Gloria Mark and her book “Attention Span”

This week’s evidence comes from Microsoft researcher and University of California professor Gloria Mark in her book “Attention Span”.  Readers of these reports will hear echoes of other authors I have cited, such as Cal Newport’s “Deep Work” and Johan Hari’s “Stolen Focus.” Mark also adds new insights with a combination of extensive citations and her research on the subject. She cites Maya Angelou, who described the combination of “big brain” and “little brain,” with the former focused on writing projects and the latter for taking essential mental breaks. This really resonated with me as I’m tempted to power through projects long after exhaustion has impaired the quality of my work. She offers practical advice beyond just a call to focus and turn off the internet. This may be helpful not only for us but for the principals and teams that we coach. It’s available in audio as well as book form.

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A new episode of the Fearless Schools Podcast has been released. In this reflective episode of the Fearless Schools podcast, we review the highlights and key takeaways from our journey in podcasting–and make note of special moments, key quotes, great guests, and key takeaways from all of the Fearless Schools 2025 episodes. Two new “Shorts” have also dropped – Tony Flach and Dr. Jen Schwanke. You can find the latest episodes and follow the Fearless Schools Podcast wherever you listen.

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