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Colleagues, Today’s message is not from my GREAT discussion with Katie Powell (you should definitely listen, it might be the best episode of 2026). Instead, I’ll build on yesterday in which I said the value of upgrading my website needed to be more valuable than the other things I am already doing. Remember, motivation = value/effort, so it isn’t just about the value. I am in a mastermind group with a business coach and five colleagues who also run their own businesses. This month, we are taking turns breaking down each others’ websites. I’m up next week. I will get a lot of feedback on my current website. That feedback will make it easier for me to upgrade my website because I will have concrete guidance. SO, lowering the effort will increase my motivation even given the relative value compared to other things I do. Stated another way, when we make something easier, we make it more likely a person will do it. I know, this sounds so obvious, but how often do we try to motivate people through emotion or coercion instead of just making it easier? I’m happy to acknowledge Kaleidoscope Adventures as a sponsor of yesterday’s episode of The Assistant Principal Podcast! I appreciate their support and encourage you to connect with them if you are thinking about planning a school trip!  Cheers!
Frederick
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Colleagues, This week Katie Powell and I breakdown motivation. This is a sector agnostic episode – if you want to learn and reflect more about motivation, regardless of your context, this is a GREAT episode! Katie and I come at motivation from slightly different perspectives, which compliment each other well. This is one of my favorite interviews of 2026, so consider listening on Apple or Spotify. One thing we talk about is capacity. If motivation equals value divided by effort, and someone is already working at full capacity (like most of us are), then motivating them means the value of what you want them to do must be greater than the value of everything else they are already doing! Example: if someone is trying to motivate me to improve my website (it needs it) but I am already working more hours than I would like (I am), then the value to me of a better website must be greater than all of these:
At this moment, if someone could convince me that upgrading my website would help get more speaking gigs, then it might become more important than reaching out to prospective clients, because I only have the capacity to do one of these! What about you? Is there something you really should do, but there are too many other higher value things that get in your way? I’d love to hear from you. Thanks again to IXL for sponsoring today’s episode!  Cheers!
Frederick Colleagues,
Last week I had three long conversations with educational leaders in which they reflected deeply on their year. These weren’t scheduled coaching sessions, they were just conversations with people I know or am getting to know. During the school year, 10 minutes is a long conversation, but these were 60-90-minute sessions. Why? Because in the midst of the urgency, we don’t make time to reflect. The bitter irony is that reflection in the midst of the chaos would have a more positive impact than reflection after the storm has passed. Cheers! Frederick Colleagues,
Reminder to myself: It’s difficult to be patient. You have a plan, you work your plan, but there are always hiccups and detours. It is the nature of growth and change. Certainly, be willing to reassess and adapt, but don’t quit when things don’t work. Trust in your process, take a deep breath, and continue. Cheers! Frederick Colleagues,
I made some adjustments to my keynote speech, The Motivation Equation, when I gave it in Orlando last week. The motivation equation is motivation = value/effort. When we meet resistance, it just means the person does not see the value of what we want them to do as being worth the effort it will take to do it. The power in the concept is that we can stop judging people and begin to get curious about how they are making the calculation. At the end of the speech, I added a call to action that included three questions:
I asked them because:
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