Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable

Learning Coaches: An Option For Re-Imagined Learning

PDF Download of this post A positive aspect of the COVID-19 pandemic was the opportunity to restructure the teacher-student relationship. It provided opportunities for teachers, parents, mentors and community members to re-orient themselves as Learning Coaches. A Learning Coach is someone who sees and says things to help a student win at his or her learning. The context is a small yet fundamental shift away from teaching. Instead of content instruction, the focus is on relationship-centric practices that foster agency, growth and learning habits. Even though we are back to in-person instruction, utilizing the perspective and approach of a Learning Coach can radically shift the relationship between Teacher and Student. To do this well, we work

By Brady Rhodes|2024-01-07T07:29:35-07:00June 4th, 2020|Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Listening, Minding the Gap, Participation, Relationship, Uncategorized|0 Comments

Best Virtual Meeting Strategies #2

**In this new normal of remote work, how can you help connection thrive and maintain team performance? We are sharing effective strategies to boost engagement taken from our online Minding the Gap Master Class that are just as helpful in this new virtual world, where the "Gap" can be very evident. One of the ideas from last week - "Begin Before It Begins" - received this comment from an educator in Nebraska: "I have been scheduling weekly Zoom calls which have been good but I have been disappointed with the low numbers of students participating. Then I realized I was only sending out one short post on the Remind App. I decided after reading the post to

By Brady Rhodes|2020-04-20T06:37:01-06:00April 17th, 2020|BoldLeader Principles, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Leadership, Listening, Minding the Gap, Participation, Possibility, Relationship, Uncategorized, Vulnerability|0 Comments

Morgan Blanco – Getting the World

When I started my journey abroad I had a vast amount of feelings, spreading from fear to excitement. I think I found that being a Boldleader allowed me to see that there is beauty in each of these feelings that I was having. My time abroad has been one filled with uncomfortable situations allowing for me to transform my perspectives about the world even more, and making me come alive! These feelings of vulnerability led to some of my greatest memories during my time abroad thus far. It has also allowed me to explore some of the basic human resources that I had lost, which were touch and voice. The relationships and friendships

By Morgan Blanco|2017-01-25T18:56:32-07:00September 6th, 2016|Alumni, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Relationship, Vulnerability|0 Comments

Cody Broncucia – Navigating Challenges

Without a doubt, and without fear of overstating, the ideas and techniques that I learned from the facilitators at BoldLeaders are the reason why I decided to study abroad as a Rotary exchange student in high school and continue to travel extensively while in college. Looking back, BoldLeaders didn't just enable me to have the confidence to travel but gave me the ability to make my travel a positive experience, which has involved overcoming communication barriers, "culture-shock," a lack of infrastructure and an array of other challenging circumstances. What's kept me traveling is that fact that I love experiencing new cultures, meeting new people and experiencing new places in the not so traditional, sometimes

By Cody Broncucia|2017-01-25T18:57:37-07:00August 13th, 2016|Alumni, AM/FM, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Travel|0 Comments

Savannah Ducharm – Letting Go of Bittersweet Defenses

My truth is that there are a lot of things you can say to convince yourself and other people of who you are. You can fill your lungs with what you think they want to hear. But if you do that, nothing comes back to you. You are left exasperated. Letting go isn’t comfortable, since these things become bittersweet defenses to things you feel you can’t change. In a new country, with these new people, you’ll want to hold onto these defenses more than ever. You’ll feel small at times and out of control. I used to criticize myself for holding on so tightly. You’ll see why it had to be that way. You were small

By Savannah Ducharm|2017-01-25T18:56:50-07:00July 3rd, 2016|Alumni, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Identity, Listening, Uncategorized|0 Comments

Hannah Urtz – Creation of the Self

When we set out to travel, it is often with a busy mind and a hopeful heart. Amidst the anticipation, guidebooks are consulted, weather reports are checked, and lovely screenshots of our destination begin to occupy our desktops. There is purpose in this, but this kind of preparation lacks the intention that has the power to transform a trip into a profound human experience. We travel, of course, to see new sights, taste new delicacies, and to be so deeply stirred that even our old lives may be seen through new lenses. Essentially, we look to gain vital global perspective and enjoy a respite from our regular routines. Yet, part of the beauty of leaping from one’s

By Hannah Urtz|2017-01-25T18:57:22-07:00March 28th, 2016|Alumni, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Identity, Travel|0 Comments

Caroline Meserve – Mind the Gap

London was great because every time I boarded the Tube I was reminded to "mind the gap" - (The motto of BoldLeaders). I minded the gap within the relationships I made there but most importantly I minded that gap between myself and my surroundings. I got to experience so much last year and it would have been a shame if I had not been truly present for it. I intentionally made choices that made me uncomfortable and more aware of these gaps. I know from my BoldLeaders training that there is so much to gain from doing what makes me uncomfortable, which is what led me to choose a year long study abroad program where I

By Caroline Meserve|2016-11-30T17:45:16-07:00March 16th, 2016|Alumni, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Limiting Beliefs, Minding the Gap, Travel|0 Comments

Brian Winstanley – Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable

The most impactful aspect of the BoldLeaders curriculum, for me, was the concept of becoming “comfortable being uncomfortable”. As a young high school student, this motto became a way of life for me, both in my travels through Kenya and my experiences since. The level of growth that a person experiences directly relates to their willingness to be vulnerable and learn to embrace uncomfortable, new situations because without these situations, people remain stagnant. I grew tremendously as a person throughout the BoldLeaders program because I consciously made an effort to avoid taking the easy route but instead take the more difficult, uncomfortable route that would develop me the most as a person. BoldLeaders taught

By Brian Winstanley|2016-11-28T17:10:13-07:00March 16th, 2016|Alumni, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Leadership|0 Comments

Natalie Walter – Expectations, Upset and Possibility

I traveled to Kenya in 2011 with Bold Leaders when I was 17, and I traveled to Nepal two years later. I called my BoldLeaders coach Michael a little bit before I left; I was nervous to be gone for two and a half months, with much of that time spent with no internet or phone service, no lights or plumbing. Over the phone, Michael guided me to take out a piece of paper and begin to draw. There were two paths in this drawing, starting on the left side of the paper. One started at the word “possibility,” and one started at the word “expectation.” Both paths went through an upset in the center of

By Natalie Walter|2016-11-30T19:46:54-07:00March 16th, 2016|Alumni, Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Minding the Gap, Possibility, Travel|0 Comments

Keeping Things at Arm’s Length

It is easier, safer and more comfortable to keep things “at arm’s length”. Whether these ‘things’ are relationships, ideas, stories, communities, etc. – it takes effort, time and some measure of thought to engage, involve yourself and participate. What’s more is that participation is not static – it exists on a continuum: on one end I can exhibit mild interest and be considered participatory, while on the other end there is and can be such a high level of engagement that I am actually co-creating something with others. What has people participate and invest at such a level? What would be the impetus that overcomes the desire for ease and safety? At BoldLeaders we have explored this

By Brady Rhodes|2016-11-30T19:58:34-07:00November 10th, 2015|Comfortable with Being Uncomfortable, Participation|0 Comments