EC-12 Leadership Podcast

What does it mean when the stress feels too great, when you think you may not be able to continue? It can happen to any leader. Let's talk about what this can mean, and what you can do to move through this while remaining a successful leader. Help me spread the word of this Podcast by rating it on Apple Podcast or wherever you listen to your podcast content. Consider writing a review. And feel fre...

The best leaders are the ones who recognize there is always more to know, more to learn, and seem constantly on the search for new opportunities to gain knowledge. This is particularly true in watching for what others around them can teach them. Let's explore this! Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!    You can also help tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast on Apple Po...

Leaders have quite a bit of autonomy, able to choose where to direct their efforts to lead well. In this episode we'll reflect on how to choose wisely, avoiding actions that are a waste of your leadership time and energy. Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!    You can also help tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast on Apple Podcasts. And if I've been of help to you, sha...

Letting the members of your team innovate and use their own judgement sounds great, but many leaders struggle with the nuance of this. They want to empower others, but they find they can't let go, for what seems like powerfully relevant reasons. We explore the struggle in this episode, as well as reasons to do better. Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!    You can also help tremendously...

This should come as no surprise. You are not in control. But still, you're the one everyone looks to to take care of things! How do you manage this well? How do you meet expectations, and keep things positive, when there are challenges around every corner and no way to satisfy everyone (sometimes it feels like anyone ). Let's consider, shall we? Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!    Yo...

Believe it or not, there is a time when procrastinating may be a useful thing. Not often, mind you, but it has its place. This concept gets explored in this episode. Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!    You can also help tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast on Apple Podcasts. And if I've been of help to you, share the goodness by telling other leaders about the podca...

Challenging times are coming. Every leader and organization deals with such times. Are you going to help your team take things on the best way possible, or are you going to made the problems feel even heavier? Let explore this.  Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!    You can also help tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast on Apple Podcasts. And if I've been of help to y...

We're going to get a little more nitty-gritty today, talking about school accreditation. Why is it important? Should the leader be advocating for this for the school, whether for the first time or for maintaining it? How can a leader use accreditation most powerfully to benefit the school ministry? I've got a couple of things to share! Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!  You can also h...

Achieving and succeeding. Those words seem fairly synonymous to many people, but to be effective in leadership, you need to know the difference. Let's spend some time in this episode exploring the application of these concepts, to add value to how you lead your team.  Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe!  You can also help tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast on Apple P...

As a Christian school, our greatest ministry asset is our abundant and providential God. Second to Him, I'd put teachers at the next level of importance. Great teachers are a gift from God to the impact of our school ministries, and when you have the right teachers, they need to be cared for and supported in ways that sustains their service. Join guest Mike Schiemann and me as we discuss practical...

There are many different leadership styles you may use in guiding your school ministry. The best leaders are careful not to get stuck in a rut. There will be times that how you've been successfully leading will no longer fit the circumstance. Great leaders learn to shift to the situation, at least to some degree. We'll explore this concept in our episode. Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscr...

New leaders are eager and energetic to make an impact and bring change for the better. But rushing in to do so can be a recipe for disaster. People will only follow you so far on faith; you have necessary steps to take give people a reason to stay with you. We explore this here. Thanks for listening! I hope you'll Subscribe! You can also help tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast...

School ministry leaders have a huge responsibility for the financial success and stability of their school. And that starts with the budget. But how can you create a great budget with so many unknown factors for the year ahead? Jim is joined by guest Mike Schiemann again to talk about this significant aspect of leadership in educational ministry. Have any thoughts on this episode? Or suggestions f...

We spend a lot of time talking about what to do in order to be an effective leader. Today's let's spend some time paying attention to what we need to avoid, certain behaviors that will interfere with what you hope to achieve, things that will diminish your sustainability as a leader. Thanks for listening! If you haven't yet done so, I invite you to Subscribe! You can also help me out tremendously...

The title pretty much says it all. Even if strategic planning still sounds foreign or scary to you, this is something you need to understand, and figure out how to implement. Trust me - it's essential to lasting and effective leadership.   Thanks for listening! If you haven't yet done so, I invite you to Subscribe! You can also help me out tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast on...

One of the challenges of leadership is buying into the hype, coming to believe you are as great and powerful as some seem to be lifting you up. It can get mighty high up on that pedestal. Let's discuss the risk, and how to avoid the pitfalls. Thanks for listening! If you haven't yet done so, I invite you to Subscribe! You can also help me out tremendously by Rating and even Reviewing this podcast...

Leaders are often eager to jump in and change things up when they join a new ministry. However, change things too quickly and you may walk into pitfalls, creating more challenging than positive results. We'll talk about things to keep in mind before digging in too deep!

Leading through a pandemic has been full of challenges, and issues leaders are eager to leave in the rear view mirror. But don't throw the baby out with the bath water. Jim chats with guest Mike Schiemann about silver linings, the new positive discoveries that school leaders should look for, that you might want to try to keep in some manner once we move back to whatever "normal" will eventually lo...

While there are great joys in leading an educational ministry, there are also some serious challenges. You can feel like some of these issues aren't what you ever wanted to deal with, and shouldn't have to! But let's consider - this is exactly why God has you where you are at this time. Have any thoughts on this episode? Or suggestions for future content? Email Jim at JimS@nowlcms.org.

Good leaders are able to find and see the joy in all circumstances. Great leaders are able to infuse that joy into those around them. We'll touch on specific practices you may use to become that spreader of joy as a leader. Have any thoughts on this episode? Or suggestions for future content? Email Jim at JimS@nowlcms.org.

We'll discuss better ways to address those nagging issues that hang over you and keep you tossing and turning. You can't solve everything instantly, but you also don't need to let worry and stress consume you. Have any thoughts on this episode? Or suggestions for future content? Email Jim at JimS@nowlcms.org.

Leaders don't often ask enough questions. In this episode, we won't just consider asking more questions, but rather how skilled leaders may utilize questions to help lead their teams more effectively. Have any thoughts on this episode? Or suggestions for future content? Email Jim at JimS@nowlcms.org.

To lead well, sometimes we have to bring up subjects that others don't like to hear. How can we do so without having staff turn against us, dismiss us, or simply dislike being around us? There are ways - and we'll touch on them in this episode. Have any thoughts on this episode? Or suggestions for future content? Email Jim at JimS@nowlcms.org.

We can become complacent in our usual routines. Leaders can disrupt the normal at times for very positive effect. We'll consider some possibilities in this episode.

This episode explores the importance of having your destination in mind as you lead, as well as staying aware of the challenges and pitfalls that may trip you up. Have any thoughts on this episode? Or suggestions for future content? Email Jim at JimS@nowlcms.org.