Leadership is often imagined as something elevated—a title, a crown, a position of power. But anyone who has truly led people knows leadership can feel heavy. When it’s rooted in admiration or control, it becomes exhausting to sustain. William J. Bennett reminds us that the only crown worn with comfort is the crown of service. When leaders start with service rather than status, trust grows, pressure eases, and leadership becomes something carried with humility, not defended w

Grit has long been praised as the key to success, but willpower alone is not enough. Angela Duckworth’s recent research introduces situational agency—the ability to design environments that make desired behaviors easier and distractions harder. For school leaders reflecting midyear or setting intentions for 2026, combining grit with situational agency offers a more sustainable path to focus, presence, and progress.