Most school leaders don’t burn out because they lack passion, skill, or commitment.

They burn out because they’re trying to lead with depleted reserves — pushing through days, weeks, and months without enough physical, emotional, or mental capacity left to sustain the work.

After nearly 20 years in school leadership, I’ve learned this the hard way: managing your energy matters more than managing your time.

Most leaders only manage the latter if they manage anything at all.

Calendars are important, but depleted bodies, overloaded minds, and constant emotional strain eventually lead to burnout.

If leadership has felt heavier lately, it may help to look at your work through three kinds of energy.

Physical energy is your body’s capacity to meet the daily demands.

Sleep matters, but so do nutrition, movement, and paying attention to the signals your body sends when it’s under strain.

Many leaders push past those signals until their bodies crash — I learned that lesson the hard way and ended up on a stress leave.

Sustainable leadership starts with listening to the body.

This is your capacity for the emotional labor leadership demands: difficult conversations, supporting staff, discipline meetings with angry parents, and whatever crisis walks into your office next.

Emotional energy drains most quickly when leadership becomes purely reactive.

When everything feels urgent, there’s little room left for reflection, care, or steady decision-making.

The key is protecting and pacing yourself.

Your ability to think clearly, prioritize well, and stay focused on what moves the school forward depends entirely on mental energy.

But that energy gets consumed by inboxes, interruptions, and constant context-switching.

When it’s depleted, even routine decisions feel exhausting, and strategic thinking or deep work slips out of reach.

Resilient leaders build systems that defend their thinking.

Leaders who thrive long-term have grit.

But that’s not all.

They create intentional systems to protect and replenish all three types of energy.

That’s the shift from survival to sustainability.

You didn’t become a school leader just to get through the week.

You stepped into this role to lead meaningful change for students, for staff, and for your community.

That work requires a leader who is present, energized, and focused on what matters most.

That’s exactly what The Resilient Leader is designed to help you do.

Each week, we’ll gather for an hour where I’ll teach practical tools, we’ll practice together, and there will be space for coaching and reflection.

Ready to begin?

👉 Click here to join The Resilient Leader.

Every leader experiences times in the week when they are at their peak energy: moments when thinking feels clearer, patience comes more easily, and judgment sharpens.

The challenge is that many school leaders inadvertently spend these precious windows answering emails, addressing minor issues, or responding to others' urgent requests.

This week, consider a different approach.

First, identify your peak energy window.

For many leaders, it's the first 90 minutes of the day, though this varies.

Pay attention to when you feel most focused and centered.

Second, reserve that time for work that moves your school forward.

Strategic planning, designing PD, having meaningful conversations with staff, or tackling important projects will create a lasting impact.

During this window, avoid email, unscheduled interruptions, and multitasking.

Even 30–45 protected minutes can make a significant difference.

Third, intentionally schedule lower-stakes tasks for lower-energy hours.

Emails, administrative forms, logistics, and routine decisions don't require your best thinking, they simply need to get done.

Here's the takeaway: Sustainable leadership is about investing your best energy where it generates the greatest return.

When leaders spend their peak hours on shallow work, they often end the week feeling exhausted and unfulfilled.

When they protect their energy for strategic work, leadership begins to feel purposeful again.

So perhaps “the fix” is smarter energy management.

Try this approach for a week and let me know how it goes.

Or, better yet, join The Resilient Leader and pick up a toolkit to help you have your best year ever!