All Episodes

317. Stop Blaming Your Team for This

316. Don’t try to solve it. Just sit with it.

315. Your Staff Schedule Needs an Audit

314. The Community Habit Every School Leader Needs

313. How Global Connections Create Local Impact

312. Why You Feel Lonely Even With a Full Building

311. The Identity You Have to Grieve to Lead Well

310. The 4 Silent Saboteurs of Enrollment

309. Why Enrollment Can't Be One Person's Job

308. Decode Your Parents to Fill Your School

307. 3 Ways to Boost Enrollment This Month

306. The Enrollment System That Added 80 Families in 30 Days

305. Your Calendar Is Your Biggest Profit Problem

304. How to Prepare for the First Staff Meeting

303. How Kathy Built Five Centers (And Counting) Without Burning Out

302. You're Not Weak, You're Drowning in Invisible Labor

301. Are You Neglecting Your Team Without Realizing It?

300. The Delegation Dip Nobody Warns You About

299. Feed Forward: The Culture Tool You're Missing

298. You Built the System. Then You Broke It.

297. The Two Drama Symptoms That Kill School Success

296. From Survival Mode to Sustainable Excellence: A School Owner's Real Story

295. Is Drama Destroying Your School Culture? Here Are the Signs

294. You Hired a Team. Why Are You Still Carrying Everything?

293. The Hidden Forces Shaping Your School's Culture

292. Why Your Team Can't Take Accountability (And What to Do Instead)

291. Why School Leaders Still Feel Burned Out After Summer Break

290. You Survived the Year - At What Cost?

289. The Missing Layer in Your School's Culture: Why Staff Training Infrastructure Changes Everything

288. The 5 Fears That Keep Leaders From Investing In Their Team

287. I've Told Them This So Many Times

286. What to Do When School Leadership Feels Like Survival with Nachum Segal

285. She Tripled Her Income Without Burning Out — Here's How

284. School Leaders: Pressure Test Your Call Out System

283. Why Your School Is Leaving $100K on the Table (And How to Fix It)

282. From Crisis to Rhythm: One School Leader's Turning Point

281. Summer Enrollment System for Schools: Why Effort Isn't the Problem (And What Is)

280. Why Asking Your Accountant "What Should I Cut?" Is the Most Dangerous Question in School Leadership

279. Why Consistency Is Hard for Leaders: The Real Reason You Keep Falling Off Your Rhythms

278. Why Warmth Without Consequences Is Burning You Out (And Stalling Your School's Growth)

277. Why Your School Feels Fine in September (And Falls Apart Every March)

276. What March Is Really Trying to Tell You About Your School — And Why You Should Listen Now

275. Calm Isn't An Accident - Why Leaders Must Study Stability

274. Why Early Childhood Promotes Leaders Too Fast — and What School Leaders Pay for It

273. Hiring School Staff Isn’t About Getting the “Right Person” — It’s About Leading Humans

272. When Your School Can Run Without You — But Still Can’t Think Without You

271. The Hidden Forces That Knock School Leaders Off Balance

270. What Holds When You’re Tired: Why School Leaders Need Rhythms, Not More Motivation

269. The False Promise of Systems for School Leaders

268. The Hidden Cost of Being the Strong School Leader

267. When Success Starts to Feel Like Survival for School Leaders

266. Understanding Leadership Drift — and How School Leaders Return to Rhythm

265. What This Year Built in Me — And What It’s Building in You as a School Leader

264. The Hidden Costs Draining Your School: How One Leader Cut Supply Spending by 50%

263. When School Leaders Drift: How to Anchoring Yourself Through Every Season

262. Growth Is the Job: Why Leadership Development Isn’t a Perk — It’s the Work

261. You’re Not Out of Energy — You’re Overholding: How School Leaders Create Energy on Demand

260. The Invisible Weight of Memory: How Systems and Rhythms Protect School Leaders from Burnout

259. Timeless Marketing Strategies for Childcare Leaders: What Still Works (and What to Leave Behind)

258. The Invisible Weight of School Leadership

257. From Hyper-Responsibility to Healthy Leadership: A School Leader’s Journey Beyond People-Pleasing

256. The Delegation Dilemma: Escaping the Over-Functioning Trap

255. The Power of One: Scaling Deep, Not Wide with Latrice Galloway

254, Honesty Over Image: Leading Through Grief, Discomfort, and the Messy Middle with Beth Cannon

