Personal Growth

How’s Christmas Going for You?

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At our elementary school’s Holiday Concert, one kindergartener was completely dressed in a Santa Suit! I couldn’t resist looking totally shocked and saying to him, “Omigosh, I didn’t realize Santa was going to be here!”

He smiled at me, placed his hands on his little padded belly and said quite seriously, “Mr. Boomsma, what would you like for Christmas?” A few hours later I realized how important his question was.

I was at a different event and was introduced to a Christmas Song I’d never heard before. I’m not sure how I missed this song–it was written in 1974 by Greg Lake as a protest against the commercialization of Christmas. The song has an interesting history, but it has an even more interesting closing line:

“We get the Christmas we deserve…”

That’s something to think about. We are, unfortunately, a culture of fault-finders and that makes us often feel victimized. We complain about how commercial Christmas has become… object to the costs and the endless attempts at political correctness. We remember fondly the Christmases of yesteryear and whine, “It’s not like it used to be.”

Lake wrote the song in part because, as he described it, “Christmas was a time of family warmth and love. There was a feeling of forgiveness, acceptance.  And I do believe in Father Christmas.”

So maybe we need to focus on what we believe in and then ask ourselves “What am I contributing to the season and what do I want from it?” Once we’ve wrapped our heads (and hearts) around that we can create the activities that contribute to that meaning and focus on those. What do you want for Christmas? How are you going to get it?

Christmas isn’t something that happens to us.  We get the Christmas we deserve.

You can learn more about the interesting history of this tune on Wikipedia. 

Communication, Mental Hygiene

Expanding Our Worlds

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The song suggests, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year…” and even provides some reasons. “With holiday greetings and gay happy meetings… when friends come to call….”

I’ve found this to be true and almost unconsciously allow more time when I “run into town for a few errands” this time of year. For one thing,  there are more people around doing likewise. For another, most–even though busy–are feeling a bit festive and anxious to get and give a handshake, a hug, and a hearty hello.

“There’ll be much mistletoe-ing and hearts will be glowing when loved ones are near…” Well, given the current political environment we may choose to suppress the “mistletoe-ing,” but our hearts do glow when loved ones are near. Much like plugging in the lights on the tree, we seem to get more connected this time of year. That’s a good thing.

But I recently ran into a sobering statistic. A public health survey conducted in 1980 showed that 20% of the people surveyed described themselves as “lonely.” The survey was recently repeated and 40% of the respondents described themselves as “lonely.” So in spite of technology and social media, there’s been a doubling of “loneliness.” How can that be when we live in such an expanded world?

There are those suggesting we are actually losing the ability to connect in a nurturing, meaningful way. There are, it seems, some interesting social trends that deserve our attention. Consider a few:

  • online shopping–it’s now possible to do all of our holiday shopping without contact with a human being. Yes, it can be quite efficient and cost-effective. But it also means we don’t “rub elbows” with others… share frustrations, ask others opinions or just occasionally allow someone to go ahead of us in the check out line because they have only one item.
  • celebrating occasions–I recently discovered the death of a friend by reading a Facebook Post. There will be no services, but I am invited to post my condolences online in a “memory book.” I find myself wishing I could hug some of the people he has left behind. And, while we weren’t really close, I wouldn’t mind getting a hug back. I liked him and will miss him.
  • distracted everything–most people acknowledge the hazards of texting and driving (but do it anyway). But what about distracted visits? Another friend posted a funny-but-not Christmas Photo on Facebook. She and her entire family are sitting on a comfy couch, looking very festive, the obligatory Christmas tree in the background. The caption was something like “A (last name) Family Christmas.” Of course, every member of the family is not looking at the camera… they are looking at their cell phone screens.

Technology has, in one sense, expanded our worlds but with it comes the danger we actually become more isolated. Social media is about big numbers–big numbers of friends and frequent contact. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. But it’s not very nourishing and nurturing.

Maybe instead of sending emojis and stickers, we make this a wonderful time of the year with some connections that include a warm touch and a look in the eye. It’s a wonderful time of the year to delve into our humanity in addition to our technology.

 

 

Classes and Courses, Learning, Teaching

Making a Change — Flipping Out, Flipping In

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“You have to promise me something…” requested a real estate student a few years ago. I remember smiling when he finished, “You can’t retire until I’ve completed all three licensing courses.”

Some quick math at the time suggested I would be making at least a four-year commitment. It was tempting. I do enjoy teaching and really had no firm retirement plans but still managed to avoid the promise. After all, life happens.

I’m not sure it counts as a testimonial, but I did consider it a compliment. Unfortunately, I haven’t kept the data, but I do know there are many real estate licensees who’ve taken the three licensing courses with me. There are times when it makes me feel old. But it always makes me feel good.

So, if he’s reading this and hasn’t finished his journey, I’d like to assure him I’m not retiring. A few years ago, I did announce that I was because it’s supposed to be about learning. While I am not retiring I am taking another step in the direction of making it more about learning than it is about teaching.

Starting in 2018, I will become an adjunct instructor with The Real Estate Learning Group. I do so with eager anticipation of teaching “differently” using some exciting technology and what are commonly referred to as “blended” courses. These courses reflect the Kahn Academy model sometimes described as “flipping the classroom.”

Wikipedia describes the flipped classroom: “Flipped classroom is an instructional strategy and a type of blended learning that reverses the traditional learning environment by delivering instructional content, often online, outside of the classroom. It moves activities, including those that may have traditionally been considered homework, into the classroom.”

Don’t get me started or we’ll also have to discuss the Learning for Mastery (LFM) model—not often easily applied in required learning situations such as pre-licensing courses. We could stay up late discussing that one! In the simplest form, LFM is about student-centered instruction that’s more about learning than teaching.

From a practical perspective, joining The Real Estate Learning Group also means some new course locations and schedules. Stay tuned! I’m currently scheduled to teach the blended “fast track” Sales Agent Course in the Augusta area in January and the blended version of the Associate Broker Course in Bangor starting in January. Click the links for additional information and to register.

If you have any questions or concerns, please let me know. Many things will not change, including my commitment to helping students learn and master in a positive, enjoyable way. You can still find “” on my blog. I will also continue to publish the occasional issue of my Learning Opportunities E-newsletter.

“Thanks for another successful class! All three licenses have been garnered under your careful educational care!”

Recent Broker Student

Upcoming Courses:

  • Associate Broker in Bangor, January 2018
  • Sales Agent in Augusta, February 2018

Walter Boomsma (“Mr. Boomsma”) writes on a wide array of topics including personal development, teaching and learning. Course information is also available here!