Have you ever been forced to completely re-evaluate your life's direction? That's the crucible Jeremiah Brown faced when a career-ending concussion pivoted him from the NFL to becoming a lighthouse of guidance in the realm of education. In our transformative conversation, we follow his remarkable journey which serves as powerful proof that sometimes, the fractures in our life plan can forge the most resilient versions of ourselves.
Our dialogue transcends mere anecdotes as we unveil the 5L Framework for Servant Leadership, a bedrock for cultivating an educational atmosphere where every voice is valued. Brown's approach teaches us to listen empathetically, learn with a service mindset, live our values authentically, lead with empathy, and love the process. We dissect how this blueprint can redefine leadership within classrooms and corridors, ensuring that the emotional intelligence of the educators shines as brightly as the academic success of the students.
Peeling back layers of Brown's transformative leadership style, we explore how it influences both the listener and the leader. By prioritizing the human element in education, we establish a fertile ground for growth, where educators and students alike are nurtured by mutual respect and understanding. This episode isn't just about instruction—it's about constructing a legacy of leadership that's measured not by accolades but by the positive impact on the lives it touches. Join us on this expedition of enlightenment where we celebrate the true essence of servant leadership with Jeremiah Brown.
www.EdwardDeShazer.org
Have you ever been forced to completely re-evaluate your life's direction? That's the crucible Jeremiah Brown faced when a career-ending concussion pivoted him from the NFL to becoming a lighthouse of guidance in the realm of education. In our transformative conversation, we follow his remarkable journey which serves as powerful proof that sometimes, the fractures in our life plan can forge the most resilient versions of ourselves.
Our dialogue transcends mere anecdotes as we unveil the 5L Framework for Servant Leadership, a bedrock for cultivating an educational atmosphere where every voice is valued. Brown's approach teaches us to listen empathetically, learn with a service mindset, live our values authentically, lead with empathy, and love the process. We dissect how this blueprint can redefine leadership within classrooms and corridors, ensuring that the emotional intelligence of the educators shines as brightly as the academic success of the students.
Peeling back layers of Brown's transformative leadership style, we explore how it influences both the listener and the leader. By prioritizing the human element in education, we establish a fertile ground for growth, where educators and students alike are nurtured by mutual respect and understanding. This episode isn't just about instruction—it's about constructing a legacy of leadership that's measured not by accolades but by the positive impact on the lives it touches. Join us on this expedition of enlightenment where we celebrate the true essence of servant leadership with Jeremiah Brown.
www.EdwardDeShazer.org
Welcome to the Teachers Ed podcast, a place where the best and brightest in education come to be inspired, learn to connect and grow. As always, I want to start by thanking our sponsor, be Well Teacher Box, a gift box to help educators focus on their well-being. By using code TEACHERSED all one word you can save $7 off your first box. If you haven't, please subscribe, please like, please leave a review. This helps us get in front of more educators, just like yourself. Let's begin Today's guest. I am honored to have today's guest. Not only is he a friend of mine, he's like a brother, he is a colleague. He is someone that I have grown with in the educational space, jeremiah Brown, a true force of his.
Speaker 1:From his days as an NFL athlete to his current roles as a sought after speaker, author and leadership coach, jeremiah has dedicated himself to making a profound impact on the lives of others. With a remarkable ability to ignite a sense of purpose and resilience, he guides individuals and teams towards reaching their full potential and cultivating positive team cultures. Jeremiah is a former athlete, a director of athletics and school leader of culture and leadership development allows him to seamlessly connect with audiences from all walks of life. Through his engaging storytelling and strategies. Jeremiah empowers his listeners to overcome challenges, embrace servant leadership and achieve extraordinary success. I want you to prepare to be inspired and transformed as Jeremiah joins us. He is someone that has a powerful story. He is just dynamic. I have seen him speak at conferences. He is someone I talk to on a regular basis, bouncing leadership. So you are in for a treat, jeremiah. My brother, it is an absolute honor to have you on. Thank you for joining me today.
Speaker 2:Man, ed, I'm honored to be here, man. This is incredible who you are as a man, husband, leader and sought after speaker. Man, I'm just like man, he chose me. So we're here, man, I'm excited to lead. Let's get it.
