International Christian school leaders, doing alright does not equal flourishing! So, don’t be satisfied with doing alright—instead, strive to flourish! Why?
Because God calls you to flourish, not just to do alright.
Because when you’re flourishing, you serve more effectively because you’re growing and thriving (instead of just doing OK, good enough).
Because your international Christian school needs flourishing leaders who “function at extraordinarily high levels—both psychologically and socially. They’re not simply people who feel good. Flourishing goes beyond simply happiness or satisfaction with life. Beyond feeling good, they’re also doing good—adding value to the world” (Positivity: Top-Notch Research Reveals the 3-to-1 Ratio That Will Change Your Life, 2009, p. 17).
Let me explain further by providing a description of what it looks like for leaders to experience each of the 5 elements of flourishing at the “doing alright” level and at the “flourishing” level:
(A) Passionate purpose:
Doing alright leaders experience decision-making that is somewhat guided by purpose statements, some shared ownership for school improvement and mission achievement, and a board that monitors the leaders’ responsibilities.
Flourishing leaders consistently experience decision-making that is guided by and aligned with the purpose statements, deeply shared ownership for school improvement and mission achievement (see Construct: Responsibility, p. 14), and an inspiring board that rigorously monitors the implementation of the purpose statements.
(B) Resilient well-being:
Doing alright leaders experience some exercise and some daily devotions, a Christ-centered environment, and a supportive board.
Doing alright leaders experience an adequate work space; plans, policies, and procedures; and discussions about resource management and resource planning.
What about you? What’s the difference between doing alright and flourishing? For a leader, what does it look like to be doing alright for each of the 5 elements of flourishing? For leader, what does it look like to be flourishing in each of the 5 elements of flourishing? What’s 1 action step you can take to toward flourishing?
(1) Because using what helps you improve gets you flourishing.
(2) Because using what helps you improve keeps you focused and persisting when the going gets tough, keeps you open to new opportunities, and keeps you working both effectively and efficiently.
(3) Because using what doesn’t help you improve can cause you to give up when things get tough, to avoid growth opportunities, and to work ineffectively and inefficiently. Not good.
(4) Because using what helps you improve is a best practice.
So, what helps and doesn’t help you to improve? When thinking about what helps and doesn’t help you as a staff member or leader of international Christian school to improve, what comes to mind for me include the following:
What helps…
What doesn’t help…
Keeping your galvanizing purpose for improvement in the forefront of your mind.
Having no clear purpose for improvement or having one that doesn’t galvanize you.
Having a perspective on improvement that flows from a growth mindset.
Having a perspective on improvement that flows from a fixed mindset.
Using a process that includes reviewing your purpose for improvement, assessing your current situation, taking action steps, assessing and celebrating progress, and determining next steps.
Having no documented process, or having a process that doesn’t include key components.
I say your improvement engine “can help” because how much it helps depends on its quality. If your engine is great, your engine will really help you improve. If your engine isn’t great (like if you’re missing components or if your components aren’t of good quality), it might not help all that much.
My second point: Your 5P improvement engine is what actually drives your improvement. So check your engine before taking action on your goal.
Let me put it another way: Imagine your goal is to drive from Los Angeles to Seattle to New York City to Miami and back to Los Angeles, a long trip. Before driving, you’d want to make sure your engine (not to mention the rest of your car) is in good working order.
Before taking action on your goal, make sure you have a great 5P improvement engine!
International Christian school staff members, doing alright does not equal flourishing! So, don’t be satisfied with doing alright—instead, focus on flourishing! Why?
Because God made you to flourish and help others flourish.
Because when you’re flourishing, you’re thriving and bearing fruit (instead of doing OK or good enough).
Let me explain further by providing a description of what it looks like for staff members to experience each of the 5 elements of flourishing at the “doing alright” level and at the “flourishing” level:
(A) Passionate purpose:
Doing alright staff members experience reviews of the purpose statements; some connections between their job responsibilities and the achievement of the mission; working with others to help students flourish.
