Welcome & Introduction
Welcome to The Bison Mentality. I am a elementary Health and Physical Education teacher, along with a CrossFit coach, husband, reader, podcast listener and enthusiast of Bison. Wait, you said enthusiast of Bison???
Yes, I did say Bison. If you know anything about Bison, you know that often they can be found in herds and I think that says a lot about the majestic animal. But what I think says even more about that animal is that they are one of few animals that go head first into storms, meaning they do not slow down for the adversity of a storm... wow. That is powerful. That is why I am an enthusiast of Bison. I learned about this through a well-known CrossFitter, Rich Froning who now owns a Bison ranch. This resonates with me so strongly and is the purpose behind this blog because the bison embodies/symbolizes the sense of character I believe we should be holding ourselves to.
Do we all face adversity? Yes. Does all our adversity look the same? Absolutely not, it may be similar, but it is not always the same. That is something as people, teachers, husbands, wives and whatever titles you may hold, we have in common. Now how do we face that? Bison often travel in herds and when heading into a storm, they are together. I think that speaks volumes on how we need our community. We need people around us that support us and we support them. We need that small group of people around us that keeps us accountable in showing up as the best versions of ourselves and to keep pressing in the faces of obstacles and adversities. We need our "herd."
I love reading books. I love listening to podcasts. These are probably two of my favorite ways to learn and then I love to reflect through journaling. The podcast and books I take in are not often solely based on teaching/education, but I do believe they teach so well on how to show up as our best selves in ANY role we hold. This blog will be a spot for me to share things I am reading and listening to, thoughts and messages I find to be resourceful, adversities and challenges that I am facing and an outlet for me to share what the Bison Mentality looks like. I hope you not just enjoy, but find content or power behind the posts that are to come to help you show up for not just yourself in challenges, but your herd as well.
What a great Blog idea! This is a topic that comes up a lot in teacher discussions. Students that find success are often students that can handle adversity. I remember learning about the psychology view of the marshmallow test. This is where students were given a marshmallow and had to not eat it to be able to get 2 later. These students were followed throughout their lives and the report shared their overall happiness and success. Of course, there was a correlation between those that could be patient and those same adults reached much success in life. Your topic, much like the marshmallow test, feels like it is a great indicator if a student will be successful or not. Yes! We all have adversity, but we have to be like a bison. Sooner or later life will be tough; I agree, being tough is the only way. Surrounding yourself with a good herd definitely helps.
ReplyDeleteI was very interested in the comparison you made between Bison and our own communities. But it does make perfect sense to me. Whenever things get rough, I always turn to other people for advice. I turn to my people for support through the rough time. I have a lot of family members and people in my community. But I always seem to lean on my boyfriend. That man is literally a blessing to me. I put him through so much and he continues to stick by my side. Maybe I either need to find someone else to lean on or a different coping mechanism.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to read more about your content.
Hi - thank you for the comment. This is something that I am very passionate about. I do not think that it is a finding someone new to lean on, but instead recognizing who is that circle of people that you each have each others backs and leaning into that.
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