Schools of Excellence: The No. 1 ECE & Private School Leadership Podcast

• 254, Honesty Over Image: Leading Through Grief, Discomfort, and the Messy Middle with Beth Cannon

  Leadership doesn’t pause for grief, betrayal, or personal storms. In this deeply vulnerable conversation, Chanie sits down with Beth Cannon to talk about what it means to lead when life unravels. From walking through the terminal illness of a loved one, to staff exits and leadership mistakes, Beth shares her “discomfort zone” season and the messy middle of showing up for her people while falling apart inside.This episode is not about perfection, it’s about presence. It’s about choosing honesty over image, showing up when you don’t have it all together, and finding systems and rhythms that carry your school (and your soul) through seasons of chaos.What You’ll Learn in This Episode:Why “waiting until everything is perfect” is leadership avoidanceHow to keep showing up when grief and business crises collideThe difference between accountability and ownership in staff leadershipWhy leaders must choose honesty over image if they want trust and culture to holdHow to find outer-circle people who can lead you through your own foKey InsightsCulture isn’t built on polish. It’s built on consistency, clarity, and shared standards.Grief and leadership can coexist. You can hold heartbreak in one hand and still lead with purpose in the other.Leadership is a mirror. Staff accountability gaps often expose where owners haven’t built the right rhythms.You don’t wait for perfect conditions. Growth happens in the middle of the storm, not after it passes.Memorable Quotes“I wasn’t replacing a role. I was reacting to a wound.” – Beth Cannon“You have to choose honesty over image, because the day when everything is perfect doesn’t exist.” – Beth Cannon“Schools don’t need leaders who wait for the fog to clear. They need leaders who keep walking.” – Chanie WilschanskiWhy This Matters for School LeadersStops the cycle of waiting for perfect conditions before leadingModels vulnerability without abdicating responsibilityBuilds staff trust through honesty and accountability, not polishAnchors leaders in rhythms that hold during grief, betrayal, or transitionResources & Next StepsReflect: Where are you waiting for things to “settle” before you lead?Revisit your staff accountability systems: Are they true ownership, or excuses and follow-up cycles?Connect with Beth Cannon: bethcannonspeaks.com | Instagram & Facebook: @bethcannonspeaks

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• 253. Stop the Hidden Drain: Admin & Tech Systems That Protect Your Profit

  Admin & Tech isn’t flashy like enrollment or emotional like staff culture—but it’s one of the biggest hidden profit drains in schools. In this finale of the Money Leaks series, Chanie breaks down how underutilized software, paper-based SOPs, missing automations, and messy file systems quietly torch your time capacity and cash. You’ll get a simple, CEO-level playbook to audit your tech stack, automate the right tasks, assign platform “champions,” and build rhythms that stop dependency and start true scalability.👉 Take the free diagnostic mentioned in this episode: schoolsofexcellence.com/moneyleaksWhat You’ll LearnThe 5 Admin & Tech pillars that protect profit (workflows, utilization, automation, data & file systems, review rhythms)How to audit your tech stack and cut redundancies without chaosWhy automation doesn’t replace people—it gives them back time for what only humans can doThe “internal platform champion” model that prevents bottlenecks and builds team capacityA simple naming convention + 10-second file-finding standard that ends “final-final-FINAL-v6” madnessHow to move from dependency (it only works when Sarah’s here) to system (it works when anyone follows the rhythm)SOE Playbook: 5 Concrete MovesRun a Software Audit (30–45 min): List every tool, owner, cost, and actual use. Cancel redundancies, downgrade unused premium plans, and standardize what stays.Assign Platform Champions: One trained “owner” per platform. Share quick wins, create 1-page SOPs, and stop knowledge hoarding.Automate Repetitive Admin: Scheduling, reminders, links, confirmations, form routing, basic onboarding steps. Free people for gratitude, 1:1s, observations, feedback—the work only humans can do.Lock File Hygiene: Cloud-first, consistent naming, and a structure anyone can understand. Measure success by: “Can someone find any file in ≤10 seconds?”Quarterly Rhythm Block: Every 90 days: review tools, subscriptions, automations, and workflows. One block. Same calendar slot. Always.Case Studies & WinsSonia’s Tech Tangle → $4,000 Saved: She listed 19 tools; canceled 5–7 redundant platforms, downgraded others, and named champions for the rest—saving nearly $4K/year and loads of time capacity.The $9,000 Surprise: A leader who “couldn’t afford it” did a money leaks audit, canceled 3 subscriptions, and freed up $9,000—just by telling the truth in the tech stack.Memorable Lines“If it takes more than 10 seconds to find a file, you have a leak—not a library.”“Dependency isn’t a system. It’s a risk.”“Automation isn’t about replacing people—it’s about returning time to the work only humans can do.”“When someone leaves, the brain of your business shouldn’t walk out with them.”ResourcesFree diagnostic: schoolsofexcellence.com/moneyleaks

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• 252. How To Avoid Losing Thousands Through Inefficiency Every Month

