Breaking Free of the Behaviors That Hold You Back.

From left, GWJH students Tara Liska and Kelsi Bartlett look on as Flip Flippen autographs their book. The two attended Flippen’s presentation last Wednesday afternoon at George West High School.

Flippen: ‘Break free of the barriers that hold you back’
By Rita Arnst, MySouTex.com

Just after the TAKS writing test was over at George West ISD, students were released early, while teachers and administrators stayed for a presentation from Flip Flippen, author of the New York Times best-seller, The Flip Side.

The presentation was paid for in part by the George West Police Department, the Child Welfare Board, First National Bank, Choctaw Lease and the James Schroeder family.

The object of Flippen’s book is to teach one how to break free of the behaviors that hold one back. “In his career Flippen has worked with gangs and ‘throw away’ kids; in fact, during that time he developed a 500-acre residential care and treatment facility for kids. During the rest of his career, he has worked with small rural schools like ours to Fortune 500 companies,” said Ty Sparks, GWISD superintendent.

Flip Flippen’s company, the Flippen Group, is the largest educator training company in North America. The company’s breakthrough educational processes and curricula are in use at 5,000 school districts and campuses. In Flippen’s words, “If you have a child’s heart, you have his head.”

“Flippen has worked with corporate executives, educators, professionals, always staying focused on helping others do well. Flippen is a man with an uncompromising mission to develop relationships and processes that bring out the very best in people. I know you are going to enjoy his presentation; thank you for coming,” Sparks said before turning the floor over to Flippen.

The personable Flippen greeted the audience with a smile from ear to ear and began by asking the teachers, “How many of you have been through CKH (Capturing Kids’ Hearts) training?” A number of teachers raised their hands. “And how many are using it successfully?” Because CKH training presents so many transformational ideas and techniques, schools often need additional assistance with implementation. “So how do you engage kids at the door?”

Flippen didn’t wait for answers; instead, he related a touching story on how he used the training to help 14 students receive scholarships.

“I took 14 Hispanic kids from a super poor area and taught them interpersonal, behavioral skills and I hammered those skills into those kids every chance I got. I taught those kids over and over and over and over. Then I said, ‘Here is 50 bucks, come back looking sharp, for a professional interview’. Guess what they did? They bought a $14 pair of khaki pants, Payless shoes, blue shirts and socks; I did not ask about underwear. They had one tie and they passed it around. The girls were dressed the same way. And we found out about LULAC; they scholarship kids. They [the 14 students] approached LULAC; they had to compete against other kids for those scholarships. When my kids walked in, one at a time, for their interview, guess what they did? They shook hands and said, ‘How are you?’ ‘Thank you so much for letting me be here.’ ‘It is an honor to be here and interview with you guys today.’ They sat down and did the interview. My kids walked out with $144,000 [in scholarships]. No one else got a nickel. Now where are kids going to learn those interpersonal skills?”

Within the first 10 minutes, Flippen had the teachers and administrators mesmerized with possibilities on how to bring out the best in students.

Every student has constraints or barriers and some may have two, three or more. One of the biggest constraints is dealing with “bulldozers.” An excerpt from his book follows: “Overly dominant people are tough. They are tough to be around, and they are tough to deal with. Sadly, they usually think they are the answer and final word regarding anything. They argue with people, and they run over people who don’t bend like they want.”

In all, Flippen lists 10 “Killer Constraints” in his book, including being overly confident, having low self-esteem and procrastinating. The main thing you have to do is to identify which of these constraints is causing the biggest impact on your life and go after it.