253. Stop the Hidden Drain: Admin & Tech Systems That Protect Your Profit

252. How To Avoid Losing Thousands Through Inefficiency Every Month

251. How to Lower Food Costs in Your Childcare Program

250. Stop Hemorrhaging Cash: How Broken Payment Systems Drain Your School’s Finances

249. Childcare Schedule Efficiency: How to Build a Strategic Coverage System

248. Money Leak #1: How School Leaders Can Unlock Hidden Revenue Through Space Optimization

247. 3 Money Truths School Leaders Must Face in 2025

246. Leading with Purpose and Profit: A Strategic Conversation with Kathy Ligon

245. Stop Getting on the Same Page: Why School Leaders Need Shared Standards, Not False Harmony

244. ECE Leadership Systems, Strength, & Sustainable Growth: A Behind-the-Scenes Conversation

243. The Mindset Shift Every ECE Leader Needs to Avoid Burnout

242. What You Tolerate in August Is What You’ll Be Cleaning Up in February

241. From Burnout to Boundaries: Redefining Female Leadership in Private Education

240. The 4 Phases of Tough Conversations: A Tactical Framework for School Owners and Directors

239. How to Double Enrollment: Simple Strategies Resulting in 68% Growth with No Paid Ads

238. Planning a Summer That Feeds Us: Marriage, Family, and the Rhythms That Hold

237. Redefining Essentials: What You Protect When the Pressure’s On

236. How Great Leaders Create the Energy They Need—Even When They’re Tired

235. You’ve Built the Systems. So Why Are You Still the Glue?

234. Faith, Leadership & Emotional Maturity: Navigating Life’s Hardest Seasons with Evelyn Knight

233. From Panic Mode to Peace of Mind: How One School Owner Stopped Being the Problem Solver

232. The Emotional Maturity Code: How Great Leaders Make Clear, Confident Decision

231. Drama-Free Schools Start With Design, Not Discipline

230. Decoding Your School Culture

229. The Strategic Growth Gear

228. The Parent Engagement Gear

227. The Staff Culture Gear

226. Be This, Not Just Buy This: Identity Marketing for Schools with Veronica Romney

225. The Financial Health Gear

224. The Enrollment Gear

223. The 5 Gears: Your School's Operating System

222. Your Enrollment Advantage

221. The 4 Silent Saboteurs of Enrollment: First Impressions, Trust, Confidence, and Follow-Through

220. Your Road Map to 25% Growth

219. Hedge Fund Parents: Why They're Rejecting Your Traditional School Model

218. The Enrollment Formula

217. The Daily Profit Plan: Your Hidden Enrollment Engine

216. The 4 Profit Blindspots: Why Good Schools Struggle Financially

215. The Enrollment Autopsy: Why Your School is Bleeding Out

214. The 3 Hidden Barriers to Enrollment

The Great School Enrollment Awakening

212. 6 Core Money Leaks in Childcare

211. How Top Schools Will Win in 2025

210. Dear Exhausted School Leader: Remember What You Actually Achieved

209. We Are Not Designed to do this Alone: Lessons from a School Leader who Found Contentment

208. From Overwhelmed to Organized: How One Leader Built Foundational Systems for Success

207. The New School Playbook

Quick Lesson: The Simple Framework to Enrollment Now

How to Take Care of Yourself When Everything Around You Feels Like It's on Fire

Sync the Calendar: The New School Playbook

Train Your Troops:The New School Playbook

Be Where They Are: The New School Playbook

Speak Their Language: The New School Playbook

Know Your Families: The New School Playbook

The Magic of Mentoring with Todd Herman

How to Get Out of the Day To Day

Healing from Pregnancy Loss: The Power of Support

Building Strong Foundations for Leadership & Growth with Melinda Elridge

How to Increase the Lifetime Value of Each Enrollment: Parent Retention

Retention Intelligence Framework: Transforming Exit Feedback into Strategic Solutions

