They demonstrate an adventurous improv game of “What Comes Next?” (1:43), define what they mean by adventure (6:59), and describe why a Keith Johnstone quote (10:07 ) and an exercise called “The Quest” (13:08) get them jazzed about the topic. [more…]
The Wisdom of Mistakes
If you want to succeed, embrace failure. A year ago, I would have expected such paradoxical advice to come from a Taoist monk or a Jedi master. Now, after a sabbatical year away from school, I find myself touting that same refrain as I explore questions about teaching and learning. How do I encourage the [more…]
The Bay School Model of Mindfulness
Every so often a sweet little synchronicity opens doors of exploration. Just this past week, one such moment led me to a small school intertwining themes of mindfulness and mindset, right here in San Francisco. After another fine improv show at Bay Area Theatersports (BATS) last Sunday, I complimented Katherine Riley, one of the performers, [more…]
Mindset 101
Trying to get a glimpse of your own mindset is like inviting a camera to see its own lens. Or like asking a fish to see the water it swims in. It’s tough to gain perspective on something we’re embedded within. That said, the task is not impossible—and taking it on offers a crucial first [more…]
Some Questions About Praise, Performance, and Privilege
Offering praise for inborn talent feeds a fixed mindset that can create self-doubt, weaken resolve, and reduce resiliency. In short, it can cripple a student’s ability to learn. Does that mean we should never celebrate God-given gifts?
