What Builders Do During Winter Break
School Leadership Reimagined
During winter break, most principals fall into one of two camps: total disconnection or total overdrive. Either they collapse and avoid thinking about school until January, or they turn the break into a frantic catch-up sprint to “earn” a fresh start. But there is a third option and in this episode you’ll discover why both panic-planning and panic-resting feel productive in the moment, but ultimately create more anxiety and more backlog down the road. Discover how Builders spend their break differently -- resting with intention, anchoring in purpose, and creating systems that prevent...
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You don't need a 2026 Plan
School Leadership Reimagined
Most principals hit this point in December with the same uneasy mix of exhaustion and pressure. What makes it even worse is that everywhere you’re being told that 2026 is being built right now, that you should be planning your best year yet, and that winter break is a chance to catch up. This episode challenges that narrative and explains why you don’t need a new plan or a fresh start. Tune in to find out how you can let go of guilt, resist the urge to start over, and end the year grounded, clear, and focused #LikeABuilder
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Your Leadership Team Meeting Has One Job—And It’s Not What You Think
School Leadership Reimagined
Most leadership team meetings are stuck in a loop—polite updates, recycled problems, and a slow drain of energy that leaves everyone wondering why nothing ever truly moves. In this episode, I unpack why that pain exists, why the usual fixes never fix it, and what becomes possible when you redesign your meetings around purpose instead of compliance. In this episode, I unpack the deeper reason why those meetings feel so draining: they’re built on an operating system that rewards activity instead of alignment. Then I offer a radically different lens: a leadership team meeting has one job—to...
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Rewind: Are you playing offense or defense
School Leadership Reimagined
Ask yourself a question: Are you playing defense or are you playing offense? Is most of your day spent reacting to things that come up, or are you spending the majority of your time proactively pursuing your vision? Most of the training we’ve received has taught us to focus on defense and so we create policies, systems, and routines that focus on solving existing challenges rather than preventing them in the first place. Playing defense leaves us exhausted, frustrated, and overwhelmed. Playing offense leaves us energized, encouraged, and most important making steady progress towards our...
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The Two-Minute Ritual That Makes Meetings More Effective
School Leadership Reimagined
The most effective principals don’t start meetings with data, problems, or updates. They start with a simple two-minute ritual that immediately reshapes the entire conversation. It cuts through the usual tension, sharpens the team’s focus, and turns even the most routine meeting into a place where people think more clearly and collaborate with more purpose. In this episode, you’ll learn why this tiny habit is harder than it looks, why Builders rely on it, and how it can make your team meetings more grounded, more productive, and far more effective #LikeABuilder.
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Why Tier 1 Isn't the Goal
School Leadership Reimagined
Tier 1 may be the hot topic right now, but here’s the twist: Tier 1 isn’t actually the problem—or the goal. In this episode, discover the one shift Builders make that instantly changes how Tier 1 feels, functions, and flows in their schools. We’ll peel back the layers on why Tier 1 becomes overwhelming, why strategies alone never fix it, and how reconnecting instruction to your 100% Vision transforms everything. If you’ve been trying to strengthen Tier 1 and still not seeing the consistency you want, this episode gives you the clarity you’ve been missing. It’s time to stop...
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Stop playing academic whack-a-mole: A smarter way to support struggling students with the AIR Framework
School Leadership Reimagined
If you’ve ever felt like you’re playing academic whack-a-mole—chasing one struggling student after another—you’re not alone. Most teachers are trying hard, but their support is reactive. In this episode, we’re talking about how to flip that script with a Student SUCCESS Plan that helps you spot problems early, act fast, and keep Tier 1 running smoothly. I’ll walk you through the simple process we shared in the Supporting Struggling Students Masterclass that’s already helping schools make support proactive instead of exhausting. You’ll learn how to build a system that prevents...
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3 Reasons Teachers Are Still Not Implementing Tier 1 (Despite all the PD)
School Leadership Reimagined
I’ve spent years watching principals pour time, energy, and training into Tier 1 instruction—only to walk into classrooms and see the same inconsistencies. In this episode, I’m unpacking why that happens. Teachers understand Tier 1 in theory, but they struggle to translate it into their own classrooms, anticipate where students will stumble, and respond to the real-time data happening right in front of them. When you fix those three things, Tier 1 finally becomes doable, sustainable, and effective #LikeABuilder.
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How to Uncover the Real Problem Hiding Behind “Feedback Issues”
School Leadership Reimagined
What if your school’s “feedback problem” isn’t really about feedback at all? In this special episode, you’ll listen in on a real coaching conversation from inside the 100% Collective with member Bill Weitman. Bill came to the session looking for help giving teachers better feedback, but as we talked, we uncovered a deeper root cause that was quietly shaping his entire approach. You’ll hear how to spot what’s really driving resistance or inconsistency in your staff, and how a single mindset shift can transform your next feedback conversation. So tune in to discover how to uncover...
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Predictable. Consistent. Still Not Seeing Results? Here’s Why.
School Leadership Reimagined
You’ve built the systems. You’ve set the routines. You’ve done everything “right.” So why aren’t you seeing results? In this episode, we unpack the surprising reason why so many principals work hard, stay organized, and still feel like their schools aren’t moving forward. Predictability and consistency sound like the markers of success—but when your systems aren’t grounded in your vision, mission, and core values, they create motion without momentum. You’ll discover the difference between being predictable, consistent, and stable, understand which one actually builds trust...
info_outlineIf you’re like most school administrators, this is the time of year that we, without even realizing it, are already starting to drift ever so slightly from the resolutions and plans we made at the beginning of the school year. We’re not off track exactly, but things have started to slip a little. And, we’re not too worried yet, because after all, it’s only October.
Which is exactly why October is such a dangerous month. It’s early enough in the school year where we still feel like we have time to meet our goals so we’re often lulled into a false sense of complacency. But what we don’t realize is that it is the work we do now that determines whether we will actually meet our goals this school year.
So on today’s episode, I’m going to share with you 5 simple shifts you need to make now to keep you from drifting away from your plans and goals and finding yourself off course in January. Take these simple steps and you can get refocused, make real progress before the holidays, and set yourself up for true success this school year #LikeABuilder.