Steady in the Storm: Leading Schools in a Contracted Economy

The REAL Cause of Your Profit and Enrollment Problems

How to Increase Enrollment THIS Month

From Overwhelmed to Thriving Leader with Stacey Smith

Audit Season: Maximizing Summer to Enhance School Leadership

How to Coach Staff when they are in a State of Helplessness

Tolerating Good Enough For Long Enough To Create Excellence

Navigating Conflicting Emotions Around Big Decisions

Veteran vs New Staff: Leadership and Decision Making

Veteran vs New Staff: Professional Development

Veteran vs New Staff: Parent and Child Engagement

Building a Culture of Excellence with Kathy Gray

Winning in the Dark: Shame and Anger

Winning in the Dark: Comparison

Winning in the Dark: Enoughness and Worthiness

178. How to Lead the Last Staff Meeting of the Year

177. Defining Your Own Success at the End of the School Year

176. A Path to Leadership Mastery with Cayla Rush

175. A Culture of Urgency: Creating the Calm

174. A Culture of Urgency: Recognizing the Patterns

173. The Invisible Labor of Decision Making

BONUS: Season of Life Reflective Questions

172. Respecting the Season of Life You're in

171. Redefining Leadership with Paige Kepner

170. The Paradox of School Leadership: Support

169. The Paradox of School Leadership: Control

168. The Paradox of School Leadership: Success

167. The Paradox of School Leadership: Choice

166. The Paradox of School Leadership

165. Values Driven Leadership with Catherine Doberstein

164. Timeless Leadership Insights with Simon Sinek

163. Preparing for Parent Teacher Conferences

162. 2024 ECE Forecast: Navigating Money Leaks & Investment Gaps

161. 2024 ECE Forecast: Cultivating Healthy Child Relationships

160. 2024 ECE Forecast: The Shifting Landscape of Parent Partnerships

159. 2024 ECE Forecast: Pioneering a New Era of Leadership

158. Shifting into Legacy-Minded Leadership with Mandy Moore

157. Building Strong Relationships in Leadership with The Little Foxes Team

156. Educating your Team on Reporting

155. How to Plan Travel as a Leader

154. Navigating Tough Talks: A Guide to Handling Termination Communication

153. Leadership and Letting Go: When is it Time to Say Goodbye?

152. The Fear of Firing: What is the True Cost?

151. Fighting Flu Season: How a Proactive Insurance Policy Makes a Difference

150. Creating a Culture of Growth & Gratitude Ashriel Huber

149. Your Distress Tolerance Staff Toolkit

148. Developing your Distress Tolerance as a School Leader

147. From Loss to Legacy

146. How to Create Your School Org Chart

Additional Tips on How to Plan for Chaos

145. Tolerating Good Enough For Long Enough To Create Excellence

144. The Ambition Equation: Balancing Passion, Purpose, and Practicality

143. Overcoming Overwhelm and Cultivating Confidence with Ashley Corthell

142. Preparing for the Chaos at the Start of the School Year

141. How to Prepare for the First Staff Meeting

140. The Pyramid of Excellence: Aligned and Legacy Stages

139. The Pyramid of Excellence: Integrated Stage

138. The Pyramid of Excellence: Disordered Stage

137. The Pyramid of Excellence: Survival Stage

136. The Pyramid of Excellence

135. Why Traditional ROI Doesn't Work for School Leaders

134. Navigating a Multigenerational Workforce

133. Stop Getting Caught Up In The Fairness Game

131. The Power of Emotional Intelligence in Leadership with Heather Chauvin

130. Does Your School Culture Foster Health or Burnout?

