Meet Ben Jones, arguably the University of Georgia’s #1 football fan (Go Dawgs!), Mexican food connoisseur, and proud principal of Shiloh Point elementary.

Now prior to joining The Ruckus Maker Mastermind™, Ben’s leadership experience was a common one.

It was isolated and lonely.

And it only got more isolating when he moved from AP to principal. 

And it wasn’t like Ben wasn’t connected. Ben had participated in other leadership development programs like Learn Forward and enjoyed the experience. 

He also was assigned a mentor as an AP, someone he still talks to on a weekly basis. As well as another mentor from the county he’d meet with monthly.

Even with that support Ben felt, “I was the only one doing the work. I felt like I really couldn't talk to anybody and that was really hard.”

So Ben wanted to change that.

One thing that irritates me about Play-It-Safe-Principals is that stopped being learners. They love to call themselves “Lead Learners” but in reality they are anything but that.

Not Ben however. He is a lead learner. He’s a Ruckus Maker.

So a big draw to The Ruckus Maker Mastermind™ for Ben was the emphasis we put on reading.

Yes we read different leadership books throughout the year.

But the real learning is from the discussions about leadership and education throughout a mastermind meeting.

In Ben’s words:

And then there’s the hot seat – a time when a leader briefly shares the context of a current challenge they face and the mastermind helps them solve the challenge.

You’d think the real value is getting your challenge solved when you sit on the hot seat. And that is valuable.

But the real learning happens when you help your peer and get an inside look in how other leaders think about and approach challenges.

Sitting on the hot seat, Ben has solved some thorny problems.

But Ben wasn’t always confident that The Ruckus Maker Mastermind™ would work for him. With eleven cohorts serving leaders around the world, many cohorts have been together for a long time.

So Ben wondered, “What are the group norms? What's sure, no. Are we super serious? Can we be funny? Like, what's going on?”

And an even deeper question: “Will I be accepted by the group?”

Those fears quickly subsided because as Ben shared, “Everyone is so welcoming. Everyone was great and kind. Looking back I see those fears were unrealistic.”

So how has life changed for Ben after joining the mastermind and becoming a successful principal?

School Leadership will never be easy, but it can be easier.

All you need is a group of caring, thoughtful, and wise leaders to connect with.

You’ll get that and so much more when you join The Ruckus Maker Mastermind™.

Fill out your application today and the BLBS team will follow up within 48-hours to let you know if you’ve been accepted: 

https://www.betterleadersbetterschools.com/mastermind-application/