Yesterday my fifth book came out. It’s called Trusted: Trust Pillars, Trust Killers, and the Secret to Successful Schools.
When a book comes out, it’s a quiet thing— just a soft little drip, something that encapsulates a massive amount of work but lands gently, tenderly, into the world.
There aren’t balloons or crepe paper or, say, a band. A book release date isn’t a big thing. At all. A few weeks back, my publisher sent me a lovely bouquet of flowers. My family gave me a whoop and a hug. Then the actual release day came, and I woke up like I do every day, made my breakfast, went to work, solved problems, had a few laughs, had some frustration, went home, walked the dog, did evening things, and went to bed. And today is today. The book is real and people are ordering it and it is finally alive.
And I’m really proud of it.
This book is a little different from many other school culture-adjacent books out there, because the entire first chapter is essentially a summary of my doctoral work. In some ways, it would be fair to say this book took me years to write because of all that pesky research.
But there are parts I wrote quickly, too. Parts that were smooth and easy to write, because it’s all about the day-to-day things that principals and teachers do that are both trustworthy and trust willing.
Here’s a quick summary, broken down by chapter.
First, I dive into the history of public education, from about 1600 to today, and builds a direct corollary between times of unrest in this country and the way educators are perceived and treated. When people don’t feel great about thing that are going on in the world— politically, socially, financially, and emotionally— they think—unconsciously, perhaps— that they need to get things fixed for the next generation and the best way to do that is to make sure those damned teachers aren’t messing anything up. Society reflects her problems on its schools.
Next, I discuss the traits of someone who is trustworthy but also asks about being trust willing— being able to share leadership, to give others the time and space to own their space and their decisions.
I consider the faces of trust and the things that build trust— vulnerability, benevolence, reliability, competency, honesty, openness, and professionalism. There’s a discussion of the trusting relationships we need to preserve with teachers, parents, and students, respectively, and looks at the ways trust can be fractured and, then, hopefully, fixed.
Finally, the book conceptualizes something many leaders often neglect—the trust we need to have with ourselves. In a profession where mistakes can feel amplified and responsibilities continue to grow, cultivating self-trust isn't just a nice idea—it's essential for our well-being. Many of us are crippled by self-doubt. I certainly was, and sometimes still am. This chapter considers ways we can be both humble and pat our selves on the back for the skill and will we give to this profession every day.
I hope you’ll read the book and buy it for your friends, but if not, I hope you’ll tell your friends about this newsletter because, in addition to other things, I’m going to dive into what learned while writing Trusted. Thanks for coming along.
Let’s stay curious—
Jen
*As always, this newsletter is 100% human authored. No AI. Ever.