The Philadelphia Eagles are the Super Bowl champs! It was a long time in coming, but loyal fans have been rewarded with an amazing game, a wonderful team and the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Before the game began there was a clip of future MVP Nick Foles saying he was going to just go out and play the game. He wasn’t going to overthink it but instead would respond to what happens on the field and initiate the plays they had practiced. He and his team did just that.

As I listened to him and later thought about what he said, I was struck by the simplicity of his plan. He was not watching and re-watching game tapes. He was not over-analyzing the routes New England used in past games. He was not absorbing the messages given by the media, letting him know his odds of winning this ultimate game. He reacted, responded and played.

So many times, schools are consumed by the planning and the analysis. They overthink the ways in which they can deliver content, improve test scores, and push students to do more and more. They seldom stop and do what Nick Foles did – respond to what is happening. They listen to the chatter and worry that they won’t be good enough and therefore their “team” (students) will be worse off. They don’t trust what we know to be true, which is that given a good team who works together and is responsive to the needs before them, children will thrive. They will win.

As Nick Foles said at the end of the game, “I was really staying in the moment. Just staying in the moment.” Educators all over the globe need to heed his advice. Staying in the moment allows us to be responsive, receptive and adapt to the needs of the children who are counting on us to support them in their growth and on their path to success.