Ever feel like work is taking over every facet of your life? Or you are moody, cranky and just a wreck at home and at school? We hear that! And we've been there. Work and life balance is a challenge for those of us in education and educational leadership. Work/life balance isn't something you achieve and can check off your list. It's something you are constantly having to monitor and make adjustments depending on the season of your life. Join Karen and Christy this week as they share some stories from personal experience as well as tips they've picked up along the way from other scholars in the field of time management.

Be prepared for a different kind of podcast today. With some unexpected news for Christy this month, we decided to dedicate a special episode to when unexpected change occurs in your career. After four years at one elementary school, Christy is moving to another within her district. In this Q & A session, Karen and Christy uncover initial reactions and start to brainstorm plans to move forward. We discuss the importance of vulnerability and honesty in your professional journey. If you've ever experienced unexpected change in your work, this episode of the pod is for you!

In this episode of The Modern Principal Podcast, Karen and Christy share what they've learned about navigating communication in the Covid pandemic to other crises. Whether they are big and long-lasting, or small and quick, every crisis requires communication, and TMP helps you find proactive ways to prevent mistakes and also how to be more responsive in the reactive moments you can't prepare for. They'll cover defining crises, training your staff, and how to ensure you're providing communication, even when it doesn't seem like there is anything to share. 

Building leadership teams is an essential component to a principal's effectiveness, but how do you ensure the team is the most effective it can be? Karen and Christy reflect on their own lessons learned in teamwork, as well as, use the expertise from researcher, Bill McKeever (Nine Lessons of Successful School Leadership Teams), to uncover the best wisdom in developing the leadership team's success. They'll cover the people to include on the team, the types of tasks with which to engage, and tips for the principal in managing a team of leaders. 

This is one of the most commonly-asked questions we get at The Modern Principal, "How do you celebrate and support your staff, especially now in a pandemic?" For sure, teachers need morale boosters and a positive work environment, but even more than that, teachers need their leaders to advocate for, support, listen to, and trust them. On this episode of The Modern Principal Podcast, Christy and Karen discuss the morale boosters - sharing some of our favorites - that keep the good vibes flowing. We also share the ways school leaders can empower and support teachers and what research says is the best way to retain your quality staff. Join us! Subscribe and rate!

Christy and Karen tackle another scenario this week that appears to be about troubles with collaboration. As they dig deeper, however, it's revealed that one individual is hindering the forward progress and impact of the team. Using our systems, scholar, and soul approach, The Modern Principal creates a plan to address the root of the issue, not just the surface behaviors (but we address those, too!). Take a listen as we dive into differentiated supervision, direct conversations, and helping all teachers unlock their potential for their students. 

Karen and Christy tackle a scenario sent from a listener - what happens when visitors are consistently impolite to to staff members? Using scholar, system, and soul, The Modern Principal deep dives the research and our experience to share proactive and reactive strategies to invest in our families for long-term relationships. 

Karen and Christy of The Modern Principal reflect on a scenario submitted by a listener: A new admin team takes over after the previous principal had been in the building for 15 years and had much different expectations. The staff is rejecting lesson plan requirements, questioning new philosophies of student abilities, and generally has low morale. Listen for how to use scholar, systems, and soul to help problem-solve this complex and real-life scenario.