Episode 82: Lighting the WICK of Leadership: Building Trust, Culture & Stronger Schools with Jove Stickel

Connect with the Show Here! Leadership doesn’t fail because educators don’t care. It fails when we bury people under noise, overthinking, and systems no one can carry into a tough hallway moment. I sit down with Jove Stickle, a former social studies teacher, multi-sport coach, and middle school principal who now mentors and coaches other leaders, to talk about what actually holds up when the job gets heavy. We dig into the turning points in Jove’s educational leadership journey: the classroom habits that built credibility, the coaching lessons that taught him to keep feedback simple, and the reality of becoming the principal in a building where your coworkers used to be your friends. He’s honest about what he’d change, how trust can fracture when roles shift, and why working longer hours is not the same as leading well. If you care about school culture, staff morale, and sustainable principal practices, you’ll hear plenty you can apply right away. Jove also shares the framework behind his upcoming book, “Lighting the WICK of Leadership,” built around WICK: work hard, act with integrity, be committed, be kind. We talk about giving trust before you try to “earn” it, building standards that stay steady, and where education is heading as schools rethink technology overload and refocus on core skills and character. Connect with Jove Stickel Here: nstagram @Jovestickel X               @Jovestickel Tik Tok      @Jovestickel YouTube   @JoveStickel website     Jovestickel.com substack   Jovestickel.substack.com email        [email protected] phone      (573) 692-3448 New Book Coming Soon! "Lighting the WICK of Leadership" New and Improve  Teach Better Mid Roll Network Ad Support the show Click Here to Connect with Principal JL: