TL;DR:
- Marvel has created stories that connect and flow together over many years.
- As leaders we should follow the example set by Marvel. We need to plan. We need to make sure everything flows. And we need to consistent.
Over the past five or six years, my family and I have really enjoyed watching all the Marvel movies and shows together. My boys and I have really become immersed in it together. It is something we have been able to connect over and share with each other. Even my wife has joined us and found some enjoyment at times. We have seen every movie and show in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). We have at times gone back to watch the movies in MCU timeline order. I am loving watching my boys making connections and finding Easter eggs as we rewatch movies and keep up with current shows and movies. After everything we watch, we then have to discuss it and break it down.
The conversations we are having are so interesting because the boys are seeing the connections and creating their own theories.
My son told me last night after we watched a Marvel movie, “Dad they planned that like 20 years ago.” I asked him why he thought that, knowing he was right. He then detailed how in a movie released about 15 years ago they made mention of a group and have continued to bring up or hint at them in subsequent movies and shows for 15 years. That led us into a conversation about planning and timelines.
One thing that has amazed us is how Marvel has set a timeline out 20-30 years ahead. Marvel has set the standard for how to have an organizational plan and how to follow it. They have created stories that connect and flow together. The first Iron Man mentioned things that are the main focus un Shang-Chi. I reflected.
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As a leader I need learn from this model. Wouldn’t it be marvelous if everything we did aligned over a 20-30 year period?
As leaders we need to follow the example set by Marvel. We need to plan. Make sure everything flows. Be consistent.
Often, as educators, we bounce from one initiative to another. Our goals from one year to the next don’t always match or are not consistent. We should have goals that we can keep from year to year. If our goals were consistent then we could create action steps that fit in the goals and would all tie together. Our staffs could be more effective if they knew from year to year the exact direction we were going.
This reminds me of Mike Schmoker’s book “Focus.” In his book, he states that we need to try and be really good at one thing not try and do everything. Once we master one area then we move on to the next. Marvel follows this example and has kept their focus consistent. They haven’t lost focus of their focus, their goal, their story.
About Raymond Porten
Raymond Porten is a husband to an AMAZING wife, 2 wonderful boys, a principal of an elementary school in northern Illinois, and a Golden Apple Scholar. He spends his free time traveling with his family, cooking with his boys, and he finds the time to co-host 2 podcasts. He’s been in education for 20 years and has worked as a 5th grade teacher, middle school dean, 7th and 8th grade social studies teacher, middle school assistant principal and now as a principal. He believes in the importance of building relationships and of taking every opportunity to lead and make a difference in the world.
