The BOSS Network Blog

  “To Teach is to Learn Twice” – an effective strategy for developing and sustaining viable and beneficial “Connections” “To Teach is to Learn Twice” an 18th-century quote often used by educators can serve as an excellent strategy for developing “connections” that serve us well in situations or settings that require us to interact and/or work interdependently with others. “Teach to Learn Twice” definitely has personal benefits.   When we teach something that we know to someone else we enhance our understanding. Preparing to teach a concept to someone else requires us to think about the concept or skill from a different perspective and provides a deeper understanding or a new application. In addition to enhancing our understanding of a concept or skill, we establish a supportive, encouraging exchange with a colleague or associate.   This can lead to a “connection” which is described as a mutual feeling of being able to relate and engage in a positive and produc...

When you are in doubt or you don’t have the answers, your words and your behavior will indicate if you are a “life- long learner.” “I don’t know.”   How often do we say it?   How often do we hear it?   I imagine it is something people don’t want to say very often.   Maybe there is the thought or feeling that you are expected to know everything and there may be a negative perception of you if you don’t have all of the answers. Perhaps we would hear it or even say it more often if we realized the impact of adding a few more words to the statement.   “I don’t know, but I will find out” conveys a totally different message and it has the potential to positively impact the person saying it and those who hear it. In our culture where being right or having all of the information is highly valued, there is a hesitancy or absolute refusal to acknowledge that maybe we don’t know everything or that we don’t have the knowledge or information that is required or requ...

Kelly Fair is founder of Polished Pebbles Girls Mentoring Program serving over 1000  girls 7-17 yrs. old to be effective communicators, and career & community conscious leaders! This work has been supported by a network of 400+ volunteers from the Chicago land community and area businesses such as Bloomingdale's, Microsoft, Thought Works, and Nordstrom's. The BOSS Network: What were some obstacles that you faced in the beginning process of starting your business or career?   Kelly Fair : In the beginning of my business I had to deal with building my confidence in my ability to produce superior service, and the high quality of the product that I had created.  I doubted if I was good enough, if I had the appropriate leadership skills, or could actually make a living at running a mentoring program.  It took the courage to keep building clients and partnerships and trying new work with different age groups of girls in new neighborhoods to see and trust th...

I had a conversation with someone after winners were announced for the recent $600 million dollar mega millions jackpot recently. I was asked my thoughts on winning and the importance of building your wealth. Those that know me know that I go into education mode frequently, so my response was geared towards the building of educational wealth because our minds are truly powerful. Oftentimes people think of a monetary value when it comes to finances. There are thoughts of how much money will be needed to get a job done; buy a car; a house, travel or expand a business. People think about how much money it will take to start a business, buy fancy things and live a fruitful life. However, I immediately ask the question, “what knowledge can I gain that will help bring me closer to achieving goals I have set?” Keeping in mind that the purpose for setting goals is to create strategies for achieving them. The reality is that no matter how much money you have, if you don’t have the k...