What are the most important things needed to live a good life?

TO LEAD A GOOD LIFE

in 1992 I became principal at a Darwin school, on transfer from my previous appointment as a school principal at another school.

The new school offered me many challenges and upon reflection, I came to wish at the time I had not transferred from my first to my second Darwin school.

Ultimately, I remained at that school as Principal for 20 years, until retiring in January 2012.

There was some salutary lessons that came to me during this appointment which really feel the criteria of the question “what do you need to live a good life”?

There were many find students in the second school, but they seem to be a missing ingredient that I could not identify. Around the middle of that school year several of the children started to fester behaviourally. Our Assistant Principal, who had been at the school for quite some time, suggested to me that we hold a school assembly to talk to children about the need to stay focused and not to derail from behavioural norms.

Being new to the school I asked our AP to conduct the assembly.

The matters of concern were addressed and in conclusion the Assistant Principal said to the student body, “We must get back to what we do well; we must care for ourselves and others.”

For me, the penny dropped! That was exactly what was wrong: Students were putting themselves before others so we had a collection of several hundred individuals but we didn’t have group cohesion and awareness of others.

Rather than putting ourselves first and then considering others, we needed to consider others and ourselves in that order.

That afternoon, a school motto was created by myself and from there on used as a part of the schools credo. The new motto: “Together As One”, was born and became part of the way we operated.

There is strength in Groupoship, working together as a synergistic organisation and being there for each other. That new approach gradually came to transform the school into one, where care for each other became a very strong focus.

Leading a good life is enhanced by the establishment of an inclusive, shared and caring environment.

There are other principles that support the leading of a good life – but being “together as one” with others and not being “for ourselves alone” is right up there.