Speaker 1:Hey, we chose each other, bro, so.
Speaker 2:I appreciate it.
Speaker 1:Man to start. Um, I'm gonna kind of put you on a spot, cause there's there's something I just want you to kind of jump in and share, because I think, pete, for people to understand the work that you do, I think they need to understand a little bit about you.
Speaker 1:Um and the story that I want you to share, if you don't mind, is the the, the trans you you know, when you shared how you shared a field with some of the best in the world to where you end up. Could you just take a minute or so and just share that story, because I think anyone that's listening really needs to understand, because they see us now.
Speaker 1:Yeah yeah, we're polished, we're put together, you know, but they don't understand, like how we had to be part of, how we had to put ourselves back together after challenges. So can you just share a little bit about? Your story, so people can understand.
Speaker 2:Man. That's so good. You know, people look at my life today, in 2024, and they think that I've always been here, you know. They think that you know I've always been as polished up as you mentioned, that I've always been this structure, that I've always been this clear on who Jeremiah Brown was and what impact he's going to have in this world. And the truth of the matter is I haven't always been here.
Speaker 2:You know, it's been a constant battle of me figuring out who Jeremiah Brown is, me facing adversity, opposition trials, tribulations. Facing adversity, opposition trials, tribulations and where, I would say, the most transformative experience for me, you know, as a young man, you know, growing into, you know, a grown man, right, is this college graduate who, you know, did everything everyone told him he couldn't do, but also did everything people told him he needed to do, which was to go to college to get a degree. And I always had a dream of playing professional sports. You know, even though many told me that I would never be a part of the less than one percent, I did the work and I became the less than one percent. But what most people don't know is that becoming the less than 1% comes with a cost.
Speaker 2:And that cost is you, uh, subscribing everything to your sport, and I found myself not even making it through my first season in the NFL due to a concussion that sidelined me and put me in position to not get cleared by any doctor, positioning me to never be able to play the game that I love, that I attach my entire identity to, and I went from making thousands of dollars telling my parents that they'd never have to work to being an aisle 16 of Home Depot.
Speaker 2:So when I hear individuals say that it's hard, when I hear people say that you know, it's too many things getting in the way and I just don't know how I'm ever going to be successful, I try to remind them that you'll never be able to control what happens. To remind them that you'll never be able to control what happens to you, but you'll always be able to control how you respond to it, and I think for me, it was choosing to respond in a way that I didn't fully understand 10, 12 years ago, but now, knowing that I'm experiencing, here's the New York City right.
Speaker 2:I am now experiencing the reward of what I invested 10, 12 years ago and when people look at my life they're like man, I want what you have right now. But I always say do you want it to take 10 to 12 years? Because that's what it took for me. And if your answer is no, do you want it to take 10 to 12 years, cause that's what it took for me you know and if your answer is no, then you don't want what I have, you know.
Speaker 2:So, you know, just going from playing in the NFL to, you know, being in our 16 of home Depot was as traumatic as it sounds. Right, like I was, you know, in the garden department, you know, and I had no idea what God was doing at that time, but he was planting a seed and it broke me down. But when he planted that seed in house 16 of home Depot, you know, I say that what people see now is the, the fruits of that labor, the harvest, you know of that. So yeah, man, it was traumatic, but it's what really led me into my career in education and I tell everyone that education is what saved my life because it is what gave me.
Speaker 2:it was the first thing that gave me purpose outside of my sport, and I truly believe that my assignment in this world is attached to education.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I, you know hearing what you're saying. I know that there's a teacher that's listening and it's like you know. Everything you did was, you know, subscribing to be the. There's a teacher that's listening, that to them it's like the. You know, when you talk about more than an athlete like you're more than a teacher, for sure, and I think one of the biggest mistakes that a lot of educators make is they make teaching their identity, and it's good to be like. Teaching is definitely your purpose, but it's not who you are.
Speaker 1:It's what you do, and I think just starting off and just sharing with a listener right away, hearing Jeremiah's story like being a football player was what he did, not who he was.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And we get so lost in the sauce of like, like. Teaching has to be everything that your life revolves around. Like, no, it doesn't. Like it's all around from 8. Am to three, 30 or whatever your day is Then like when you, when you walk out the door, you're jeremiah brown, the husband, jeremiah brown, the father, jeremiah brown, the, the friend, the brother the you know, whatever other titles you wear and I think you know that's the biggest challenge getting across educators is like you are more than just a teacher.