129. 5 Layers to Building a Culture of Retention: Promotion

128. 5 Layers to Building a Culture of Retention: Accountability

127. 5 Layers to Building a Culture of Retention: Contribution

126. 5 Layers to Building a Culture of Retention: Quality of Life

125. 5 Layers to Building a Culture of Retention: Gratitude & Community

124. Finding Investors for your Childcare Center with Kangarootime

123. Delegation Dip Part 3: Firing

122. Delegation Dip Part 2: Neglect

121. Delegation Dip Part 1: Micromanaging

120. Creating Excellent Experiences with HiMama

119. Founding Member to Confident Leader with Courtney Grenier

118. Decoding Your Culture Part 4: Using Feedforward to Build Skills

117. Decoding Your Culture Part 3: What is Emotionally Mature Leadership?

116. Decoding Your Culture Part 2: Indicators there is Drama in your Center

115. Decoding Your Culture Part 1: What is Culture?

114. Tripling Income for her Most Profitable Year with Aliyah Johnson-Roberts

113. How to Discern Which Events to Invest In & Attend

112. The Difference Between an Opportunity and a Distraction

111. Manuals to Modules with Beth Cannon

How to Raise Capital Funding with Scott Wayman from Kangarootime

The Journey of Becoming a Leader with Summer Picha from Conscious Classroom

How to Simplify and Streamline with Samantha Phillips & Chris Myers from Comploy

110. 2023 ECE Forecast: Experts Share Predictions and Trends Part 2

109. 2023 ECE Forecast: Experts Share Predictions and Trends Part 1

108. A Journey of Confidence and Legacy with Erin Owens

107. Utilizing Experiences, Rituals and Routines for Values Based Leadership

106. 6 Qualities of Being a Role Model

105. How to use Storytelling for Values Based Leadership

104. Boundaries to Prevent Over Planning this Holiday Season

103. Taking Back Control in your Center and Life with Sheila Smozynski

102. [Guest Share] Setting Expectations for and Connecting with Your Child Care Staff

101. Strategic Mapping for the School Year

100. The 3 M's that Create Stability and Security for your Team

99. Emotional Regulation: Create a Calm Confident Environment

98. Generosity: Giving Abundantly and Latitude For Mistakes

97. Discernment: Balance Self-Reliance and Asking for Help

96. Individual Advocacy: Empower the Team to Own Their Growth and Development

95. Relationship Intelligence - Navigate Conflict and Build Trust

From the Archive: The First Staff Meeting of the School Year

94. Boundaries: Create Space and Time to Hit Your Goals

93. The B.R.I.D.G.E Principles for Legacy and Leadership

Part 3: How to Prepare for the New School Year - Why Over Commitment Can Hurt Your Retention

92. Part 2: How to Prepare for the New School Year - Why Good Enough is a Lifeline

92. Part 1: How to Prepare for the New School Year - Anchors vs. Enhancers

91. Navigating Grief with Dr. Sherry Walling

90. How to Prioritize Positive Mental Wellbeing

89. You're Not The Only One: Leading The Team

How to Become a Better Decision Maker

88. You Are Not The Only One: Guiding the Parents

Creating and Nurturing Confident Staff

87. You Are Not The Only One: Leading Yourself

Skills to Build Awareness

86. Plan the New School Year with Wise Decision Making Filters

85. The Paradox of Self Reliance and Community

84: A Letter of Appreciation & Gratitude for Yourself

83. Strategies to Help your Staff Think Big Picture

From the Archive: How to Run the End of Year Staff Meeting with Reflective Questions

