OK, please allow me a proud mum moment…Daniel won two awards at the Longdean Senior Presentation Evening last night, for his achievements in GCSE Maths and Computer Science.
Dr Kathryn Weston gave the address at last night’s school awards and she spoke about those who feel as though they stand alone, when they choose to revise instead of going out. She reflected upon how those young people actually stand alone together, because there is a support network of friends, parents, teachers and mentors, all willing them on and wanting them to be the best they can be.
And I reflected upon how lovely it is when awards recognise not just the brightest and the highest achievers, but also recognise those who have put in a lot of effort and done the absolute best they can. Daniel doesn’t see that for himself – he still doesn’t quite get that he was given awards for his outstanding achievements and improvements from Year 7 to 11…and that achievement is not just about getting straight A*s across the board.
This is also the aim of the NLP Awards, which we launched this year – they were never supposed to be about the ‘best’, most successful NLP people out there; they were supposed to be about honouring those who make a difference without necessarily being noticed – those that don’t always have the best marketing strategy or business plan, but who do go out there, doggedly put the effort in every day, sometimes in adverse conditions and with challenging people…and yet they still make a difference.
The awards were our way of saying to these people that we see them, we support them and we honour them. Because it is too easy in our profession to think we are standing alone.
Today, I honour those who quietly make a difference, every day, without always receiving accolades and cheers.
Because we all stand alone…together.