“You Don’t Need to Be Ready. You Just Need to Be Real.”

The Ruckus Maker Flywheel Chapter 8

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Most school leaders don’t need more strategy.

They need someone to hold up a mirror.

To ask the questions that uncover what’s already true.

Jordan listens to Max on his podcast.

She grabs a pen and rates herself in five areas — honestly.

With her baseline identified, she can begin her Do School Different journey.

📖 Never miss a chapter of Jordan’s story. You can read each chapter in the First in Line section of Ruckus Makers.

Note from the author: The Ruckus Maker Mindset Tool has been around for years and has been helpful to countless school leaders. You can download it for free below 👇

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The Call

Jordan didn’t start the morning with email.

She started it with Max.

The podcast had auto-downloaded sometime last week. She hadn’t listened to it. Hadn’t planned to.

But now, coffee in hand, journal open, and the school building still dark, she pressed play.

“The tool is simple,” Max said, his voice grounded and clear.

“Not easy. But simple.

Five fundamentals: Eat. Move. Sleep. Breathe. Unplug.

Give yourself a score from 1 to 5 in each.

1 means you’re barely surviving. 5 means you’re living it.

Be honest. No one’s watching. Then pick one area.

Not to fix.

Just to move.

You don’t go from couch to marathon. You walk a 5K. You jog a mile. You build. That’s leadership.”

Jordan stared at the page in front of her.

She uncapped her pen.

Eating: 2

Moving: 3

Sleeping: 1

Breathing: 1

Unplugging: 1

She circled Sleep.

She wasn’t ready for 8 hours.

But she could shut her laptop by 9.

No scrolling.

No Netflix.

Just silence.

She sat back in her chair.

Took a sip of lukewarm coffee.

Stared at Max’s name in her contacts.

Her thumb hovered.

Then slid.

She scrolled down to Evan Reyes.

Tapped call.

The phone rang once.

Twice.

Then …