Coach Bill / Dad, Entrepreneur Special Educator, American Political Scientist, Writer, Musician.

“Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would be utterly contemned.” Song of Solomon 8:7 I was born in La Jolla, California with a silver spoon in my mouth, though I have gotten to points where i had no spoons:) My late-father was a U.S. Marine and a soldiers soldier..he became a 101st Airborne Ranger, a Screaming Eagle as they call themselves. Mom is a math teacher of teachers. Dad would wake me up at 5:30 every morning to do calisthenics and run before school. He’d get me out of bed and gently walk me to the shower. He’d turn it on and leave. Of course, I would sleep standing up on leaning on the towel rack and he’d have to come back in and prompt me to go into the shower. In the middle of our run we would stop at the church and pray, then continue running. Mom is Cuban-American and was/is the family therapist for my sisters and I. She was always my strongest advocate through ...

Today is Thursday, October 29, 2015. There is hopeful news, but let us take it with a grain of salt. The image of the garbage shown here illustrates that OUR efforts to revitalize Scalzi skatepark are not just wheels spinning in the mud. Truly, it has been a community effort that has encompassed not just physical actions that are easily recognized, such as almost zero new untasteful graffiti, but also a decrease in the amount of garbage found within the skatepark and its immediate periphery outside the gate and its circumference. This could very well be attributed to the mega-storm last night, which would make it rather unappealing to stick around at night at the skatepark, but it could all be attributed to the community outreach by an untold number of stand-up individuals, including skaters of all ages, parents and the Stamford Police. There was indeed new graffiti that I spotted in a hidden corner, which will be taken off (as soon as I get new funds..gotta pay rent:).  ...

It takes 10-20 years for a public school teacher to make at least $100,000 a year in salary. It takes less than a second for a stock broker to make millions if their timing is right. Teachers guide and grow hearts and minds yet get paid a sliver of what people who grow money in the stock markets get paid. Most of us educators are content also because we reap what we sow… and that is worth more than millions in the bank.  Teachers bring their hearts to work and consider how to reach individuals deep inside hoping to positively disrupt and steer children and adults in healthy ways, yet they are recompensed with low-pay and long hours of work. Taking summers off is actually time for them to recoup their energy. It is an emotionally taxing job. I am self-employed so I don’t take any time off. I usually work Christmas day (thankful for it), the first day of the year, and if I can muster it, seven days a week. I can’t do enough. Many educators feel like this to a deg...

Being a teacher requires equal measures of ‘know-how,’ nurturing love and innovation, in order to stay relevant and effective in repeatedly producing successful educative outcomes. My graduate degree is in Special Education from Fairfield University and my bachelor’s is in Political Science from UMass-Boston affording me a special mix of insight for a Special Educator and Executive Function Skills Coach who works with children and adults with attentional deficits, behavioral concerns or identified as being on the autism spectrum. Does it give me somewhat of a special micro and macro lens at viewing and understanding my work? I believe so, though it does not mean I am always right. Just ask my ex-wife. Like the artists of old I have had three main families, or patrons for half a decade each of whom has been my base of financial support throughout my time in the U.S. northeast. A Muslim family, a Jewish family and a Christian family.. all with at least one child on the a...

What great things can be accomplished when we come together as a community? Decency regains territory and our shared destiny becomes brighter. No more tears fall, but faces are lifted up with smiling hearts filled with courage, grit and determination. Coming together are hearts and minds under a common cause, like a river that flows without end. Surely, yesterday morning the skatepark I frequent daily was wrecked, yet a wave of dedication swept over by end of day. Things have changed. We are in new territory now and there is no going back. Children and parents are establishing their positions within the park by their mere presence. Experienced skaters are emboldened and ripping every which way. You should see some of them. It is a marvel to watch them hit breathtaking speeds as they perform hard to pronounce maneuvers. If that is not all, we now have a second female skater in our midst. She is quite young but makes up for that with her persistent desire to skateboard. He...

I t was made clear to me last night in the darkness of Scalzi skatepark in Stamford, Connecticut why there is hesitancy to bring in night lights. “The crowds it would bring…” I realized that the skatepark would be inundated with people from far-flung places. As skateparks go, Scalzi is definitely not top-of-the-line, yet it is one of the best in the region along with the one in New York City just outside of Chelsea piers.  Last night I stayed longer than usual and saw the park transform, and not for the better. A small crowd of middle school boys and girls drinking, smoking and going into the bushes.   I remember picking up used condom wrappers outside the skatepark fence, leaflets talking about the spread of AIDS and I wondered what would happen to them if they were pushed out and a new crowd would come in. Where would these kids go? What would happen to them? Surely, they would find some other place to party and unwind. So I stayed a bit longer in the darknes...

We live in a chaotic, tumultuous  time. What is right seems wrong and what is wrong seems right.  Truly, the constant pain and grief experienced by families who have put forth their children to serve our land cannot be fathomed. What can be said when a police officer is gunned down? What do you tell his mother? What do you tell his son? How is that son supposed to not get jaded growing up in a society which makes light of killing cops through music and a pervasive attitude to buck that which upholds communities? What happens to mindsets when this reality continues unabated?  I see the pain and anger in the face of many of our fellow police officers…even when they smile.    The fact that it is their duty to go all out for our protection at every moment does not get lost on me. Surely, we have many days of relative peace and daily life can appear to seem monotonous. The lady cop directing traffic is not performing rocket science as she waves car...