Flourishing staff members consistently experience discussions (including celebrations) of the meaning, implications, and achievement of the purpose statements; clear connections between their job responsibilities and the achievement of the mission and outcomes; working with others to design action steps to help students flourish holistically—mentally, physically, emotionally, socially, and spiritually (see Construct: Holistic Teaching, p. 14).
(B) Resilient well-being:
Doing alright staff members experience time pressure to do their work, some exercise and some personal devotions, and a Christ-centered environment.
Flourishing staff members consistently experience adequate time to do their work (see Construct: Stress, p. 18); consistent exercise and personal devotions; and a safe, nurturing, Christ-centered environment.
(C) Healthy relationships:
Doing alright staff members experience two-way communication with parents; Christ-centered colleagues who exhibit vulnerability and commitment; and supportive, Christ-centered leadership (see Construct: Supportive Leadership p. 15)..
Flourishing staff members consistently experience positive, collaborative, two-way communication with parents (see Construct: Parent Relationships, p. 15); Christ-centered colleagues who exhibit transparency, vulnerability, healthy conflict, commitment, accountability, and a focus on mission-centered results; and trustworthy, supportive, respectful, empowering Christ-centered leadership (see Construct: Supportive Leadership p. 15).
(D) Transformative learning:
Doing alright staff members experience professional development, professional organizations, and feedback.
Flourishing staff members consistently experience professional development aligned with individual, department/team, and schoolwide goals (see Construct: Professional Development, p. 16); participation in professional/virtual learning communities and in professional organizations; and frequent feedback—criticism that is kind and clear, praise that is specific and sincere (see Construct: Feedback, p. 16).
(E) Helpful resources:
Doing alright staff members experience adequate facilities and technology, and skillful, Christ-centered leaders.
Flourishing staff members consistently experience well-maintained facilities and effective technology (see Construct: Resources, p. 17); and skillful, encouraging, Christ-centered leaders who have a trust-and-inspire mindset.
What about you? What’s the difference between doing alright and flourishing? For a staff member, what does it look like to be doing alright for each of the 5 elements of flourishing? For a staff member, what does it look like to be flourishing in each of the 5 elements of flourishing? What’s 1 action step you can take to toward flourishing?
Students learning about God, His world, and their place in it! At international Christian schools, that’s what we want. And when students are learning, it’s an indication that staff are working effectively. However, students learning does not equal staff flourishing. Consider:
Is a staff member who isn’t passionate about the school’s mission flourishing?
Is a staff member with significant health issues flourishing?
Is a staff member who isn’t serving as the living curriculum flourishing?
Is a staff member who doesn’t have enough time to prepare flourishing?
Is a staff member whose workspace is way too hot or way too cold flourishing?
My response: Just because your students are learning doesn’t mean you’re flourishing.
But let me ask you some questions about flourishing staff:
Question 1: What does a flourishing staff member at an international Christian school look like to you? To me, what a flourishing staff member at an international Christian school looks like includes someone who…
Deeply understands the connections between their job responsibilities and the achievement of the mission and outcomes.
Question 2: What’s your definition of a flourishing staff member at an international Christian school? Here’s my working definition: A flourishing staff member consistently experiences the 5 elements of flourishing* and helps others do the same. Or to put it another way, a flourishing staff member consistently experiences abundant life in Jesus and helps others do the same. (To learn more, please read What do flourishing staff at international Christian schools consistently experience?)
Question 3: What faulty assumptions might you need to address about being a flourishing staff member? Here are 5 examples of faulty assumptions about being a flourishing staff member:
(1) Passionate Purpose: “As a teacher, I’m focused on helping my students learn, you know, achieve the standards and benchmarks. I like our curriculum, and the parents of my students are supportive and really want their kids to achieve academically—which works for me! I love the content I teach, and I love to help kids improve their skills. And both I and my students really like our chapel program—really great! If it comes up, I help students with spiritual and emotional matters—which doesn’t happen all that often. Which is good because it takes time away from class time or takes time away from my prep time.”
