A twenty-plus-year educator, Nathan Barber has served in a number of roles including teacher, coach and administrator. He currently serves as a high school principal at an independent school in Houston. Barber has written and published thirteen books, mostly in the field of education, along with a novel called Resurrecting Lazarus, Texas. Barber’s most recent project, What Teachers Can Learn from Sports Coaches: A Playbook of Instructional Strategies, rolled off the presses in August of 2014.

 

Nathan shares a little about his family, background, and hobbies, including his love of riding mountain bikes in the trails all over Houston (2:18)

Nathan discusses the latest book he has written, What Teachers Can Learn From Sports Coaches, the stereotypes about coaches in education, and why he was inspired to write the book (3:30)

Are you thinking of writing a book?  Nathan has a lot of great advice for you (6:20)

Practical advice for time and life management for education professionals (9:43)

The internal and external rewards of writing 14 books and how they apply in your life (13:00)

Nathan’s career path from college to school administrator (15:25)

When and why Nathan made the switch from teacher to administrator (and his biggest fear about making the change) (18:12)

Adjusting to the different dynamics that come into play when a teacher moves into administration, which can be very difficult to handle (20:36)

Some of the biggest challenges Nathan faced in the transition from teaching to admin (22:15)

Some practical tips for managing the stress that comes with the transition (25:14)

Some of the greatest moments of Nathan’s career in education (30:30)

How your impact on a school will change when you move from teaching into administration, and how to stay connected to students and teachers after moving into admin (34:26)

How to bring your team together to work toward the same goal (38:03)

The greatest leadership advice Nathan has ever received involves three questions (39:45)

The ability to build relationships and take care of team members is critical (40:51)

Nathan’s advice for school administrators on working with students (42:10)

His advice for school administrators on working with the teachers in your school (43:25)

Tips for building and fostering great relationships with students, teachers and parents (44:14)

How to be fully present no matter what’s going on in other areas of your life (45:15)

Here’s the advice Nathan would give his younger self if he could travel back in time to when he was just starting out in school administration (47:38)

 

Books and authors mentioned in this episode

Todd Whitaker

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t

How The Mighty Fall: And Why Some Companies Never Give In

 

Connect with Nathan Barber

Twitter

Website

 

 

About EducatorsLead:

Educators Lead is a podcast created to help launch educators into the next level of leadership. This show is for you if you are interested in educational leadership as an assistant principal, principal, superintendent, teacher or someone who hopes to be a school leader one day. Educators Lead offers inspiration and practical advice to help you lead more effectively. Jay Willis interviews school leaders three days a week to discuss why and when these educators made the decision to move into school leadership, challenges along the journey, and stories that made it all worthwhile. Educators Lead is a great resource for any educator looking to make a greater impact.

Educate. Inspire. Lead.

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