The Empowered Principal® Podcast

As educators and school leaders, we often pour our hearts into our work, only to sometimes feel that our efforts aren't fully appreciated. This tension between service and appreciation reveals a deeper truth about where we seek validation and how it impacts our ability to lead and teach effectively.   When staff members feel unappreciated, whether they're teachers facing demanding parents or support staff feeling overlooked, there's a fundamental shift happening in their sense of identity and empowerment. The challenge here isn't just about getting more appreciation. It’s about understanding why we need it and what happens when we don't get it the way we expect.   Tune in this week to discover practical ways to help your staff reconnect with their internal validation and professional identity. I share strategies for creating a culture of equal value where every role is recognized as an essential puzzle piece. Most importantly, you'll learn how to guide your team back to appreciating themselves first, making external recognition the cherry on top rather than the foundation of their professional worth.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/406   Get in touch with me:  https://www.facebook.com/akellycoaching/ https://www.instagram.com/angelakellycoaching/?hl=en https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-kelly-robeck-57774835

When was the last time you thought about your emotional fitness? Just like physical muscles need regular exercise to stay strong, our social-emotional skills require consistent practice to serve us when we need them most. But here's the thing - many educators are trying to teach SEL without first developing their own emotional literacy.   This week, I’m joined by Lori Woodley-Langendorff, a 32-year veteran school counselor, co-founder of nonprofit All It Takes, and author of SEL Muscle Mastery, for an honest conversation about managing our emotional responses as school leaders and how this social and emotional foundation is the bedrock that makes learning possible.   Join us on this episode to discover how vulnerability and emotional connection unlock learning in ways that control never could. Lori and I examine why SEL often fails when treated as compliance rather than literacy, and she shares how teaching SEL skills transforms not just student behavior, but educator wellbeing.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/405   Get in touch with me:  https://www.facebook.com/akellycoaching/ https://www.instagram.com/angelakellycoaching/?hl=en https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-kelly-robeck-57774835

School leaders everywhere know the feeling – you've been pushing the boulder up the mountain since August, giving 200% to launch the school year successfully. The adrenaline that carried you through the first weeks starts to fade, and suddenly you're wondering how you'll sustain this pace or create any kind of work-life balance.   This conversation with Steven Langer, former principal and CEO of Well by Design, comes at the perfect time. Steven brings a refreshing perspective on sustainable leadership that challenges the traditional notion of work-life balance.   His journey from walking school hallways with a clipboard (sometimes just to look busy while his mind was on overwhelm) to transforming a struggling school's culture offers practical wisdom for every educational leader facing the intensity of a new school year.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/404

Here's something that might surprise you: Some of the most innovative educational leaders come from unexpected backgrounds.   This week, I'm speaking with Deepali Deshmukh, a school leader whose journey from biochemist to head of school challenges everything we think we know about educational credentials. Her story proves that your unique perspective isn't just valid. It’s valuable.   Join us on this episode to discover why your "non-traditional" background might actually be your secret weapon in leadership, and how Deepali transformed her science background into leadership strengths. Her story reveals that the solution to imposter syndrome isn't trying to fit into someone else's shoes - it's bringing your authentic self and unique talents to create something that didn't exist before.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/403

I just returned from hosting my first-ever EP Alive event, and let me tell you, it was nothing like your typical education conference.   I'm joined by three remarkable principals, Erin, Kay, and Sherry, who attended EP Alive 2025. Together, we created something that redefined professional development: no boring conference rooms, no eight-hour PowerPoint marathons, just real conversations by the fire pit, morning yoga sessions, sailing adventures, and breakthrough moments that shifted how we see ourselves as leaders and humans.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/402

As a school leader, do you often feel responsible for everyone's happiness, success, and challenges?   If you're nodding your head, you're not alone. Many principals carry the weight of their entire school community on their shoulders. But here's the thing: there's a crucial difference between being responsible and taking ownership that could be game-changing for your leadership approach.   Tune in this week to discover the crucial distinction between ownership and responsibility, and why this is one of the most critical concepts for school leaders to understand.    Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/401