I get it—helping students achieve the standards and benchmarks is a big challenge, and having supportive parents can add pressure to make sure students grow academically. I also get that your real subjects are your students, not the content and skills. It looks like your focus on academics is excluding you helping your students holistically—like spiritually and emotionally.
And when you only help students academically, they can feel like you think they aren’t holistic image bearers of God, just receptacles for academic learning. ACSI research indicates that effective classroom instruction includes “helping students develop spiritually and emotionally (teaching the heart and soul, as well as the mind)” (Flourishing Schools, p. 14). To learn more, please read Spiritual Formation and Flourishing.
Please remember that to flourish in terms of passionate purpose, you need 2 things: (1) to consistently experience it and (2) to consistently help others (like your students) to experience it.
(2) Resilient Well-Being: “Yeah, teaching can be a bit nuts. A bit too challenging, but I love it. I want to help the kids learn about God’s world, I want to pursue excellence in everything, and I want to be a team player—so I help out when asked, like directing the play, filling in as recess supervisor, and teaching science—and I’m not a science person. (And if I don’t help out, I know someone else, who’s already busy, is going to get asked.) There’s so much to do! I’m all in on Christian education, I want to do it all, and it can be a bit exhausting.”
You work hard. International Christian school teachers work hard. The schedule can be so packed, it’s hard to find time to take an actual lunch break, possibly a bathroom break, let alone prep effectively for classes. To me, these things are not OK. They need to change.
And it’s also true that you don’t need to do it all and that everything can’t be and shouldn’t be a priority—which is why Dave Stuart Jr. recommends the practice of satisficing: doing some things well enough so that you can focus on a few priorities.
Which is also why Juliet Funt (author of A Minute to Think: Reclaim Creativity, Conquer Busyness, and Do Your Best Work) recommends you ask yourself 4 questions to guard against overdrive, perfectionism, information overload, and frenzy: “Is there anything I can let go of? Where is ‘good enough,’ good enough? What do I truly need to know? What deserves my attention?” (pp. 104-105).
And which is why I recommend that you take a step back and reflect on 3 questions: Is my workload reasonable? Does our school have a sufficient number of staff? Am I sufficiently qualified for my current assignment? If you find that your answer to any of these questions is no, schedule a heart-to-heart meeting with your supervisor.
(3) Healthy Relationships: “I’m so glad my high schoolers are learning. My efforts to provide engaging instruction and simple behavior guidelines (‘Be kind, respectful, hardworking, and self-controlled’) are paying off. And I’ve worked to provide more effective feedback on my students’ work. That’s good enough, right?”
Your hard work is paying off! I’m glad your high schoolers are learning. And giving even more effective feedback is great! Looks like your students are doing pretty well as students, and I’m wondering how they are doing as people. I’m wondering how aware you are of your “students’ struggles at…home” (Flourishing Schools, p. 15). And I’m wondering how you would feel if your supervisor only interacted with you about work—didn’t show interest in your personal life, didn’t show concern about health issues, didn’t know names of your family members. I wouldn’t like it. I wouldn’t think your students do, either. To put it another way, mentoring students helps them flourish (Flourishing Schools, p. 15).
(4) Transformative Learning: “I’ve gotten my teaching basically down. I like how my classroom feels and runs. I like my units and lessons. I’ve got my go-to strategies. I’ve perfected things. I receive feedback annually in my evaluation—not all that helpful. And I’m not looking for additional feedback. I’m fine where I am.”
I’m glad you’ve been working to perfect your classroom management and teaching practices. I recognize that annual evaluations may not be all that helpful to you. However, this is a school, schools are all about learning, you are a teacher (the living curriculum), so you need to keep growing. You need to ask for regular feedback on your “teaching practice and classroom management …[so you can make] adjustments in real-time” (Flourishing Schools, p. 16). Keep growing—don’t stagnate!
