As the year comes to a close, great leaders don’t just move on—they pause, reflect, and intentionally prepare for what’s next. In this episode, Ryan Steuer shares a powerful four-bucket reflection protocol used at Magnify Learning to help leadership teams identify what’s working, what’s broken, what’s confusing, and what truly mattered most.

This simple but effective structure can be used at the end of a school year, quarter, or major initiative—and it creates clarity, trust, and momentum for the future.

Leaders begin by naming the practices, systems, and initiatives that genuinely moved the work forward.

Examples include:

This step reinforces progress, boosts morale, and helps teams identify what should continue.

Next, teams openly name systems or processes that didn’t work as intended.

These might include:

This bucket invites honest feedback without judgment and signals that leadership is listening—and willing to improve systems, not blame people.

Confusion often hides beneath the surface, especially in complex systems. This bucket creates language for naming unclear expectations or mixed messages.

Common examples include:

Addressing confusion strengthens trust and prevents frustration from turning into disengagement.

The final bucket captures what filled people’s cups—the moments that mattered most.

Favorites often include:

This bucket reveals what motivates the team and where leaders should invest more energy moving forward.

Ryan emphasizes that many issues—especially confusion—can be resolved immediately once surfaced. Over time, this protocol becomes part of the team’s culture, not just an annual exercise.

Leaders can run it individually first, then with teams to maximize insight and impact.

PBL Readiness Scorecard: Assess your school or district’s readiness for Project Based Learning and receive personalized next steps at pblscore.com