PAcree

     In the final chapters of the book, the characters discover the third part of making a great idea stick. Once the participants have Found IT and Lived IT, they must Coach IT. Coach it means that all participants much communicate and coach others to hep keep the vision alive and evolving as the situation changes. It was interesting that coaching is communication in all directions without regard to senority or position. The characters insisted that ego had no part in coaching and that each participant had the responsibility and right to be a coach and to be coached. The characters further discovered that there wasn't a predescribed path that could be followed but that each building had to create the path to sustaining the vision by the situation they were in. Education, nursing, and businesses would each have a different method for defining, achieving, and sustaining the vision.

     The implication for a school is that we must take the vision, personalize and own it individually, remind ourselves of our responsibility and strive to live it every day, and coach and be coached by peers frequently so that we stay focused on our part of the vision.  Like the story, life interferes with the job. As part of the coaching, we are there to support and coach our coworkers when they are experiencing life that intrudes. Part of coaching ourselves and others is to take the time away from work to build family and friend relationships. Time for self is also important so that we can be our best at work. 

     Fish Sticks continues with more information on how to keep a vision alive once the initial excitement begins to wane. The vision statement is a broad statement of what a group wants to accomplish collectively(Find It). In order to sustain the commitment to the vision each individual must identify his personal stake in the vision. This is accomplished through communication with others on each individual vision of what they want, what they do, and how they create the vision for the customers. It is not enough to create the vision, but we must also recreate it on a continual basis and as changes in the situation occur(Live It). The key is to become internally motivated. In the next part of the book, the characters will learn how to "coach it", which is the third part of the process to keep the vision alive.

In the book Fish Sticks by Lundin, the author explores that although change in any program is difficult, the hardest part of leadership is keeping the energy going after the initial excitement begins to fade. The natural tendency is to return to the old ways of doing things when the stress and day to day hard work hits us. I identify with one character in the story who states "When things get stressful I sometimes forget about the possibilities and simply put my head down and plow ahead." The character loses focus in the reality of work. The sushi chef in the story was a successful chef because she recognized that although quality sushi was important, the quality of the experience made the difference between her restaurant and others who also had quality sushi. Part of the success is attributed to the "vision" created by each of the team-mebers and a series of "vision moments" that keep the vision in focus. Teaching is full of stressful moments and hard work. The challenge is to create a vision, stay focused on the vision, and to enhance the quality education with quality experiences.(pages 1-37)