Speaker 1:So hearing you say that, I just kind of hammered that point home for someone today because it's, yeah, it's, it's what it is. But what I want to kind of dive into today, because I know you're really an expert in the field of leadership, so I want to talk about EQ leadership.
Speaker 1:There we go Sat in one of your presentations in San Antonio and, as a school leader like I, took a lot away from so can you just kind of share with people? You know there's teachers listening, there's leaders who aren't even in education and this is going to apply to them. So just dive into what is EQ leadership. Yeah man, what is it for people that?
Speaker 2:aren't aware of it. That's good, I think, in order for me to provide the most transparent and clear context to my perspective on EQ leadership is. For many, this may be a paradigm shift, and I have to go back to where this started for me. And it started because kids, parents, teachers would always ask this question, and the question was Jeremiah, how did you become a part of the less than 1% Like? How did you position yourself from a high school that people weren't getting recruited from? How did you get a division one scholarship? How did you then go to a college where NFL teams were not drafting players, they weren't signing players? How did you always find yourself in a situation where you are always a part of the underserved, underprivileged, but you always found a way to position yourself to thrive as opposed to where everyone else is surviving. And it was my emotional intelligence, it was my ability to understand and embrace that uncertainty is always going to come. Challenges are always going to be faced in front of me and I won't ever be able to control it. However, I'll always be able to control how I choose to respond to it. So, in the communities in which I grew up in, and in which many educators are leading and teaching in. You have these babies who are coming from environments where they have to climb mountains just to get into your classroom right, and they're faced with so many different things. But oftentimes because we, as educators and school leaders, have bottom lines that we need to meet. If it's test scores, if it's increasing attendance, if it's test scores, if it's increasing attendance, my thing is, we cannot have high expectations for our babies without and very low teaching, and I truly believe that if we can equip our young people with the emotional intelligence when they're faced with difficult times, when they're faced with feedback, when they're faced with challenges, they will have the proper emotional responses to respond in the manner that's going to propel them forward, not hold them back. You know so. For me, being met with challenges, on my quest to go into college for free, I responded in a way that pulled me forward. When, on my quest to playing in the NFL, I was met with challenges how am I going to pay for this? How am I going to do that? I responded in a way that was emotionally intelligent, to pull me forward.
Speaker 2:Now, as an educator, I now have the responsibility to control the environment that these kids have every single day, and I think, as educators, oftentimes we forget that, that we control the environment that these kids have every single day, and I think, as educators, oftentimes we forget that that we control the environment that they have. So, by knowing that we control the environment, if we are not leading from a place of EQ and we're only leading from a place of IQ, then how well are we really serving the people that we've signed up to serve? You know what I mean, and that's an understanding that we need to listen to serve. You know what I mean, and that's an understanding that we need to listen to them, we need to learn them, we need to not just have values plastered all over the wall, but actually live them every day. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:And then, living with purpose, right. So these things is a framework that we created. My team and I, with my company, lead, and we've been very, very fortunate enough to travel the country and have great leaders like yourself sitting on our sessions. As it pertains to that mindset and philosophy came from and why I believe is so important, because the last thing I'll say is, well, not the last thing on this podcast. Hopefully there's more to say, but we're not done yet.
Speaker 2:Right, I will on this. On this notion is in sports there's a heavy premium on the playbook of the x's and o's how fast you run your route right, how you jump when you shoot the ball, how you defend but there's a low premium on the development of character, the development of social emotional intelligence.
Speaker 2:when we think of the classroom, there's a high premium on test scores. There's a high premium on test scores, there's a high premium on attendance rate, but there's a low premium on how we teach time management, how we teach students to respond to certain things Right. So I think it's about not only subscribing to the IQ of making sure that students are passing exams, but also subscribing to the EQ of how students respond when they're in a test and they see all of their students finishing before them and they get anxiety and then they just start bubbling anything or they don't fill it out. These are things that we can increase, you know, through emotional intelligence. So I know that was long winded, but, man, I'm so passionate about this.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but it's good because one of the things that I've learned really in the last year and I heard this from an educator when I used to go out and do a lot of speaking in schools and talk about creating safe spaces and one of the things a teacher pulled me aside at the end and they were like you know, you should include creating a safe space for our teachers as well.