  Your Amazon bill isn’t proof of overspending, it’s proof of a missing rhythm.In this fifth episode of the Six Money Leaks series, Chanie uncovers why supply management is one of the most overlooked operational leaks in schools. From the toner that’s reordered twice in a week to the “just in case” stockpiles that clutter closets, poor systems quietly drain thousands of dollars and create chaos for your team.You’ll hear how one school leader cut supply costs by 50%, not by cutting corners, but by building rhythms of accountability, teacher ownership, and smarter purchasing strategies. Chanie explains how strong leaders use systems to bring predictability to supplies, just as they do in staff culture, enrollment, and every other gear of sustainable growth.What You’ll Learn in This EpisodeWhy supply challenges aren’t spending issues, they’re system issuesThe five pillars of supply management: inventory, seasonal planning, equipment lifecycle, vendor strategy, and storage organizationHow to create baselines that give you real data on usage and costsThe role of leadership rhythms in preventing waste and burnoutPractical steps to cut costs without sacrificing quality or cultureKey InsightsLeadership is stewardship. Systems, not sticky notes, are what protect your budget and your team’s time.Culture is built in the details. When supplies are predictable, teachers feel supported and operations run smoothly.Growth requires optimization. Scaling isn’t about more—it’s about refining what you already have.Why This Matters for School LeadersWhen supply management runs on chaos, leaders end up overspending, overfunctioning, and burning out. When it runs on systems, leaders free capacity for strategy, teams feel supported, and operations hold under pressure.Resources & Next StepsDownload the free Money Leaks Diagnostic and assess your school’s supply systems: schoolsofexcellence.com/moneyleaks

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• 251. How to Lower Food Costs in Your Childcare Program

  Pizza at staff meetings. Coffee for PD days. Uber Eats orders that feel small at the moment. These choices come from generosity, but without systems, they quickly become one of the biggest hidden drains on your budget.In this fourth episode of the Six Money Leaks series, Chanie Wilschanski explains why leaders don’t have food budget problems, they have food system problems. You’ll learn how to build baselines, create seasonal rhythms, and plan for the actual people you serve, so generosity strengthens culture without draining profit.Through real stories from school leaders, Chanie shows how small adjustments in food management save thousands, reduce waste, and create sustainable rhythms of appreciation.What You’ll Learn in This EpisodeWhy “spend as little as you can” is not a budgetHow to calculate your baseline with receipts and real dataWhy food budgets must shift seasonally with enrollment, staffing, and culture rhythmsHow to prevent waste by planning for allergies, sensitivities, and actual headcountThe difference between indulgent overspending and intentional generosityKey InsightsGenerosity needs guardrails. Without systems, your kindness works against you.Data builds confidence. Leaders negotiate budgets best when they bring baselines, not guesses.Culture thrives on intention. Food can build connection and trust when it’s planned with clarity.Why This Matters for School LeadersYour staff and students deserve abundance. But abundance without systems creates chaos, waste, and guilt around spending. Food control isn’t about being stingy—it’s about building rhythms that protect your financial health and your culture.Resources & Next StepsDownload the free Money Leaks Diagnostic and assess your school’s food systems: schoolsofexcellence.com/moneyleaks

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• 250. Stop Hemorrhaging Cash: How Broken Payment Systems Drain Your School’s Finances

  Payment problems aren’t about “bad parents.” They’re about broken systems.In this episode of the Schools of Excellence podcast, Chanie exposes the hidden money leak that’s quietly draining schools: payment systems. From failed cards and ignored invoices to outdated agreements and manual chasing, every gap in your tuition process pulls focus and drains energy.You’ll hear real client stories, from a $15,000 recovery in failed payments to a 90% drop in late tuition within one billing cycle and walk away with practical steps to finally stop chasing money and start leading with clarity.If you’re tired of payroll Fridays filled with stress and spreadsheets, this conversation will help you install systems that protect your cash flow, your culture, and your peace of mind.What You’ll Learn in This EpisodeWhy most tuition issues are about systems, not parentsThe #1 step to immediately reduce late paymentsHow to install a proactive collection process (not a “hope and faith” system)The role of late fees in protecting your standards and cash flowWhy payment agreements must be reviewed and stored digitallyKey InsightsBroken payment systems = hidden money leaks.Hope is not a collection system. Predictability is.Enforcing policies isn’t mean, it protects your staff and your culture.Outdated agreements open the door for confusion and chaos.Memorable Quotes“If you’re still chasing tuition, you don’t have a payment system, you have a hope and faith system.”“Late fees aren’t punishment. They’re protection for your cash flow and your peace of mind.”“Your agreements aren’t set-and-forget. They’re living guardrails that protect your school.”Why This Matters for School LeadersStops financial chaos from undermining your leadershipCreates consistent, predictable revenueProtects your time, energy, and staff trustMoves you from reaction to rhythmResources & Next StepsRequire auto-pay at enrollment (make one-time payment the default)Create a 24-hour failed payment follow-up system with backup cards on fileAutomate late fees to protect cash flow without awkward conversationsReview and digitize all payment agreements this quarter👉 Ready to stop patchwork fixes and build leadership systems that hold up under pressure? Book your Leadership Reset Consultation here: [Leadership Reset]And if you want to see where payment systems and other money leaks may be draining your school, take the Money Leaks Diagnostic.

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