Episode 34 – Sarah Johnson



SARAH JOHNSON is an author, speaker, and consultant in the areas of instructional leadership and personal-professional balance. With experience as an English teacher and principal, she likes to laugh, sing, and makes a habit of running every day. She is a co-author of Balance Like a Pirate: Going Beyond Work-Life Balance to Ignite Passion and Thrive as an Educator. Her mission? Helping educators thrive at work, home, and life.

In this conversation, Sarah describes the main message and heart of her book, which describes her experience and the lessons she’s learned from living out of balance as a school principal. She talks about the personal passions and practices that support her self-care and growth today, and offers some great recommendations for books to read, Twitter accounts to follow, and more.

Follow Sarah on these great platforms:

• Twitter: @SarahSaJohnson & @BalanceLAP
• Instagram: @SarahSaJohnson
• Voxer: @SarahSaJohnson
• Blogs: sarahsajohnson.com & https://sarahsajohnson.blogspot.com.

Find the highlights from our conversation at the timestamps below.

• 1:17 – Sarah describes her current context in education: speaker, consultant, and author living in NW Wisconsin after a career in education as a teacher and principal.
• 3:02 – The heart and message to educators in Balance Like a Pirate. Instead of the popular 50-50 work-life concept, Sarah urges educators to think of balance in four quadrants: personal, professional, positional, and passions.
• 6:03 – Sarah recalls a particularly low moment in her education career, and explains how she was able to move through this experience.
• 9:13 – What really excites Sarah about education today: the incredible opportunities for authentic collaboration and creation (for students and educators).
• 11:15 – Rise: Sarah’s ongoing personal commitment to learn how to live the most purpose-driven life possible (in part, by listening and journaling every day). Another serious passion is education around mental health and suicide awareness.
• 13:23 – A personal habit that contributes to her success is running every single day. She has not missed a day since July 11, 2014!
• 15:47 – Sarah’s recommendation for educators on Twitter is @BethHill2829 (Bethany Hill of #JoyfulLeaders fame).
• 16:42 – It’s been around for a while, but Sarah’s favorite edtech tool is still Google Docs. She even used Google Docs to collaborate with her co-authors on Balance Like a Pirate!
• 17:23 – Her book recommendation is When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi (@ParsOpercularis) and of course anything written by Brene Brown (@BreneBrown).
• 18:39 – Favorite podcast? For the Love by Jen Hatmaker (@JenHatmaker)
• 19:17 – We review the best ways to follow Sarah online and receive more of her content. See above for details!

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Song Track Credits

Intro: Relax (by Simon More)
Outtro: Starley – Call on Me Remix (by DJ Zhorik)

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