Speaker 2:And I think you know hearing.
Speaker 1:What you're saying is good is leaders are leading the way the leader in front of them led. A lot of teachers are teaching the way they were taught. And those high premium test scores, attendance, you know. Star exams, you know they, you know all those, all those exams that just are a snapshot. But then, like are our kids good people? Are our teachers good people? Like, is there actually teaching going on? Is there learning?
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 1:I teach a test, but I think a lot of it goes back to how people were led by the person in front of them before they got in that position, and I think that's one of the biggest challenges that I see in doing what we saw the people in front of us do. It doesn't mean it's completely wrong, but I think in today's age we have to be more conscious of just talking about like anxiety, like you have adults.
Speaker 1:That when you put the praxis in front of them and and I don't know what the state exams in New.
Speaker 2:York would be called. That was me. That was me, struggle. That anxiety man, it struggled, man, man, man.
Speaker 1:And I think that's where we have to be more knowledgeable, because when we meet the basic needs of our teachers and of our students, they'll naturally be more successful in the other things. And we focus so much on the test, all the things that are a state report card and a school board and a superintendent. Look at his success and it's like I get it, but are our kids good people? Here we go, good character.
Speaker 1:I would rather a kid have an average test score and a through the roof character than a through the roof test score and an average character. And I think that's just saying about EQ leadership. I think it's something that ultimately and correct me if I'm wrong, it starts at the top, is, you know, it has to trickle down.
Speaker 2:Big time, okay, big time Absolutely.
Speaker 1:So let you know, if it starts at the top, what are some things you first of all, let's briefly, what are your characteristics for someone that's listening? And you don't have to go too deep into them, but can you go through what? Just a high, high overview of what that framework? Look, there's a school leader that's listening. There's a teacher that's listening. That's like OK, I heard it, but what?
Speaker 2:is it like?
Speaker 1:What are those? What's that look like? No leader that's listening. There's a teacher that's listening.
Speaker 2:That's like, okay, I heard it, but what is it Like? What are the what? What's that look like? No, that's, that's. That's excellent, you know, and this framework was modified and developed to fit every space in place where a leader's feet are. So if you are a power professional and you are leading a group of students with learning disabilities, and you are with a student every single day, this framework can best support you to lead that student, lead that classroom, by supporting the teachers. If you are a classroom teacher, if you are a co-teacher, if you are a principal or a superintendent, whatever level of leadership you are at, this 5L framework can really help position you to just better understand how to serve the people that you are leading. I think oftentimes we as leaders, we get so wrapped up in the role that we forget what leadership is.
Speaker 2:And when, I say the role, I mean the title right. You become a principal, you become a superintendent. There were exams, there were degrees, there was a lot of things that you had to do from a IQ standpoint to get that position. And when you get it, sometimes it's hard to shift from just IQ and EQ because for sometimes it may not require much EQ to obtain the title. So you stay in this IQ loaded, front loaded space to where now everything becomes about data, everything becomes about numbers instead of people. If you are an educator, you serve people. If that's students in the classroom, if that's staff leading the classroom or if that's families that are within the community, you serve people.
Speaker 2:So we developed the 5L framework to help leaders become inclusive wherever their feet are. And becoming inclusive is creating that safe space where people feel loved, they feel seen, they feel heard and they feel valued. And we do that through these 5Ls, which is listening listening to your people right, taking the time to take the AirPods out and actually listen to what people are feeling, what people are thinking right, and in doing that, that positions you to then learn who they are and when you can learn the people that you serve alongside or that you serve each day. It's going to allow you to better connect with them and when you better connect with someone, they're going to be willing to be a little bit more vulnerable. It may may take some time, but it's going to happen if you show up consistently and this is who you are, not something that you're like flipping on and off Right, like servant leadership isn't a flip of the switch, it's not. When you come into work you flip the servant on and then when you leave work, you take it off, like when you're at home with your family. There's still a level of service to your spouse, to your kids, to your you know siblings, and that's really, in essence. You know where we really try to focus on in those first two L's is really getting to understand the service part, and then the last three L's is living values. Right, you know as much as I know, ed, when we get it, when we are very fortunate enough to do this work as consultants, we travel and we see different schools and you see all of the core values plastered all over the walls. But these core values were created years ago, or they were created six months ago and now they're over the walls walls, but they aren't, in essence, what people align themselves with.