(5) Helpful Resources: “I want to learn and grow. I found a couple of online classes that look good and a conference that looks good. But then I checked the cost. Too much. Bummer.”
I’m glad you want to learn and grow. It seems like you may think that helpful learning resources are limited to classes and conferences. And it also seems like you may think that helpful learning resources necessarily cost money. I’m a big proponent of schools providing aggressive professional development funding, and I want to share that there are a variety of helpful learning resources that are free:
Question 4: What change(s) do you need to make to develop as a flourishing staff member and help others do the same? Please keep in mind that ongoing change is part of flourishing, that you don’t need to do everything (though you do need to do something), and that you should start with yourself.
At your international Christian school, deepen shared understanding of “holistically flourishing in Jesus”! Why?
(1) Because deepening shared understanding helps you and others to flourish.
(2) Because deepening shared understanding increases the likelihood that everyone will get clear on what holistic flourishing is, the role it plays in your school’s program, and how to stay focused on it.
(3) Because not deepening shared understanding increases the likelihood of diverse definitions of holistic flourishing, disunity in terms of the role flourishing plays in your school’s program, and a lack of sustained focus on flourishing.
(4) Because deepening shared understanding is a best practice.
What’s involved in deepening shared understanding of “holistically flourishing in Jesus”? What comes to mind for me is collaboratively responding to key questions, for example:
What do we mean by “holistically flourishing in Jesus”?
What’s the relationship between holistic flourishing and Christian education?
What’s our philosophy of “holistically flourishing in Jesus”?
What do holistically flourishing students, staff, and leaders at our international Christian school look like?
What helps us stay focused on holistically flourishing in Jesus and helping others do the same?
What does it look like for us as staff and leaders to be focused on holistically flourishing in Jesus and helping others do the same?
What supplemental frameworks do we use as we implement our Get Flourishing Framework (see 1-6 above)?
Please note:
You may want to revise 1 or more of the above questions or develop your own questions. The main thing is to document your school’s shared understanding of “holistically flourishing in Jesus.”
Here’s a template you can use that comes with the 7 questions, along with sample ChatGPT prompts, sample responses to the 7 questions, and sample resources.
Bottom line: Deepen shared understanding of “holistically flourishing in Jesus”!
Here are some resources related to “holistically flourishing in Jesus”:
What about you? How do you feel about deepening shared understanding of “holistically flourishing in Jesus”? How can you deepen shared understanding of “holistically flourishing in Jesus”?
Get flourishing!
Michael P.S. Be sure to check out this template for deepening shared understanding of “holistically flourishing in Jesus”!
Ensure meetings at your school get people flourishing AND get the job done! Why?
(1) Because when people get flourishing, they’re more likely to get the job done.
(2) Because getting people flourishing AND getting the job done increases the likelihood that people will experience passionate purpose and resilient well-being, that your school’s Christ-centered purpose statements will be effectively carried out, and that people will enjoy their work.
(3) Because not getting people flourishing and not getting the job one increases the likelihood that people will experience stagnation and the blahs, that your school’s Christ-centered purpose statement will be ineffectively carried out, and that people will find their work irritating.
(4) Because getting people flourishing AND getting the job done are best practices.
What are meetings that get people flourishing and get the job done like? How would you describe them? I’d say they’re…
Inspiring: They ignite my sense of purpose (instead of deadening it).
Boosters to well-being: I feel better after the meeting than when I arrived (instead of worse).
Engaging: They get me thinking and into the “flow” (instead of into a state of boredom.)
Effective and efficient: They are run very well (instead of being clunky, mediocre).
Productive: They consistently accomplish significant things (instead of being unproductive).
Basically, these meetings are so good that I don’t want to miss out on them! (Think of a class you really liked as a student—like that!)
What can you do to ensure that meetings at your school get people flourishing AND get the job done? One thing that comes to mind is deepening shared understanding of meetings, holistic flourishing, and how they are connected. One way to do this is to collaboratively develop responses to key questions, for example:
What is a “meeting” and what is “holistic flourishing”?
