Lessons in School Leadership

The Courageous Shift Every Leader Has to Make

Why accountability isn’t about being the “bad guy,” it’s the leadership skill that transforms your culture, your team, and your confidence. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard a leader say, “I just don’t want to be the bad guy.” It’s a real fear, especially in schools where relationships m...

Jul 24, 2026

You Can’t Fix What You Can’t See: Why Leaders Need the Balcony View

Why staying “in the work” is keeping you from leading the work. There’s a difference between being in the work and leading the work. I’ll never forget the moment I learned that lesson the hard way. I was a brand-new principal, running on adrenaline, answering every call, fixing every problem, and...

Jul 24, 2026

Stop Empowering People You Haven’t Equipped

Empowerment sounds great, until the people you’ve “empowered” have no idea what to do next. The Leadership Trap We love to talk about empowerment. It sounds noble, inclusive, and visionary. But here’s the problem I see over and over again: Too many leaders are trying to empower people they haven’...

Jul 24, 2026

Push vs. Pull Leadership: How to Know When It’s Time to Let Go

Every school year begins with energy. August feels fresh. The building is buzzing, the bulletin boards are bright, and staff are hopeful about a new start. By early September, routines are in place and new initiatives are underway. And then, right on schedule, the dip comes. Late September into O...

Jul 24, 2026

How to Lead When Staff Morale Is at an All-Time Low

Overcoming the ‘us vs. them’ mindset in schools. One of the toughest challenges I see school leaders facing today isn’t just test scores, resources, or even student behavior; it’s the silent culture war happening inside their own buildings. The “us vs. them” mentality between teachers and adminis...

Jul 24, 2026

Five Skills Every School Leader Must Consistently Develop

Building sustainable leadership through clarity, strategy, and influence As school leaders, we often juggle so many responsibilities that it can feel like there’s never enough time in the day. The truth is, you can’t manage time; it moves with or without you. What you can manage are your prioriti...

Jul 24, 2026

The Leadership Shift Every Assistant Principal Must Make This School Year

The start of the school year is one of the most critical times for school leadership. Vision is being cast, expectations are being set, and culture is being established. For principals, this moment feels familiar. But for assistant principals, what we deem as the “principals that assist”—the begi...

Jul 24, 2026

Leading Through Role Reversals Without Losing Your Leadership Identity

How to navigate the awkward shift when you’re suddenly leading former peers, supervisors, or subject-matter experts There’s a leadership shift that no principal training fully prepares you for, which is the moment the roles reverse. One day, you’re working alongside someone as a peer. Next, you’r...

Jul 24, 2026

If Everything Depends on You, It’s Time to Rethink How You Lead

Here's how to shift from being the one holding it all to building a team that leads with you. It’s not that you don’t trust your team. It’s that the stakes are high. The timelines are tight. And somewhere along the way, it became easier—and faster—to just do it yourself. So now, you’re carrying t...

Jul 24, 2026

This Isn’t in the Job Description—But It’s the Job

Grief. Pressure. Accountability. Leadership anyway. I dare you to tell the truth about school leadership... That one minute you’ll be planning PD—and the next, you’ll be helping students and staff process the death of a child in your school. That you’ll be expected to lead award ceremonies, field...

Jul 24, 2026

From Why to How: What Educators Really Need This Year

Every August, in school gyms and media centers across the country, educators gather for back-to-school professional development. There's always a slide deck, always a motivational video queued up, and usually, at some point, a prompt appears on the screen: “Reconnect to your why.” Now listen, I l...

Jul 24, 2026

Hiring Season is a Culture Check—Is Yours Attracting or Repelling Talent?

Right now, schools across the country are deep in hiring season—posting job openings, reviewing resumes, scheduling interviews. But here’s the real question school leaders need to ask themselves: Is our school a place people are excited to join? Or a place they’re quietly avoiding? Because hiring...

Jul 23, 2026

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Lessons in School Leadership

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