Speaker 2:So now we have these values of grit, hustle. You know talent, and I'm just naming what's in my office right now. But in everything I do there's a level of grit that comes with it. Right, you know when, in everything that I do, there's a level of grit that comes with it. In everything that I do, there's a level of hustle that comes with it. There's a level of understanding that I have talent, but talent will only get me too far. It really doesn't mean anything. So I'm living this every day.
Speaker 2:So getting educators to live what they say. They do not just saying we're about accountability, not just saying we're a family, but let's live that right. My classroom is 107, ed, your classroom is 108, and we don't know when each other's birthday is right. The expectation is for us to stand in front of the door and greet students as they come in, but I don't even know the person next to me. So how do we now grow, you know? So, living the values.
Speaker 2:And then that love piece, right, that love of empathy, right?
Speaker 2:Not telling a student that, because you also grew up in the hood, that you know what it's like to grow up in the hood, but actually letting them know like, hey, these are some of the things that I experienced growing up and this is how I actually, you know, got over that hump and I think that this could potentially help you. You know, and I think, oftentimes, when we don't lead with that empathy, when we don't have that love in the fabric of what we do, we often lead with. I know what it was like being in your shoes, and because I know what it's like being in your shoes you can't make examples because I was a teenager. We always used to hear that from our teachers and sometimes our parents. Right Like you can't tell me what it's like to be a teenager, because I know what it's like to be a teenager. That's not empathy. That's telling someone what you think they should be based on. What you experienced and our experiences as people no matter if you come from the same household is going to be different right.
Speaker 1:So, man, that right there important because teachers don't understand that, like you said, I came from the same neighborhood as you. We had two different experiences. I there are students in your school are coming from the exact same household and have two completely different experiences there's, there's that saying where they talk about the two brothers you know, and raging alcoholic and they both grew up and one of them was like I became an alcoholic because my father was the other one is like never touch alcohol because my father was an alcoholic right right.
Speaker 1:Same household, same upbringing right two completely different experiences.
Speaker 2:I think what you share right there is.
Speaker 1:So it's like because I had challenges and was suspended as a kid does not mean that there are any better or bigger, and it doesn't mean that because we had similar challenges I know, yes, sir, this is my experience- and I'm just sharing my experience word that you talked about that I think. Teacher, not that thing.
Speaker 1:Teachers have to do this so much better than what we're doing is listening listening yeah, listen to hear, yeah, what our students need, but then as leaders and when I say leaders, I'm talking about every like professional people get this mindset that I'm just a paraprofessional Like, no, you are still a leader in the school.
Speaker 2:You're a leader 100%.
Speaker 1:I have seen paraprofessionals that lead more than principals 100%. Like, don't think a title just means leadership, but like are you? Listening to the people around you hearing what their struggles are hearing. We don't just got to listen to the words. We got to listen to the words, we got to listen to the behaviors, because behaviors speak. People don't understand that the behaviors of our staff. That is a communication, but we don't realize what they're trying to communicate, because we're listening to respond as opposed to understand, and that's the perspective shift that I want.
Speaker 2:Any educator that's on here, that is a leader in any capacity, is challenge yourself to listen to understand a perspective of someone, because everyone has a different perspective, and it's in listening to understanding, even if you don't agree with it, it's okay. I understand what they're trying to say. You know I'm learning this through marriage. I'm learning this through, you know, being a parent. You know, on top of being an educator, and I think that there's a level of holding yourself accountable to these five L's is the purpose of the framework Like this, is an accountability that can be woven into the framework of how we do PD, how we structure our classes. At what point in our lesson are we listening to our students? At what point in our lesson are we learning what our students are interested in? At what point in our lesson are we actually living the values of, you know, structure, family and whatever values we have set in our school? And then, at what part in our lesson are we leading with empathy? And then, what part in our lesson are we leading with empathy? And then what part of our lesson are we leading with purpose right, reminding students of why we're doing what we're doing and connecting it to what we've listened, what we've learned right, what we're loving right.