What’s the connection between meetings and holistic flourishing?
What makes a good meeting good?
What are some faulty assumptions people have about meetings?
Why do we use meetings?
What meeting norms do we use to help participants (A) get holistically flourishing and (B) get the job done?
What makes a good meeting facilitator good and what makes a good meeting participant good?
How do we assess and improve our meetings?
Tip: Check out the Get Flourishing Meeting Framework for sample responses to the above questions, as well as ChatGPT prompts and links to additional resources.
Learning! It’s wonderful when students are learning about God, His world, and their place in it. Learning, particularly transformative learning, is integral to flourishing. However, learning does not equal flourishing. Consider:
Is an aimless student flourishing?
Is a student who is learning only for grades and who is not using what s/he learns to help others flourishing?
Is a student who isn’t getting enough sleep and who has mental health issues flourishing?
Is a student who has no friends flourishing?
My response: Just because your students are learning doesn’t mean they’re flourishing.
But let me ask you some questions about flourishing students:
Question 1: What does a flourishing student at an international Christian school look like to you? To me, what a flourishing student at an international Christian school looks like includes someone who…
Question 2: What’s your definition of a flourishing student at an international Christian school? Here’s my working definition: A flourishing student consistently experiences the 5 elements of flourishing* and helps others do the same. Or to put it another way, a flourishing student consistently experiences abundant life in Jesus and helps others do the same. (To learn more, please read What do flourishing students at international Christian schools consistently experience?)
Question 3: What faulty assumptions might you need to address about flourishing students? Here are 5 examples of faulty assumptions about being a flourishing student:
(1) Passionate Purpose: “I guess we’re not really supposed to ask deep questions. You know, like sometimes when I have doubts, I’d like to ask questions. But it doesn’t come up in class, and I’m pretty sure my teacher would say I shouldn’t have doubts, so I don’t ask. So I guess a good Christian doesn’t have doubts—that’s why I shouldn’t ask my questions, right?”
This just makes me sad. At a Christian school, we’re supposed to help our students grow in faith, which includes processing their doubts (see construct on questioning in Flourishing Schools, p. 14). I know that in my own life, processing my doubts has helped me grow—like doubts about God’s sovereignty when some gets cancer.
Students learn from asking questions. We all know this. And when students aren’t encouraged to ask questions about their real experiences, about their real doubts, they lose out on an opportunity to grow. And when the message is that they shouldn’t ask certain questions, their takeaway could be that being a Christian means never having doubts and behaving in such a way that no one gets uncomfortable. (To learn more, please read My Christian High-School Students Have Doubts. Here’s How I Respond.)
Note: If your students don’t ask their questions in a Christ-centered environment, there’s a good probability that they will eventually ask their questions in environments that aren’t Christ-centered
(2) Resilient Well-Being: “Reading, writing, and math—that’s important. I’m in 2nd grade, and we spend the most time each day on reading, writing, and math. We used to get more recess and more PE, but now recess is shorter and we don’t get PE. I guess those aren’t important.”
Reading, writing, and math are important—as are Bible, science, and social studies. As are music, library, art, and computer. And for 2nd graders, for all students, “regular exercise” is important (Flourishing Schools, p. 18). It’s good for physical health and helps students concentrate and behave.
Most international schools are in cities, and most students have significant commute time and homework, and not a lot of space at home to play. What can get squeezed out is physical activity. God created students with bodies—bodies which need regular exercise if those students are to flourish. Find time for students to sufficiently exercise each day—the CDC recommends recess for all grade levels.
(3) Healthy Relationships: “I’m working hard to learn, to reach my potential, to get into a good college, a really good college. I get along with my basketball teammates—which will look good on my college applications. At some point, I’ll have the time and energy to focus on helping others. Right now, though, I need to stay focused on getting into college. My parents agree.”
