From the District Training:
Teachers are the Prize

Troy Polamalu was a Hall of Fame safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

He was known as one of the most respectful, kind, and beloved players ever to step on the field. Revered for his toughness and his grace. 

But how did he become that? 

No doubt his faith plays a huge part.
But there’s so much more to it. 

One day in high school, he delivered a brutal hit during a football game and followed it with some nasty words to the player he tackled. Later that day while riding home with his brothers, he proudly told them what he said. 

Except they didn’t laugh like he thought they would.
Instead, they hit him with a beautiful 5-10-15.

“You’re better than that.”

Troy never forgot it.
And he speaks of it often.

What’s the moral of the story? 

What you say and how you say it can change the lives of young people. 

The problem is we don’t always get immediate and positive feedback that we’ve helped. Most students never tell us that we’ve improved their lives. Instead, we’re forced to go forward in faith that we’re making a difference and it can be hard. 

We get tired, lose hope, and start to engage less. Less engagement greatly diminishes our chances of making a difference. This is bad for us and harmful for students. 

As Matt Bosh said, “Students already know how to be kids. We show them how to be adults.” 

They need us to speak up, to help them become safe, respectful, and capable adults. And it doesn’t have to be stupendous, out of this world, or groundbreaking. 

I mean…come on. “You’re better than that” is four simple words. 

There’s no way his brothers thought to themselves, “Oh, yeah. Nailed it. We’ve just helped to create the hardest hitting and nicest guy in the history of the NFL.” 

No, they probably gave it no thought and that’s the catch. 

You must say the right thing at the right time and have faith that it will produce the right results. All the while with the understanding that you may never know if it helped. 

Troy is the reminder that it’s possible.

It can happen—it did happen!
Quick 5-10-15’s delivered in love can change everything. 

It changed Troy and it will change your school.

As school leaders, our words carry real power for good.
They shape people and guide hearts and lead us to a safer, better outcome…like it did with Troy. 

So have faith and engage more, say more, and love more.
Whatever you do, don’t give in or give up. 

You’re better than that.