End of Season Odds and Ends

Hi Girls,
Here are a few reminders and some information about end of the season responsibilities. 

1.  UNIFORM COLLECTION will be held tomorrow (Friday 11/20) out at the snack stand unless you hear otherwise. If you can't make it, please pass your uniform on to a teammate who can make it.

2.  BANQUET RSVPs are supposed to be returned to Mrs. Pausz by tomorrow. If it is easier for you, bring your rsvp and $$ to me at uniform collection tomorrow.

3.  EXIT SURVEY - please take time to complete the Exit Survey that is linked below. It is really helpful to me to hear from you about how you think things are going and to get your suggestions. Please take time, be thoughtful, and be honest.  EXIT SURVEY

4.  #KATIESLADIES - if you want to support Katie's race at Meet of Champions, the bus will depart at 8:45 on Saturday AM. Please arrive earlier than that - the bus will not wait. The race begins at 11:00, and Devin races at 11:45.

2015 Exit Survey

Hello Ladies,

Please, please, please take time to complete the Exit Survey that is linked below.  It is really helpful to me to hear from you about how you think things are going and to get your suggestions.  Please take time, be thoughtful, and be honest.

2015 Exit Survey

Labor Day Weekend Proposed Schedule

Hey Ladies - I am hearing some good reports from your outings this week - haha - sounds like you all had some fun times!  Love it.

Please review this schedule for the next few days and please communicate to me ASAP about your availability, especially for Saturday and Monday, so I know if we need to make changes.

Thursday - practice @ HS 3:00-4:30
Friday - no practice - run 30 minutes on your own
Saturday - practice @ OCP - bus departs at 7:00 AM
Sunday - off entirely
Monday - practice @ HS 8:00-10:00

An Introduction to the Growth Mindset

Dr. Carol Dweck is a professor at Stanford University.  She wrote the book called Mindset, which focuses on the difference between a fixed mindset and a more positive, growth mindset.  From my observations, conversations, and experiences with many of you, I can tell that many of you, at many times in your lives, live in the growth mindset.  But not always.  The theory she presents is backed up by decades of research at the best universities and enhanced recently by new MRI abilities to see images of our brain activity.  In short, this is scientific fact, not just someone’s opinion.  Here is an excerpt from her book...

           “Believing that your qualities are carved in stone – the fixed mindset – creates an urgency to prove yourself over and over.  If you have only a certain amount of intelligence, a certain ability, and a certain moral character – well, then you’d better prove that you have a healthy dose of them.  It simply wouldn’t do to look or feel deficient in these most basic characteristics."
           "Some of us are trained in this mindset from an early age…in which there becomes one consuming goal – look smart (like a winner), don’t look dumb (like a loser).  How can we care about or enjoy learning when our whole being is at stake every time we take a test or get called on in class?  (…or run a race!)"
           "I’ve seen so many people with this one consuming goal of proving themselves – in the classroom, in their careers, in athletics, and in their relationships.  For them, every situation calls for a confirmation of their intelligence, ability, or character.  Every situation is evaluated:  Will I succeed or fail?  Will I look smart or dumb?  Will I be accepted or rejected?  Will I feel like a winner or a loser?”            
           “There’s another mindset in which these traits are not simply a hand you’re dealt and have to live with, in this mindset, the hand you’re dealt is just the starting point for development.  This growth mindset is based on the belief that your basic qualities are things you can cultivate through your efforts.  Although people may differ in every which way – in their initial talents and aptitudes, interests, or temperaments – everyone can change and grow through application and experience."
           "Do people with this mindset believe that anyone can be anything, that anyone with proper motivation or education can become Einstein or Beethoven?  No, but they believe that a person’s true potential is unknown (and unknowable); that it’s impossible to foresee what can be accomplished with years of passion, toil, and training."
           "Did you know that Darwin and Tolstoy were considered ordinary children?  That Ben Hogan, one of the greatest golfers of all time, was completely uncoordinated and graceless as a child?  That the photographer Cindy Sherman, who has been on virtually every list of the most important artists of the twentieth century, failed her first photography course?  That Geraldine Page, one of our greatest actresses, was advised to give it up for lack of talent?"
            "You can see how the belief that qualities can be developed creates a passion for learning.  Why waste time proving over and over how great you are, when you could be getting better?  Why hide deficiencies instead of overcoming them?  Why look for friends or partners who will just shore up your self-esteem instead of ones who will also challenge you to grow?  And why seek out the tried and true, instead of experiences that will stretch you?  The passion for stretching yourself and sticking to it, even (or especially) when it’s not going well, is the hallmark of the growth mindset.  This is the mindset that allows people to thrive during some of the most challenging times in their lives.”

UNIFORMS!!!

Hello Ladies,
Below are 3 UNIFORM OPTIONS!!!  Currently, I am deciding on COLOR SCHEME, so ignore the team name/fonts/etc.  Basically, Options 1 and 2 are the same top, but opposite shorts; Option 3 has the opposite color top.  Please text me a vote - as always I will do my best to adhere to the majority.  Votes need to be made ASAP so that I can get the info to the vendor to hopefully have them made by our first meet.

OPTION 1 (front and back views)

OPTION 2 (front and back views)

OPTION 3 (front and back views)

Survey: What is your mindset?

Please click the link below and complete the short survey (only 3 questions!) BEFORE our Summer Practices begin next Monday July 6.  I am really excited to get started running together - I think it's going to be a fun summer!

MINDSET SURVEY

Clothing Order

Hey girls,

Let's take a vote on these 4 options.  I will put the Top 2 vote-getters on the clothing order form.  Click on images for larger pics.

Option A:  quarter-zip, 100% polyester, but it is micro-fleece which has a furry feel to it.

Option B: women's cut similar to above 

Option C:  another similar

Option D:  different look, hooded

Organizational Meeting

Our organizational meeting for the 2015 Cross Country Season will this Thursday, June 4.  We will meet after school in Room 114, Dr. K's room.

Please let me know if you cannot attend - there are some important items that I need from you and that I need to give to you.

Can't wait to see everyone!!!

Who You Are...

FOOD and BOOKS

Hey Ladies - It is great seeing many of you throughout the winter, but it's not the same without the whole gang!  Anyway, I am reaching out with a couple of great links.  One is about healthy eating (which I also posted on the Track Blog) and the other is about an inspiring book.  Hope you are able to check out both items...and hope to see you all soon!

HEALTHY EATING MADE SUPER EASY

MY BEST RACE by CHRIS COOPER