School leader, are you a Firefighter or Gardener?
Aug 21, 2025Most schools spend enormous energy on managing behavior.
Rules. Punishments. Reward charts. Endless meetings about “the difficult ones.”
But here’s the uncomfortable truth:
The more you manage behavior, the less you build culture.
Culture is what learners breathe when they walk through the door.
It’s the invisible web of expectations, relationships, and values that makes everyone feel: this is how we do things here.
👉 In a strong culture, learners regulate themselves because they belong.
👉 In a strong culture, boundaries are clear because they’re shared, not imposed.
👉 In a strong culture, behavior isn’t “managed”—it’s shaped by the community.
So here’s the challenge for leaders:
Stop firefighting. Start gardening.
Because culture is not a list of rules—it’s the climate where behavior grows.
What’s one thing you do to strengthen culture in your school?