It’s good to have goals. It’s good to be focused on reaching your potential and on getting into a good college. But your goals don’t have to exclude helping others. Helping others doesn’t take hours—it usually takes seconds or minutes and it’s a way of living. Being known as someone who shows “love and care” (Flourishing Schools, p. 15) will look good on your college applications—the opposite won’t.
God says we are to love our neighbors—and keep in mind that part of reaching your potential, of flourishing, is helping others flourish. It looks like an unintended consequence of your goals could be being self-absorbed. Not good. Really good colleges are not looking for self-absorbed students.
(4) Transformative Learning: “I just follow directions and do what the teacher tells the whole class to do. I’m not really sure what you mean about what else helps me learn. And I don’t really understand what you mean about my strengths. Do you mean which classes I get better grades in? I basically get all Bs—so that’s not much help.”
Following directions and doing what the teacher tells the class to do is important for students to do. And while each student is a member of the class, each student is also an individual created by God with learning tendencies and with strengths. When a student isn’t aware of how s/he learns best and what their strengths are, they will find it harder to learn, harder to flourish. Teachers, please provide “[i]ndividualized instruction…[that helps students know] how they learn best and…identify their natural strengths” Flourishing Schools, p. 16).
(5) Helpful Resources:“It’s not that I’m not grateful for being able to attend an international Christian school. It’s just that I really like science. I’m thinking about majoring in science in college. But last year, stuff happened and I had 3 different biology teachers. This year I had a really good chemistry teacher, but she left in March. An English teacher with some background in science filled in, but it’s not the same and, to be honest, it’s not as good. I guess I’m getting a little concerned for my future, but maybe that’s just what happens at Christian schools.”
I’m glad the student wants to pursue science, wants to learn about God’s creation. I can see why she’s concerned about his future—pretty difficult to have 5 science teachers in 2 years and to basically have an English teacher for the last quarter of chemistry. And I recognize that stuff happens. However, I also recognize that students need helpful learning resources, the key one being qualified teachers who are flourishing. Providing unhelpful resources shouldn’t be “just what happens at Christian schools.”
Question 4: What change(s) do you need to make to help your students flourish? Please keep in mind that ongoing change is part of flourishing, that you don’t need to do everything (though you do need to do something), and that you should start with yourself.
Options for changes related to helping students flourish include:
Praying for students by name on a regular basis.
Encouraging students to ask difficult faith-related questions.
Subscribing to the Culture Translator, an e-newsletter that helps you understand and disciple your students.
Giving students time to reflect on their progress on the student outcomes.
Establishing classroom libraries.
Note: To help yourself successfully make a change, be sure to identify what helps you.
What about you?
What does a flourishing student at an international Christian school look like to you?
What’s your definition of a flourishing student at an international Christian school?
What faulty assumptions might you need to address about flourishing students?
What change(s) do you need to make to help students flourish?
What helps you make the changes necessary for helping students be the international Christian school students God is calling them to be?
Doing alright and flourishing are not the same thing! In fact, they are quite different. Just check out synonyms for doing alright and flourishing, and you’ll see what I mean:
Doing alright: doing OK, satisfactorily, adequately, good enough, so-so
Flourishing: growing, thriving, developing, prospering, bearing fruit
This means that flourishing involves consistently experiencing each and every one of the 5 of the elements of flourishing—not inconsistently experiencing 1 or more of the elements or experiencing a lesser version of an element (like transformationless learning instead of transformative learning).
Let me explain further by providing a description of what it looks like for a student to experience each of the 5 elements at the “doing alright” level and at the “flourishing” level:
(A) Passionate purpose:
Doing alright students experience infrequent personal goal setting, a lack of perceived freedom to ask tough faith-related questions, and Christian teachers.
Flourishing students consistently experience personal goal setting, making a positive impact for Jesus, the freedom to ask and discuss difficult faith-related questions (see Construct: Questioning, p. 14), and a living curriculum (staff) that models Christ-centered passionate purpose.
(B) Resilient well-being:
Doing alright students experience irregular exercise, some durability during a crisis, and a basically safe environment.