School leadership often brings us to our knees in ways we never anticipated.    When everything feels like it's falling apart, when the blame feels justified and the pain feels unbearable, that's precisely when our true leadership capacity gets tested. In this deeply personal 400th episode, I share my journey through divorce and devastation to demonstrate what relentless responsibility looks like in practice.   This milestone episode reveals the raw truth about choosing empowerment when every fiber of your being wants to abdicate responsibility.    Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/400

The beginning of a new school year brings a familiar flood of tasks, responsibilities, and mental chatter that can make you feel like you're drowning in urgency.    In this episode, I'm exploring the reality that you are only ever doing one thing at a time, despite what your brain tells you about multitasking and efficiency.    As you prepare for the upcoming school year, join me today to discover how to use this time as a window into your leadership pattern. You’ll learn how, by focusing on the one thing in front of you, you can build your capacity for the emotions that come with the work. This fresh start is your opportunity to practice relentless responsibility for your time, energy, and outcomes.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/399

Have you ever found yourself caught in an endless back-and-forth with a challenging staff member? You know the type - where no matter what you say or do, it feels like you're being pulled into a defensive game of "prove you're right"?   Tune in this week as I share a powerful metaphor that's changing how principals handle difficult conversations: instead of playing tug of war, drop the rope.   You'll discover how to recognize when people are using blame as a delay tactic, why defensiveness keeps you locked in unproductive battles, and most importantly, how to maintain your alignment without needing anyone else to validate your perspective.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/398

The business of education is the business of creating impact.   School leaders step into their roles with dreams of transformation, yet impact doesn't automatically materialize with credentials or titles. It emerges through conscious creation - a co-creation between you and a higher power when you're tuned in and aligned with yourself.    Join me this week to learn how the path to creating lasting impact involves processing emotions in real time rather than avoiding them. You'll discover how to separate your identity from others' behaviors and criticisms, fuel your desire for impact even when facing injustice, and decide whether this is your season for transformation or restoration.    Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/397

School leaders everywhere face a critical decision as they plan for the upcoming year: tackle every problem that needs fixing or focus on what truly matters.    The pressure to improve student attendance, boost test scores, enhance behavior management systems, and implement multiple district initiatives simultaneously creates an impossible burden that leads to burnout and resentment across entire school communities. The reality is that while you can improve anything you want this year, you cannot improve everything you want.   This episode explores the fundamental difference between "everything planning" and "anything planning" - a distinction that could transform how you approach the 2025-26 school year.    Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/396

Are you caught in the endless cycle of deadlines, to-do lists, and meetings?   If you're like most school leaders, you probably measure your success by how many tasks you complete and deadlines you meet. But here's the truth: that approach is keeping you stuck in a loop of doing without ever feeling truly accomplished.   As we enter a new school year, I'm inviting leaders to shift from purely deadline-driven planning to outcome-based vision that considers not just what needs to be done, but who we need to be while doing it.    Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/395

School leaders constantly face situations where they need to expand their skills, build new systems, or navigate challenging conversations. The natural response is often to look outside ourselves for answers, seeking the exact steps someone else took to achieve success. But this external search for solutions can actually limit our growth and keep us from tapping into the wisdom and expertise we already possess.   In this episode, I explore why we ask "how" questions and what they reveal about our beliefs in our own capabilities. I share three powerful options for handling those moments when your brain offers up questions like "How do I build culture?" or "How do I manage my time?" And you’ll learn an approach that will transform the way you view your own expertise.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/394

The chaos dial in your mind is turned all the way up. Your nervous system is hijacked by the latest crisis, your thoughts are racing through solutions that feel impossible, and your body is vibrating with an intensity that no amount of positive thinking can override.    This is the reality of school leadership - where the challenges pile up faster than the successes register, and where your mind's ability to coach itself through the overwhelm sometimes falls short.    In this special episode, I'm offering something completely different from my usual teaching and strategies. This is an empowerment meditation - a tool I've been using since 2022 when my own identity began to crumble in what I call an "identity quake.” This meditation is designed for those moments when your emotional reaction is more powerful than your ability to redirect your thoughts.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/393

