Stop Saying Yes to These 8 Things

Author

Danny Bauer
May 18, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes

Hey — It’s Danny.

My favorite quote on culture goes like this …

“People make choices and choices make culture”

-John Amaechi

Today’s main article focuses on creating the kind of culture you want to see.

And provides 3 easy ways to get there (plus one free tool).

First time reading? Sign up here and join 5,463 Ruckus Makers Doing Do School Different 🎉

OFF CAMPUS

Here we want to share the best content, news, and resources found this week. Add commentary, summaries or takeaways in 1-2 sentences. In this section we’ll feature our podcast, any content we produce on social, and other people too … Always promote the podcast first

  • 💜 Trust your ILE: ILE stands for “Inner Leadership Expert and on this week’s podcast one of our mastermind members talks about how she has learned to trust her intuition.

  • 🐶 Cute: If you’re having a ruff week, watch this. Alba approved.

  • 😳 Oh boy: What’s the most absurd question a parent has asked you? 519 educators weigh in here on that one.

  • 🤼 Woooo: What happens when you mix Ric Flair + Education? WrestleEd™. I can’t believe this is really happening.

A MESSAGE FROM EDUCATION TO CHANGE THE WORLD

Most schools feel stuck in a false choice …

Test scores or well-being.

Rigor or relevance.

Coverage or deep understanding.

What if you didn’t have to choose?

Learning That Transfers gives you the framework to build real academic power and lifelong learners.

This isn't theory. It's a battle-tested system—created by John Hattie’s go-to expert on learning transfer.

Want proof?

Download Chapter 1 for free 👇

You’ll discover how to help students:

  • Build deep, durable knowledge

  • Spot patterns across subjects

  • Apply what they learn to the real world

No fluff. No jargon. Just what works.

Ready to stop trading depth for scores?

DO SCHOOL DIFFERENT

Inspiration Is Not a Strategy: Ruckus Makers Build Systems

Your staff doesn't need another "hang in there" poster or rah-rah speech.

They need you to Make a Ruckus.

While Play-It-Safe-Principals are busy quoting motivational memes in faculty meetings, Ruckus Makers know better.

If education ain't a bit disruptive, then what are your teachers really learning?

The Culture Trap Most Principals Fall Into

Let's be real for a second.

You gather your staff in the library. Share that Simon Sinek TED Talk for the fifth time. Everyone nods along, feeling momentarily energized about your "why."

Then Monday hits, and it's the same draining meetings, the same toxic behaviors, and the same culture-crushing bureaucracy.

That's not leadership.

That's educational theater.

And your teachers can smell the difference from a mile away.

Why Most School Culture Initiatives Fail Spectacularly

The dirty little secret about school culture?

Inspiration without execution is just another empty promise in a profession filled with them.

Your teachers have been:

  • Promised "collaboration time" (that immediately gets hijacked by district initiatives)

  • Told "self-care matters" (while being handed another binder of compliance tasks)

  • Assured "we value your input" (before implementing exactly what the district mandated)

Good vibes are no match for broken systems.

And no amount of motivational YouTube clips can overcome structural dysfunction.

The Ruckus Maker's Guide to Culture That Actually Sticks

When I was principal, I discovered something revolutionary:

Systems are the scaffolding that hold up your culture. They don't replace emotion. They amplify it.

While other principals were busy creating "mission statement committees," Ruckus Makers do things differently.

We install structures that reinforce inspiration and make our values impossible to ignore.

Do School Different: The 3-Part Culture System

Want to transform your school from "surviving until summer" to "thriving all year"?

Here's how Ruckus Makers do it:

1. The 15-Minute Impact Check-In

  • Meet with each teacher for 15 minutes every two weeks or month.

  • Ask only two questions: "What's working?" and "What's in your way?"

  • Then shut up and actually listen (this part matters).

Watch teacher retention jump with these intentional check-ins.

2. The Value-Driven Spotlight

  • Create a public, consistent way to recognize staff living your values

  • Make it specific: "Ms. Johnson demonstrated our 'courage' value when she..."

  • Do it weekly and never miss (consistency beats intensity every time)

🔦 If you need help with this, download the FREE Positive Spotlight Tool here.

3. The Monthly Culture Pulse

  • Pick ONE emotional metric that matters: belonging, clarity, or growth

  • Measure it simply (1-5 scale) every month

  • Talk about the results openly with staff

When teachers see you measuring something beyond test scores, they know you actually care.

It's Time To Make A Ruckus

The system is designed for compliance, not culture.

Traditional professional development tells principals to inspire teachers with words.

Ruckus Makers know better.

We build systems that make living our values the default, not the exception.

If your teachers are leaving the building at 3:01 PM, it's not because they lack "grit" or "passion." It's because your systems haven't made it worth staying.

🤔 (read that last line again)

Stop playing school.

Start Making a Ruckus.

If your approach to school culture isn't making someone a little uncomfortable, are you really preparing students for a world that doesn't exist yet?

TIP OF THE WEEK

8 Things You Can Stop Right Now

The best principals aren’t working harder. They’re just doing fewer dumb things.

When I first became a principal, I thought leadership meant saying yes to everything.

“Yes, I’ll take that call.”

“Yes, I’ll respond tonight.”

“Yes, let’s add that meeting to the calendar.”

It made me look helpful.

It also made me exhausted.

But here’s the thing … Saying yes to everything is how you burn out.

Saying no with intention? That’s how you lead.

Here Are 8 Habits I’ve Unlearned (And Every Ruckus Maker Should Too):

1. Unscheduled calls are ambushes.

If I don’t know you, I don’t answer. That’s not rude. That’s respecting the priorities I already committed to.

2. Email is not where the day begins or ends.

Check your email first and it becomes your to-do list. Check it last and it becomes your insomnia. Either way, it wins. You lose.

3. “Can we meet?” isn’t enough anymore.

If there’s no agenda, no goal, and no stop time—it’s not a meeting. It’s a sinkhole.

4. “How’s it going?” is how people steal 20 minutes.

I lead with, “What’s up?” and keep it moving. Not because I don’t care, but because I do—about everyone’s time.

5. Inbox zero is a trap.

I batch. I triage. I respond like it’s 1997 again. Constant checking is the illusion of productivity—it’s digital fidgeting.

6. Not every squeaky wheel deserves oil.

Some stakeholders drain 80% of your time and bring 0% of your school’s mission to life. Know who they are. Act accordingly.

7. Overwhelm isn’t a sign to work more.

It’s a sign to work differently. One priority per day beats juggling ten. Let some plates drop so the right ones can spin.

8. Your job can’t give you what your life is missing.

Schedule joy. Protect rest. Be a whole human. Because burned-out leaders don’t build legendary schools.

ALBA

CLASS DISMISSED

Most School Leaders Want a Stronger Culture. Ruckus Makers Actually Build One.

They don’t just talk about values.

They install systems that make those values real.

That’s why they’re in the Top 1% of principals leading campuses people never want to leave.

This week we unpacked the habits that drain your time and the mindsets that keep staff disengaged.

You already know what’s not working.

The real question is:

What would change if you had a playbook, a world-class peer group, and a coach in your corner?

What if you stopped solving the same problems alone …

And built a school culture you’re proud of every day?

If you’re reading this, you're invited.

🔗 Apply to the Ruckus Maker Mastermind now.

We’re accepting ten new members this month. Three new members joined in the last two weeks.

Don’t wait. The next level of your leadership starts here.

Keep Making a Ruckus,

Danny

How did you like today's newsletter?

Login or Subscribe to participate in polls.

Reply

or to participate.