The Empowered Principal® Podcast

One of the ways you might want to create expansion as a school leader is by embracing exceptionalism. Becoming exceptional is a topic I coach on with all of my clients because it's what will help you enjoy your life to the fullest and lead your school in the way you truly want, and I'm showing you how to begin identifying yourself as exceptional today.   Learn what's required of you to live an exc...

For today's episode, I interviewed my friend and fellow coach, Jess Johnson. Jess has been working with me to help me regulate my nervous system. When we go into freak-out mode, we don't have to stay there. There are tools and strategies we can use to relieve our stress and reregulate ourselves, and Jess is here to share them.   Discover simple stress-relieving techniques you can start using right...

John Camp has spent 29 years in education and is currently the Head of Teaching and Learning at New England Innovation Academy. He has an innovative approach to grades where he's shifting away from more traditional grading and assessment formats in the name of focusing on competency and real-world application of skills, and he's telling us all about it this week.   Listen in this week as I quiz Jo...

While you might derive a lot of pleasure from your work, it is critical that your sense of fun and play come from other sources as well. Being able to check tasks off your to-do list, help a student, or mentor a teacher all feel amazing, but they cannot be the only things in your life that bring you joy and delight.   I invite you to create fun for yourself in ways that put zero pressure on you to...

How you think about yourself is changeable, and the stories you tell about your self-identity will either hold you back or propel you forward. Your job as a school leader requires you to re-evaluate and make new decisions about your identity, and I'm showing you how to start.   This week, I show you the impact of your self-identity and how to create awareness around it so you can change it if you...

As a coach, I help site and district leaders build the skills necessary to lead their schools and navigate the mental and emotional challenges that come with the job. I am not here to offer legal advice; however, I can speak to the experience of facing legal issues as a school leader.   Hear why you're not alone if you are facing legal issues, and what to do when it feels scary. I'm showing you ho...

Do you know your boundaries? Are you able to clearly articulate them? Why do you feel unsure of yourself in setting and upholding your boundaries? And how can you do so effectively?    In a world where you've been led by what other people tell you to think, feel, or act, you're not alone if you've found yourself a little lost, unsure of your personal boundaries. Grounding ourselves in our boundari...

I coach school leaders all day long on how hard this job is. And from personal experience, I can relate. School leadership is hard. However, as I listen to my principals share the difficulties they're facing in their day-to-day, I had a revelation about the kind of hard they're experiencing, and I'm sharing it with you on this episode.   I break down the three kinds of hard I've identified, and wh...

Daman Harris, Ph. D., is a trailblazing expert in educator retention and antiracist leadership. Dr. Harris is an experienced teacher, coach, principal, district administrator, adjunct professor, speaker, writer, and consultant. His first book, The Antiracist School Leader , articulates a big-picture framework and research-based actions for bringing the power of antiracist education to your school,...

On this episode, I'm inviting you to think about the hiring journey from the perspective of the teacher you might potentially hire, and I'm showing you why this matters more than you think.   Learn why you must consider the hiring and onboarding journey from the perspective of your teachers, how to provide the level of support they're looking for during this process, and why doing so ahead of time...

The winter dip is real, and most of you are in testing season and conducting teacher observations right now, looking ahead to the end of the school year when you can finally take a breather. Whether you're someone who loves planning so much that you get caught up in the details or someone who intends to plan but gets overwhelmed by the busyness of your job as a leader, I've got you covered this we...

I know that many of you are tasked with having to decide on topics or themes and hire speakers or presenters for your school's professional development days. I also know that for the majority of you, this process feels like another thing on your already full to-do list. Although planning professional development seems like just another box to tick, there's an opportunity here for you to leverage t...

Wanting to make the 'right' decision is a thought we hold very tightly onto, and it drives our actions in unhelpful ways that you might not see right now. It's no surprise that believing you have to make the 'right' decision is leaving you frozen. So if you find yourself spinning in indecision, procrastinating, and worrying about whether or not you're making the right decision, this episode is for...

Megan Conklin received her master's in teaching in 2001 and has been working as a teacher, an instructional specialist, and a substitute ever since. She participated in the creation of sub-communities to offer support to substitutes, and she's here to give tips on how principals can contribute to creating a more welcoming environment for substitutes.   Learn what principals can do to enhance the e...

The experience I'm hearing from my clients all over the country is that their teachers stress, worry, and freak out about district walkthroughs. There are several reasons most teachers dread this experience, which I'm diving into on this episode. However, as a site leader, you have the opportunity to leverage district walkthroughs to create empowerment, and I'm here to show you how.   Hear my top...

While our understanding of neuroscience has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years, learning how to apply it in our daily lives is a whole other ballgame, and my guest today is here to fill the gap. Jessica Sinarski is an author, speaker, and specialist in brain development whose superpower lies in connecting with kids at the brain level, and she's here to talk all things neuroscience and emoti...

Obstacles are part and parcel of your desire to create impact, have influence, and contribute to the world in bigger and bolder ways as a school leader. You're likely facing obstacles you could only dream of at one point in your career, and now, they're a reality. Obstacles are a key part of the dream-come-true experience, but what's preventing you from seeing this are your objections.   Learn the...

Welcome to the third session of The Mid-Year Reboot for School Leaders! This is my favorite session of the entire class because we're diving into the topic of generating momentum and how it's a key element of the goal-setting process as a school leader. If you believe that pain and suffering are necessary components of setting and achieving goals, you are not alone.   Learn a new framework for thi...

This week, you're hearing a clip from our second session of the Mid-Year Reboot that was centered around creating alignment. Alignment is the lens through which you make all of your decisions, and if your current school leadership experience looks like overexerting, overworking, and over-scheduling yourself, listen in.   Join me today to hear what alignment means, why we tend to operate out of ins...

While January is a fresh start for those following the calendar year, it marks the mid-point of the school year for educators. This is the perfect time to check in with yourself and to feel delighted in your work for the rest of the year, instead of pushing yourself to the finish line. And the Mid-Year Reboot is the perfect opportunity to refuel, renew, and reinvigorate.   Listen in this week to h...

I'm speaking to Candace Heiken: the founder of Lively Minds Institute and Cerebrate. With over 25 years in education, Candace is on a mission to cultivate independent, life-long learners through the development of executive function skills, and she's here to share why prioritizing executive function instruction leads to an all-round win for everyone in your school community.   Join us on this epis...

Coaching up is a tool that will help you navigate difficult conversations with anyone who has positional authority over you. If you want to advocate for your school community while reducing conflict with your superiors at the same time, coaching up is the secret to igniting awareness and getting everyone on the same page.   Listen in this week to discover what coaching up means, what it looks like...

This episode goes out to all the dad principals out there navigating your roles as school leader, father, and spouse. I've spoken to a number of my male clients who are struggling to figure out how to experience joy while running a school and supporting their families, and I'm sharing my insights with you this week.   Hear how it's possible to fulfill your heart's deepest desires while maintaining...

Why are student behaviors so intense this year? Why does pressure feel like it's at an all-time high right now? Why are teachers and staff members so discontent? Why does this job feel harder than ever before? Why is this all happening?   This week, learn why believing that things happen to you will keep you stuck feeling disempowered, how to begin shifting the narrative of your questions, and why...

As a principal, you may be expected to fix everything, but it's not actually your job to do so. If you feel called to attend to every problem that comes up, whether it's with your staff, teachers, or students, listen in to hear how it's having undesirable effects you may not be able to see right now.   Tune in this week as I show you why it's not your job, as school principal, to fix everything, a...