Unconditional love keeps its strength in the face of hopelessness It won’t let itself be bought It won’t let itself be sold Real power comes not in material possessions.  Real power is not measured by the size of a bank account. It does not emanate from some geographic location.  It is not found in the power of the gun, or the fist.  Real power emanates from hearts that love unconditionally. This kind of power is very real and present. Some of it keeps communities safe and sound. It keeps families calm knowing that this power does not go to sleep. It is on twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, year after year, without rest. The hearts that pump this love forward work relentless hours. Always on-call. Ready at a moment’s notice to answer the call of duty. Some of us honor them. Some of us judge them. Some of us don’t care about them. But all of us are taken care of by them. These hearts belong to hero’s. They have names. One of them...

How do we pay as individuals and as a community when we tune out?   How can the tides be reversed?  What can one person do? Does the social fabric of society begin to unravel when we just look out for ourselves and only our own? The issues before our community appear gargantuan in scope.  Caught up in the daily grind of making ends meet it may seem like a luxury to stop and afford our own time to positively impact another life. What shall we do?How do we do that? No one requires us to care. At some point down the line though, not exercising empathy for others takes a toll on each of us. Not caring closes up your heart and changes your mind. Children ‘grow up’ and take matters into their own hands…sometimes with guns. Soon enough,  low-income neighborhoods begin to look like the wild west. Adolescent boys and young men band together for security and second-rate love within gangs. Their mindset is not one of how to make their community...

Raising energy  requires consistency.  Maintaining momentum  requires clear working purpose.  Moving hearts to impact minds  requires talent. In the world of sports, such thoughts are always on the forefront of a coach's mindset. She understands that the inside affects the outside, and the outside affects the inside. Aware of this, a great coach is also a mentor to her players. Her attitude gives direct and indirect expectation cues to the player's, hence (SunTzu time) it is vital that the coach protect, direct and develop herself just as the players are doing so. Cary Lee Williams is one such coach.  Recently, I had the fortune to interview, Mrs. Williams. Amongst other titles and hats, she is an entrepreneur, a boxing coach, a mentor, and is the founder of a clothing line called, Never Too Pretty. She is well-known in the boxing world as industrious, a go-getter, and because of her incredible drive, she is also known ...

A great coach is sensitive to the homeostasis of the players and maneuvers with #foresight (anticipate/predict) to not just quell and redirect, but address the root of  issues as they pertain to the performance of the player. This is a fine line that is walked. Far from getting psychological, a coach is a mentor acting always in a supportive and guiding capacity and not with a 'let's sit down and tell me about your childhood' focus.  The player is valuable, the mindset..the heart set, these are non-tangibles that a great coach..mines. A coach who minds the players sees the player as a human being, not some compartmentalized robot intent on simply winning games.  Gathering information on how they are feeling helps the coach help them reach optimum performance levels as we work together. This is how I run my sessions always.  Achieving excellence on the court or playing field then truly becomes a two-way street between coach and player(s). Sun Tzu illustrated...

It is easy to be dismissive of the plight of others when we are conditioned to mind our own and pull for our own. It is understandable. Minding my own business is also a lesson I have learned.. sometimes the hard way. YET, MY BUSINESS IS other people. Minding others is my business. Minding the hearts and minds of my players, which includes my children, is part of my purpose.  I am a teacher, a private Special Educator who works with families and individuals with executive function concerns and/ or on the autism spectrum. My perspective is outward and conditioned to see and feel through the eyes of my players. This helps me calibrate my approach and increase the possibility of a successful outcome. Being highly-sensitive allows me to be quick on observation and instituting an instructional approach that will win. Sometimes, because I work with people, I must completely humble myself in order to attain my goals. I am effective at this. I am great at disarming peopl...

A surfer lets go of the need to control outcomes in the water knowing that he is in something bigger than himself. All he can do is ride his board as gracefully as possible. With some experience he situates himself at the right spot at the right time, and have the ride of his life. Analyzing wave patterns and their timing, riptide channels, sea floor contour and how the wind interacts with the wave, an experienced surfer takes it all in and moves in sync with all the patterns. Suddenly, the surfer and the water are one, and not two separate entities, yet still retaining their original nature. Two, yet one. The natural algorithmic practice of positioning oneself in tune with breaking waves is a practice of letting go and letting that which is natural physically and mentally move us. Repetition of such a lifestyle activity does go deep into the grain of one and changes you from the inside out. Outside the water, our brilliant minds make connections left and right. This generaliz...

I don't find my students. I put my bread in the water and the students find me. Where is his strength? Is this the teacher? Oh. I see now. Let's do this. I got this! A great coach role-models, leads, supports, instructs, guides, corrects, mentors... and gets out of the way. Coaching then, is an art of balancing the player's strengths, fleshing out talents, strengthening deficits naturally and nurturing the mind and heart to reach higher levels of performance. Learning is not just a solitary action anymore with this understanding, but a humbling mindset that opens the mind to receive.  A central tenant to coaching duties is being able to impart knowledge so that learning can happen. The effective transfer of intellectual property comes easily when you seek to engage the mind via the heart first. Understanding that the mind and heart move the body, just like a small tiller directs a large ship, a great coach becomes sensitive to the player's wellbeing. The...