Writing · Read the Terrain
Where I think out loud.
Essays on leadership, systems, and what the trail keeps teaching me about both. No spam, no funnels, no “crushing it.” Just the actual thinking, on a regular basis.
Featured essays
Three to start with. The rest live on Substack.
The Tough Conversation Does Not Need a Runway
Leaders pad the hard moment to soften it. The padding does the damage.
Read on SubstackWhat Accumulates Eventually Has to Be Carried
Organizations rarely break all at once. Most of the strain arrives one layer at a time.
Read on SubstackBorrowed Trust
Watching my husband weld is one of the clearest lessons I know in what competence feels like up close.
Read on SubstackElsewhere
The essays live here. The rest of the writing lives in two other places.
Published work
Thirteen pieces in other people’s publications.
Bylines on educational technology, school leadership, and buying decisions, going back to 2010. Plus two long features on driving old Land Rovers through Anza-Borrego, which is where the terrain language actually comes from.
- K12 Digest
- Insight Jam
- Solutions Review
- New America
- The Learning Counsel
- Rovers Magazine
- Beyond Boundaries
From the classroom
The earlier writing.
Before the systems work, there was the classroom. Practical, teacher-to-teacher, and still useful if that’s where you are. Kept a little apart on purpose.
Browse the archiveI have had the privilege of collaborating with Dr. Spencer on multiple projects through the CUE board and within my school district. Her insights have consistently proven invaluable, and her ability to contribute thoughtful perspectives to key decisions makes her an exceptional thought partner.
Get the next one in your inbox.
Read the Terrain, on a regular basis. Unsubscribe whenever. No hard feelings.