Speaker 2:So it all ties into essentially helping leaders at any space better understand the people that they serve. And that's at the root of it is you are a leader that was given a title based on your IQ. You, as a leader, being effective in this title is going to be about your IQ, but also your EQ and matching that energy with EQ, the way you do IQ and the principals and the leaders, the superintendents and teachers that are failing their communities. It is not because they're not smart they're actually some of the most intelligent people in the world, but their EQ is bad. They just don't are having a terrible time connecting with their people because it is their way or the highway. And you know as much as I know, ed, that that philosophy never works and if it does, it's not sustainable. It's a quick fix. Everybody's afraid, everybody's, you know, running away, not trying to make eye contact, and then what happens? They use that word, burnout, and then they leave the profession. How can we increase teachers to stay?
Speaker 1:it is through, uh, this 5l framework and I think you know just hearing what you're saying it's like are your school and this is the question, this is a reflective question for any teacher, anyone that's in a school right now are your values written on a wall and in a handbook?
Speaker 2:are they?
Speaker 1:because it's one thing to have them and they look great and you can read on. Like you know, you can recite your mission mission statement, but are you? It's like? When you're living it. I don't have you what, what's the saying? Um, you don't have to say what's understood or whatever. Yeah, say what's understood, like the values are. I'm living the values, like you can tell. I've been in enough schools the family environment yeah, because when I walk in people are not walking past each other like it's weird, right right, there we go in a school.
Speaker 1:I'm with a principal and we're walking and a teacher walks past. There's zero acknowledgement not even a high a low, right, right, that's that weird stuff, that folks doing an elevator. Bro, you're in new york, you get it, people get an elevator. You'll have eight people in a four, four by four box. Right, we're not standing shoulder to shoulder right and I can, I can smell the coffee on you yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:We don't take a second to say yeah yeah, but there's schools that do that.
Speaker 1:it's like you have buildings with 50 plus 100 staff members. That should never be the case, but that happens because people aren't connected the way they're big time. You repeat it so often. I want to hammer it home Because when I got into leadership, the biggest mistake I made was thinking that leadership meant everything.
Speaker 2:Yeah, when in actuality, leading is serving.
Speaker 1:Serving, educating. Best example in the world of customer service yeah, like we are serving our customers as teachers. Yeah, service, yeah, like we are serving our customers as teachers. Yeah, as a serving our customers, our teachers, our staff, our students, you know, as superintendents your customers are, that is, you know, teachers, principals, whoever but like we're in the serving business, so how do you serve? We have to find out what our staff needs, what our students needs, what our parents, and we have to find out what our staff needs, what our students needs what our parents and we have to meet them where we're at and.
Speaker 1:I made as a leader when I I I. I had a lot of challenges when I got into leadership because my my mentality, I thought everyone was supposed to serve me, and the moment I started to understand that it's my job to serve others, like where I am that it's my job to serve others like yeah, where I am yeah, it's my job as a leader to know what jeremiah brown needs and meet him.
Speaker 1:Where, oh that? How I serve jeremiah may be different from how I serve someone else, and I think that's the eq aspect that gets missed, not even just in in in schools, but just in business and sports. It's like a if you're a basketball coach and you got a guy that can shoot, very well, but you had a guy that can't, yeah, you know they shouldn't be doing this, right, right, right, because what? What? Your deficit is different from mine. So, do you know where your teachers are? Yeah, you know where their blind spots are. Yeah, as a teacher, do you know what your students blind spots are? Are you like it can't?
Speaker 1:it's equitable, yeah like I'm trying to meet them, each where they are, and it feels like more work because teachers are tired. Yeah, sure, work I gotta. I gotta do different lessons for different kids yeah, it's like, but you have have to. Just really are your students needs as a leader? What are your teachers? What's your staff's need? Yeah, some staffs are coming in. You know it's already hard enough being a teacher, but I'm going through life problems outside of here, you know, and now all these kids are doing this and the parents are doing that. But, like, are you meeting the needs of your staff? And the moment you start to do that, I noticed, the moment I was intentional with the staff at our school, serving the students, serving the parents, the work got done a little better yeah, those basic needs, and I think that's where I see schools falling the shortest is supposed to rise to meet us.