When parents storm into your office demanding that you eliminate all conflict from their child's school experience, they're operating from a place of fierce love and limited perspective. They see their kindergartener struggling with a classmate or their fifth grader being harassed, and their protective instincts kick into overdrive.   Suddenly you're being asked to create an impossible reality where children never experience discomfort, rejection, or disagreement. These situations reveal a fundamental gap between what parents expect (no conflict ever) and what we know as educators about human development. So, as a school leader, what are your options here?   Tune in this week to explore how to shift conversations with parents from conflict elimination to conflict navigation, helping them understand that conflict serves a crucial developmental purpose when we equip children with the right tools to handle it. On top of that, what I share today can be applied to conflict at all levels, from kindergarteners through to your teaching staff.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/392

Disclaimer: Please be advised that this episode contains content related to crisis situations. If these topics are challenging for you, you may wish to skip this episode or seek support.   When students are struggling with everything from friendship drama to thoughts of self-harm, the gap between needing help and getting it can feel insurmountable. And school leaders carry the weight of hundreds or thousands of students' well-being on their shoulders, knowing they can't possibly reach every child who needs support.   In this episode, I'm joined by Iuri Melo, a licensed clinical social worker and founder of School Pulse, to discuss a proactive approach to student mental health that's transforming how schools support their students. After losing seven students to suicide in his Southern Utah community in 2017, Iuri and his team developed a text-based support system that connects students with trained professionals 365 days a year. The service emerged from a principal's desperate plea for tools that could reach students before crisis struck, not just react after tragedy occurred.   Listen in to hear how, through real-time text conversations initiated twice weekly, School Pulse creates a bridge between students and support that feels safe, accessible, and immediate.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/391

Leadership requires processing both professional and personal experiences, particularly when faced with injustice.   As school leaders, we encounter unfairness in various forms - from promotion decisions to resource allocation to systemic inequities affecting our students and families. I've found that managing these experiences requires understanding how our minds and bodies respond to perceived injustice.   In this episode, I share practical insights for acknowledging and safely expressing these difficult emotions without causing harm to ourselves or others. While solutions aren't always available, we can learn to validate our experiences, maintain our personal power, and find healthy ways to process these universal human experiences that impact us as leaders.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/390

Test scores rolling in can trigger intense emotions and identity crises for school leaders. As principals, we intellectually understand that standardized tests are just one measure of student growth and school success. Yet when scores arrive, we can't help but attach deep meaning to these numbers and worry about how they'll be interpreted by staff, families, and district leadership.   Through sports analogies and real-world examples, I explore why we shouldn't let a single data point define our identity as educational leaders. Just as elite athletes aren't defined by one game's outcome, principals and schools can't be reduced to a single test score. Our capacity to lead, inspire, and create positive change comes from within - not from external metrics.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/389

Finding balance between fun and structure after end-of-year testing can be a real challenge. As school leaders, we often notice a clear shift in energy, behaviors, and routines once testing concludes, leaving many of us struggling to maintain consistency while still allowing for meaningful closure and celebration.   In this episode, I share ways to help teachers plan activities that build life skills, encourage reflection, and maintain clear expectations, all while embracing the celebratory spirit of the year’s end. Whether you’re still in session or planning ahead for next year, this episode will help you rethink what’s possible in the final weeks of school.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/388

As we reach the end of another school year, I'm focusing on an essential leadership practice that many principals overlook - creating meaningful closure. This process isn't just about completing tasks and checking boxes, it's about intentionally reflecting on our accomplishments and growth throughout the year.   Tune in this week as I explore why many school leaders resist celebrating their accomplishments, and how this resistance impacts our ability to model self-reflection for our staff and students. By examining our relationship with celebration and redefining what it means to acknowledge our work, we can create powerful closure practices that benefit our entire school community.   Find the full episode show notes and transcript, click here: https://angelakellycoaching.com/387