82. Priorities Reset: Reflect, Restore, Recast Part 2

81. Priorities Reset: Reflect, Restore and Recast Part 1

80. Build to Last: How to Navigate and Deal with Conflict

From the Archive: Teacher Appreciation Week

79. Build to Last: How to Build a Culture of Excellence

78. Build to Last: How to Manage your Time with Theme Days and Time Blocking

77. Build to Last: How to Improve your Mindset with Vision Casting and Decision Making

76. How to Mentor Veteran Staff

75. The Importance of Celebrating Milestones and Reflecting on our 1 Year Anniversary

74. The Myth of The Open Door Policy

73. The 5 Signs of a Thriving Leader and School

72. Difficult Conversations: Blame

71. The Gratitude Matrix: Achieve Higher Retention & Collaborative Culture for Your School

70: Reair: Break the Cycle of Excuses with Personal Accountability

69: How to Coach Staff to Navigate Conflict: Part 2

68. How to Coach Staff to Navigate Conflict: Part 1

67: Ordinary Moments: When is Enough Enough with Sharon Hopson

66. Ordinary Moments: Choosing Business and Family - You Can Have Both with Mandy Moore

65. Ordinary Moments: Choosing Focus Over Busyness with Aliya Roberts

64. Ordinary Moments: The Power of Difficult Conversations with Kathy Cameron

63. Ordinary Moments: The Cost of Doing it All with Jessica Kelley

62. Ordinary Moments: Transition from Manager to CEO with Sara Schreiner

61. Kind vs. Nice in your School Culture

60. An Exclusive Look Inside the Summit of Excellence

59. Boundaries During the Holidays

58. Break the Cycle of Excuses with Personal Accountability

57. Break the Cycle of Dependency with Effective Delegation

56. Break the Cycle of Stress and Burnout

55. 2 Mindset Shifts to Increase Retention

54. Work Ethic Redefined with Scott Wayman

53. Changing the Narrative of School Leadership with Daniel Bauer

52. Do You Feel More Satisfied When Your School Succeeds Because of You or Without You? With Lori Buxton

51. Up Level Staff QUICKLY!

50. Do you know HOW to stop and pause?

49. The 3-Step Marketing Method To Attract The Right Families For Your School with Mike Michalowicz

48. You Can’t Plan Your Way Out of Chaos

47. Are you living in time poverty or time abundance?

46. A 15 Minute Meeting with Yourself

45. Grace, Responsibility and Leadership

44. 5 Signs You Are Too Comfortable and Need to Take Some Risks

43. Set Up Your Staff for Success by Defining What Winning Looks Like

42. The first staff meeting of the school year

41. How to Create a Personal Leadership Philosophy

40. The 5 Signs of a Thriving Leader and School

39. The 8 Guideposts to Prepare for an Amazing School Year

38. How to Plan for Summer Using the IRER Method

37. Build Your Confidence & Resiliency Toolkit

36. Guest: Sally Haughey, Founder of FairyDust Teaching

35. Overcoming the Perfectionist Mindset and Focusing on the Process

34. Stories of Resilience with Sara Schreiner

33. Ideal Week for High Achieving School Leaders

32. Stories of Resilience with Jennifer Bulmer

31. The 6 types of support every leader needs and 4 things to look out for when choosing a coach

30. Build to Last Workshop: How to Navigate and Deal with Conflict and Impossible Conversations

29. Build to Last Workshop: How to Build a Culture of Excellence

28. Build to Last Workshop: Time Management: Theme Days and Time Blocking

27. Build to Last Workshop: Mindset: Vision Casting and Decision Making

26. 5 Reasons You Should Invest in Yourself and the #1 Reason Leaders Don’t

25. Stories of Resilience with Alex Bernath & Miken Oliver

24. How to Run the End of Year Staff Meeting with Reflective Questions

23. Stories of Resilience with Kathy Gray

22. 3 Pillars of a School of Excellence

21. Stories of Resilience with Kerstin Brinson

20. Difficult Conversations: Victimhood - Part 4

19. Stories of Resilience with Nicolene Santomartino

Stories of Resilience Trailer

18. Difficult Conversations: Deflection - Part 3

17. Teacher Appreciation Week

16. Bonus episode: Predictions & Cautions - Wrapping Up the School Year and Planning for Fall

15. Difficult Conversations: Crying - Part 2

14. Difficult Conversations: Blame - Part 1

13. 3 Ways to Transform Morale During this Season

12. The Daily Huddle

11. Why I Date My Kids

10. Q&A With Chanie - Build to Last Workshop, Day 5

09. Work/Life Integration: Build to Last Workshop, Day 4

08. Ten Ways to Build School Culture: Build to Last Workshop, Day 3

07. Theme Days & Time Blocking: Build to Last Workshop, Day 2

06. Vision Casting & Decision Making: Build to Last Workshop, Day 1

05. The Primary Role of a School Leader

04: The Myth of The Open Door Policy

03: The Gratitude Matrix: Achieve Higher Retention & Collaborative Culture for Your School

02: The Pyramid of Excellence: Five Stages of Growth for Your School

01: The Ripple Effect: It Starts With You

Welcome to the Schools of Excellence Podcast