What do great teachers do that makes them stand out?
Why do some make such an impact on their students and most don’t? We’ve all had so many teachers—traditional classroom teachers as well as coaches, religious instructors and then professors or professional mentors…
My father was in the Air Force so we moved almost every year. It seems like I’ve had hundreds of teachers and coaches over my lifetime. When asked how many do I remember, I can’t come up with many.
How many stand out in your memory?
If you teach and want to make a lasting impact, it’s very useful to think back and see if you can learn from them.
“The mediocre teacher tells, the good teacher explains, the superior teacher demonstrates, but the great teacher inspires.” – William Ward
Of the great ocean of teachers you’ve had in your life, how many do you really remember vividly?
There’s a good chance they were the ones who INSPIRED you.
So here is the point. If you want to make a lasting impact on those you teach, don’t stop with just telling, explaining and demonstrating.
Find ways to reach them on another level, the one that inspires them to use it. The teachers you remember knew how to do that.
They found a way to connect the information to you on a personal level.
It relates to letting their students to see how this impacts their lives. They get them to see why this information is something they can use to elevate and improve their lives.
- To make a bigger and better impact in the world.
- To have a more successful life and career.
- To have a richer, more satisfying life.
They showed you how to use it.
The lesson is that to be memorable, you must get your students to see how they can USE this information. This is the real last step in training and educating. It’s not enough just to teach the facts. That’s just empty information. If that’s all it is, it’s quickly forgotten…along with the teacher.
If you don’t do something with it you wasted your time learning it.
- The real power and magic comes with seeing what you do after you have mastered it.
- The great and memorable teachers inspire people to go and DO things with the information.
- They get them excited about the possibilities.