Speaker 1:We're like it's our job to reach our hand out and pull these people up, not them jump to grab our hand.
Speaker 2:Yeah, no, that's so good, man, and I think you know. To add to that is they're serving, allows you to understand, and understanding allows you to develop. I believe that you have. I've gotten feedback. I've received feedback from educators who've applied the five L's and they're like, well, we're doing these things, but then we're still not. And it's like, okay, well, based on the data that you're receiving from the five L framework, what are we doing with it now? How are we applying this information? And you receive information to develop people.
Speaker 2:Leadership is about serving, but it's also influence. It's also about developing other leaders, other people, increasing their capacity beyond what they may be limited to, or just increasing their capacity overall by challenging them and developing them. And I believe that there is and this is where I've fell short as a school leader, as an entrepreneur and that is hiring someone who is competent in the skill of it, because I hired them to do this, but I didn't develop them. Because I hired them to do this, but I didn't develop them. I didn't develop their competence to align with the core values that we have as a school community. Right, so they have a way of doing it, but they have a way that to be, but where the community needs them to thrive, so everybody else thrives.
Speaker 2:I think this is a big difference, right? Whereas leaders, we want to develop people where we need them to be developed, as opposed to again, to your point serving me, or the title as opposed to we and the community, right? So, having that emphasis on community and saying, ok, I'm going to develop you so that you can create an environment for our students that they enjoy being a part of, and I believe that that's really what culture is about is creating a space, an inclusive space, that, no matter wherever your feet are, people feel valued, people feel seen and they're getting developed right into what the community needs them to be. You know, and I think that that, ultimately, is something that I'm just on a quest to closing the gap on, you know, by supporting, you know, schools across the country in this space across the country in this space.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and man, we're going to. We will definitely have Jeremiah back on so we can talk about culture, because that is a big thing Aya is very strong in, because culture is ultimately, you know we talk about one should feel they can thrive. Students teachers, parents, leadership like every time, and when you build a good culture, like when I, when I'm looking to hire new staff, I look at two things. I look, but I look at your culture fit yeah, because a really good teacher and a really bad culture fit is not gonna work, not gonna work.
Speaker 1:That's one of the things I look at. So I look forward to having that conversation. But as we close, I want to give man you're jumping on, but I want you to let everyone know where they can find you. Man, this is your flex right now. Where can they?
Speaker 2:find you on social media.
Speaker 1:And I'll make sure for anyone listening all of these, this information. If you're watching on YouTube, look in the. If you're listening, check in the uh in the podcast episode, but let let all the listeners know where they can find jeremiah brown lead and all I'm doing right now yeah, so, um, you can find me on instagram and um, instagram and twitter or x, now at one, jeremiah Brown, and then you can find me.
Speaker 2:You can find my book, lead Like a Champion, which is a social, emotional leadership playbook for student and athlete success. You can find that on Barnes and Noble and Amazon, and then, for myself, you can find me on Facebook and LinkedIn at JeremiahBrownorg. And, as it pertains to the work that I do in the company that I founded back in 2016, the LEAD Athletics Academy and Coaching Company, that is a leadership development organization in which we do a ton of work in the K through 12 higher education and providing industry leaders with professional development so that they can create that culture that their people love being a part of. You can find that at the lead AAC dot org.
Speaker 1:And let's get it, yeah, and all these things will be, all these links, all of this information will be in the bio or in the. You are listening or watching this on, but I would recommend you to connect with him, even follow and see some of the things he's doing, because what I have learned in leadership and please receive it off leadership is not a destination, it is a journey 100%.
Speaker 1:It is a journey of, because as society changes, our leadership changes Absolutely. The leadership that worked 30 years ago is not the leader. So, making sure, as school leaders and when I say school leaders, please know it's not just teachers you are a school leader, yes, yes. Students yes, you are a school leader.
Speaker 1:Yes, a school leader, like we all, have leadership in us, so please make sure you connect with them, go give them a follow on all of his platforms. But, jeremiah, bro, it was an honor to have you on being here again, if you can please like this podcast. Please share it with a school. I think, value the information that Jeremiah shared with you today. Give us a like, give us a review. See you all next week. Let's get it.