Unconventional Leadership - Jessica Cabeen

Starting the School Year Without Starting a Sprint

by Jessica Cabeen | Aug 1, 2026 | Slow Leadership, Unconventional Leadership

The goal is not to lower expectations. It is to sequence the work so people have the capacity to do it well. As I enter my 26th year in education, I have been thinking about my first few summers as a teacher. At the end of each school year, I would pack several milk...

Before You Go: How to Wrap Up 2025 with Purpose, Presence, and Closure

by Jessica Cabeen | Dec 13, 2025 | Permission to Rest, Principal in Balance, Unconventional Leadership

Before you go…I know—you saw this title and panicked. What did I forget? What still needs to be done? This isn’t about adding one more thing to your plate. It’s about resisting the urge to mentally sprint into 2026 before 2025 is actually finished. December tempts...

Unpacking Cognitive Growth: Insights from Get Your Teach On

by Jessica Cabeen | Jan 16, 2024 | Principal in Balance, Unconventional Leadership

As I am heading home from a full weekend of learning at Get Your Teach On, I also had an assignment due for my doctoral class…today. Applying Bassett’s Emergent Wisdom model, here is what my Get Your Teach On experience was like. Discerning: Unplugging for...

Leadership Lessons I Learned from Coach Prime.

by Jessica Cabeen | Nov 5, 2023 | Unconventional Leadership

Full disclosure: I just went to a college football game and questioned why my team kept flipping sides at the quarter instead of the half. That is my foundational knowledge of football. So why then would I choose to submit my final paper for my most recent...

Encouragement at the End of the School Year.

by Jessica Cabeen | May 21, 2023 | Permission to Rest, Principal in Balance, Unconventional Leadership

May. Yes, it is really May. The snow is melting (finally), our school calendars are on a countdown, and the end of the year is near. So how do you stay encouraged at the end of something that you might be sad to say goodbye to? And what can you say to others who...

Gratitude During the Grind

by Jessica Cabeen | Feb 26, 2023 | Unconventional Leadership

During Get Your Lead On in Charlotte last week something I said resonated not only with leaders but hit me a little differently than normal. Don’t confuse your calling with your title. This has been a significant chance for me to realize that in my life… as an...