Flourishing students consistently experience physical exercise and a good diet (see Construct: Healthy Living, p. 18), sufficient personal durability in times of crisis (see Construct: Resilience, p. 18); and a safe, nurturing, Christ-centered environment.
(C) Healthy relationships:
Doing alright students experience reasonably safe, respectful peer relationships; and respectful Christian teachers.
Flourishing students consistently experience safe, caring, collaborative, respectful peer relationships; caring, collaborative, respectful Christ-centered staff (see Construct: Christlike Teachers p. 15); and a living curriculum (staff) that has healthy relationships with other staff.
(D) Transformative learning:
Doing alright students experience class content and skills, some good teaching practices, and teachers who have mastered class content and skills.
Flourishing students consistently experience big questions, big ideas, and big skills; best practice content, assessment, instruction, and feedback that are designed to help them achieve the Christ-centered outcomes; and a living curriculum (staff) that models transformative learning.
(E) Helpful resources:
Doing alright students experience some quality instructional materials and qualified Christ-centered staff.
What about you? What’s the difference between doing alright and flourishing? For a student, what does it look like to be doing alright for each of the 5 elements of flourishing? For a student, what does it look like to be flourishing in each of the 5 elements of flourishing? What’s 1 action step you can take to help 1 student move toward flourishing?
Monopoly, Risk, Rook, basketball, soccer, baseball—these are the games I played as a kid. I knew who I was playing against, what the rules were, what it took to win, and (at the end of the game) who the winners and losers were. Those games (which had start and end points) are what Simon Sinek refers to as finite games.
Much as I loved competition and winning, as I grew older (and hopefully wiser), I realized that most of life isn’t a finite game—think families, church, loving God and neighbor, telling others about Jesus, and working in order to serve others. Most of what we experience in life is what Simon Sinek calls an infinite game: changing players; varying and changing preferences, practices, and rules (save for what the Bible teaches), and only participants (not winners and losers).
What game are you playing through your involvement in your international Christian school? Unlike Monopoly and basketball (finite games), Christian education is actually an infinite game designed to help students, staff, and leaders flourish in Jesus. And to play an infinite game effectively, Simon specifies 5 practices:
Advance a just cause.
Build trusting teams.
Study worthy rivals.
Prepare for existential flexibility.
Demonstrate the courage to lead.
To learn more about the 5 practices of the infinite game, keep reading!
Infinite Game Practice #1—Advance a Just Cause: Don’t try to beat others, to win, to be the best at all costs.Even if your international Christian school is in difficult circumstances, don’t focus on surviving. Instead, advance a cause that is so just that people willingly sacrifice to advance it. What does a just cause look like? Here are 3 examples:
“We imagine a world in which the vast majority of people wake up every single morning inspired, feel safe wherever they are, and end the day fulfilled by the work they do” (Simon Sinek).
“[T]o strengthen Christian schools and equip Christian educators worldwide as they prepare students academically and inspire them to become devoted followers of Jesus Christ” (ACSI).
“Helping students, staff, and leaders at international Christian schools to flourish in Jesus” (me).
Note: Statements that include “be the best at” or “be the leader in” are not just causes.
Good news! Advancing a just cause helps us flourish, in part by helping us consistently experience passionate purpose. And for my just cause (see above), here’s a snapshot of what that looks like:
Consider: How can you more effectively advance your just cause while also helping those involved to consistently experience passionate purpose?
Infinite Game Practice #2—Build Trusting Teams: Don’t build mistrust, doubt, or competition. Don’t build solopreneurs or groups. Instead, build teams where everyone deeply trusts each other, where everyone demonstrates vulnerability and care.
What helps me develop trusting teams includes:
Remembering that as Christians, we are all part of one team, the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-27).
Addressing Patrick Lencioni’s 5 dysfunctions of a team: absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, and inattention to results.
Being aware of others’ cultural backgrounds. As Erin Meyer, author of The Culture Map, notes, not everyone builds trust in the same way. Some cultures base trust on task (think North America), and some base trust on relationships (think Japan).
