Inspiring Big Horn Basin teachers

Inspiring Big Horn Basin teachers

By Sherie Monk

School staffs from Buffalo, Cody and Big Horn County Districts 1, 2 and 4 “Enjoyed the Ride” with Steve Gilliland as he gave a motivational message to begin the school year last week.

Gilliland, who lives in North Carolina, flew into Casper on Tuesday, Aug. 12. He drove to Buffalo and on to Cody. Then on Thursday, Aug. 14, Gilliland arrived in Cowley to speak to the staff of Big Horn County School District No. 1. 

Gilliland acknowledges he struggles with OCD but prefers to call it CDO because then all the letters are in the correct order. It is his preponderance for perfection that led to his success in the corporate world. He worked for a Fourtune 500 company to begin his career and clued the audience in with, “If you’re old enough you’ll recognize their jingle: ‘When you care enough to send the very best.’”

He climbed the ladder until the expectation for each day was a suit, a tie and an executive secretary. The secretary’s name was Margaret Shannon, and after his mother, she became the second most influential person in his life. One day Margaret asked him this question: “If every job in the world paid the same, would you still be doing the same thing?” That question changed his life.

Six months later, he quit his corporate job to fulfill his dream of writing a book, and his first book, “Enjoy the Ride,” and a new career was born. Since that time, he has written several more books and has traveled across the country, and the world, to impart his brand of wisdom intertwined with a healthy dose of humor.

He spoke about his sixth-grade teacher, Paul Reed. (He’s on the list of Galliland’s five most influential people.) Reed told this low achieving genius that he believed in him. He taught this playground fighter to work hard, not fight hard, for what he wanted. He was the person who turned a “class clown” into a comedic entrepreneur.

Gilliland reminded the audience that some of the kids they see every day don’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.

“If you saw what they see, heard what they heard and felt what they feel,” a person wouldn’t see the light, either, he said. He encouraged the educators to be the light for these kids.

“The last thing we need in the school is invisible children. Make every child feel seen,” he pleaded. He commented that one way to make a difference is by always accentuating the positive, because that will dimmish the negative.

Gilliland imparted some of his mother’s wisdom to the group. She always told him that “life’s experiences will either make you better or bitter, stronger or weaker.” He encouraged everyone to make their students see the better, stronger side of difficult situations.

When concluding his address, Gilliland encouraged everyone to write down the five most influential people in their lives, then ask themselves what these people contributed and, where possible, tell them “thank you.” His final questions were, “Are you doing something every day to influence at least one? Twenty years from now, will you be on someone’s top five most influential people’s list?”