Sensing a Theme
December 1, 2025
Last week I read someone’s book proposal about working through burnout. Five days ago while listening to NPR I heard a story about how the current state of the world is causing overwhelm and depression. Two days ago I spoke to two principals on their podcast about managing their emotions as leaders.
Today a professor interviewed me for their research around being even more human and humane in our work. And this coming weekend I am writing the foreword to a colleague’s new book focusing on hope.
Are you noticing a theme? Things are a LOT. If this feeling of overwhelm resonates, you aren’t alone.
It feels so ‘pat’ to say things aren’t easy for many of us at this time. Are they ever blissfully smooth? Isn’t this an even more challenging moment? Could be. I have friends who are going through chemo. I am coming up on one year since Stewart’s death from cancer. Realistically, things are challenging. And…so what to do, or more to the point, how should we be?
The article, How To Lead In Difficult Times (When The Going Gets Tough…), had a line that hit home. “In times like these, leadership requires more than execution. It requires presence.”
Not just what are you doing? How are you being? How are you showing up? What’s your energy like? Moments like this require us to think not just about what we are doing. We need to remain intentional about how we are being.
During moments of imbalance, unstable ground, uncertainty, and anxiousness, we just emotionally don’t spend time focusing on our presence. Yet as Timothy R. Clark would say in moments like this, we have enough intellectual friction – what we need is to contribute to less social friction – our presence, our energy, our being matters.
I was working with an administrator recently who, I am paraphrasing, said, “I don’t have time to care about the dynamics of our team at this moment. I just want to make sure the people who are assigned a task just do their jobs.” This admin is an awesome human being who was vulnerable with me and honestly shared his struggles with managing the ‘doing-being’ polarity. He believes in the health of his school culture and the wellbeing of all in it and yet the see saw ‘tipped’ a bit too far toward the doing. Understandable. And so common.
And we know the dynamics in our relationships matter and the getting things done side of things also matters. It isn’t either-or – it’s both-and. We need to care about our presence.
Ask yourself:
- How might you intentionally cultivate your presence so that others experience you as grounded, available, and human, even when things are bumpy?
- When you feel the pressure to “just get things done” (especially as the year comes to a close) how can you deal with the checklist and be kind to others?
Things are a LOT. Two pieces of art have helped me at this time.
- Having just seen the Broadway show, Suffs, I have put this song on repeat when I need some musical courage.
- Reading this John Roedel poem. It fuses the doing/being ‘thing’ so beautifully. Here’s to remembering to do the holidays with as much presence as we can.
whenever I feel helpless
in this overwhelming worldI become a helper
oh, oh,
my loveon the days
when it feels like
I have no powerI serve others
you see,
whenever I wash
the world’s feetmy hands
immediately
stop shaking
Questions, comments, or suggestions? Feel free to email me at jennifer@jenniferabrams.com.
Cool Resources
Thrive Conference: Providing Joyful Growth Opportunities for Educators “Instead of sitting on the sidelines, Kathleen Kennedy and Naomi Hall created this FREE virtual conference to refill educators cups with PD you don’t traditionally get in your district! Approximately every eight weeks, they bring together leaders in the education field who are willing to share their knowledge and insights to help you grow professionally and personally, along with giving away free resources!” I will be there on December 10th!
For next year, put this one on your calendar! The Learning Forward Annual Conference is a fabulous opportunity to learn with and from those in the field who support adults in their learning. I find it to be the one conference I attend year after year. Great field experts at the pre-cons and terrific folks at every table in every session who are such a value add to the experience.
International School Counselor Association Virtual Book Study on Stretching Your Learning Edges “Each 90-minute session will explore key concepts and reflective practices to help educators grow professionally and personally. Using tools such as self-assessments, development continuums, journaling prompts, and discussion exercises, participants will explore five essential facets of adult development and walk away with both individual and team growth plans.” You do not have to be a member of ISCA to join!
