Sometimes the problems or roadblocks you encounter on a daily basis are small mounds of dirt. They might be a rolling hill you can meander around through a meeting of the minds or two. Sometimes, though, they are like a brick wall which goes on for miles.
Brick walls can be large-scale cultural or academic values discussions and changes in your current system. The really tough stuff. The kind of stuff you feel is insurmountable, not possible, because of all of the work you will have to do.
When you are faced with a brick wall situation, it calls for seeds and jackhammers. One of my Administrators is fantastic at the seed. When working with seeds, one approaches staff members in isolation and has the same conversation, plants the same seed, in each of them. The plant grows into a small idea within that person. You need to plant lots of seeds and make small comments or find small quotes or articles from others to water and feed the seed so the idea grows.
Just like the weed in the garden, the seed will take over, and that's the point. Imagine having planted twenty seeds, and those seeds working their way into the brick wall. The wall will start to have cracks, parts where the other side shows through. Places where it starts to crumble.
Enter jackhammer. The discussion with the whole staff about the seeds and ideas and the why behind the brick wall coming down. The look into the other side of the wall and discussion about what it can become. The benefit to them and for the end result.
Plant seeds and get those walls down. It takes time, just like gardening and is a bit messy, but the end result is beautiful.
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