Working to be an ideal team player—one who is hungry, humble, and (people) smart (see video).
To flourish in international Christian schools, trust and teamwork are vital! Why? Because trust and teamwork help us experience healthy relationships—here’s what that looks like for my just cause:
Consider: What helps you develop trust, teamwork, and trusting teams? How can you further develop and maintain healthy relationships?
Infinite Game Practice #3—Study Worthy Rivals: Don’t try to win, to be better than others, you know, to be the best, to be the leader in your field. Instead, do something harder: strive to improve, to be your best, to be all God intended you to be. Studying worthy rivals (models of excellence) can help, in part because studying worthy rivals helps you see where you can improve.
Leaders reading and then discussing case studies of how other Christian schools are addressing current challenges.
Consider: What worthy rivals (models of excellence) should you study even more so that you can grow, improve, and experience transformative learning?
Infinite Game Practice #4—Prepare for Existential Flexibility: Don’t prepare to run from change, to weather a crisis and then go back to “normal,” or to make modest change. Instead, prepare for existential flexibility, for doing deep, radical change in order to better advance your just cause.
What does doing deep, radical change look like? It looks like…
Photography companies moving from film to digital. (Kodak, who pioneered film, didn’t make this change and later filed for bankruptcy.)
International Christian schools shifting to online instruction so that they could continue to advance their just cause amidst COVID.
My changing from serving as an administrator at an international Christian school to serving as an independent coach/consultant for a variety of international Christian schools.
Consider: How prepared are you and your international Christian school for existential flexibility, for doing deep, radical change? To what extent does your school use the practices necessary for doing deep, radical change? (These practices include advancing a just cause, building trusting teams, studying worthy rivals, and staying proactively prepared for the next crisis.)
Infinite Game Practice #5—Demonstrate the Courage to Lead: Don’t duck difficult situations, difficult conversations, or difficult decisions. Don’t choose the easy way. Don’t focus only on the short term. Instead, focus on advancing your just cause in the long-term. Proactively build trusting teams, study worthy rivals, and prepare for existential flexibility (doing deep, radical change). Do hard things (like facing difficult situations, having difficult conversations, and making the difficult decisions) so that you can continue to advance your just cause.
In other words, demonstrate the courage to lead:
Obey God’s command: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9, NIV).
Remember that though we live in a broken world, God works everything for good and nothing can separate us from the love of God (Romans 8:28-39).
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thesalonians 5:16-18, NIV).
Continue focusing on your ultimate infinite game: glorifying God, now and forever.
Consider: To what extent are you demonstrating the courage to lead? What helps you? What hinders you?
To what extent are you implementing the 5 practices of an infinite game (advancing a just cause, building trusting teams, studying worthy rivals, preparing for existential flexibility, demonstrating the courage to lead)?
How can you more effectively play the infinite game of Christian education?
How can you more effectively help students, staff, and leaders at your international Christian school to flourish in Jesus?
The infinite game is about mindset, and here are other posts related to mindset:
(2) Because using a holistic approach with staff increases the likelihood that they will experience resilient well-being, will experience a deep sense of belonging, and will experientially understand the importance of using a holistic approach with students.
(3) Because not using a holistic approach with staff increases the likelihood that they will experience fragile ill-being, will experience not being sufficiently known by you and others, and will less effectively use a holistic approach with students because they aren’t experiencing that approach from you, the leader.
What does consistently using a holistic approach with staff look like? For me, it looks like each leader and staff member actively using a Personalized Flourishing Plan (a 3-year plan has 3 action steps for each of the 5 Elements of Flourishing). Actively using the plans includes, for example, leaders and staff talking about their plans regularly—in monthly staff meetings, weekly team meetings, and weekly 1-on-1s.
What about you? To what extent do you consistently use a holistic approach with staff? What elements make up a holistic approach? What does consistently using a holistic approach with staff look like?
Get Flourishing 
