If you’re in a school leadership role today, chances are you didn’t start your career with that goal in mind. Like many educators, you were probably a great teacher who found yourself stepping into a role with more responsibility—and less clarity. Maybe you inherited leadership practices from a predecessor or learned to manage on the fly. You’ve been doing your best, but no one ever handed you a playbook for what kind of leader you should be.
That’s where the idea of servant leadership comes in. It may not be something you’ve heard much about, but it could change the way you lead—and the way your team responds.
Servant leadership is a leadership philosophy built on the belief that the most effective leaders strive to serve others, not gain power. Servant leaders still hold authority, but they use it to empower and support the people they lead. In a school setting, that means putting teachers, staff and students first—not by doing their work for them, but by creating the conditions for them to thrive.
“Leadership is not about being in charge,” explains Simon Sinek, speaker and author of books like Leaders Eat Last. “Leadership is about taking care of those in your charge.”
When leaders start with a mindset of service, it builds trust, engagement and loyalty—even in challenging seasons.
What Servant Leadership Looks Like in Education
Before we dive in, let’s make a distinction. Traditional school leadership often emphasizes top-down authority, efficiency and policy enforcement. The focus is on compliance and outcomes—and while those things matter, they’re not the full picture. Servant leadership shifts the focus. It’s still about outcomes, but it starts with people. It prioritizes relationships, trust and shared purpose. Instead of asking, “How can my staff help me reach our goals?” a servant leader asks, “How can I help my team do their best work for our students?”
Here’s something else we need to clear up: Servant leadership isn’t about being a doormat. It doesn’t mean avoiding hard conversations or bending over backward to make everyone happy.
Servant leaders make tough calls. They hold people accountable. But they do it from a place of humility, empathy and clarity. They lead with purpose—not ego. And they focus on long-term impact, not short-term approval.
For example, as a department head, you may need to coach a struggling teacher who’s not meeting expectations. A servant leader doesn’t shy away from that responsibility. Instead, they have a direct but caring conversation, knowing that clear feedback provides an opportunity for growth.
7 Qualities of a Servant Leader
“When leaders manifest traits like trustworthiness, fair-mindedness, humility, servanthood, and endurance over a long period of time, and when they prove themselves to be unwavering in crisis, that’s when leaders are at their best,” said Bill Hybels, founder of the Global Leadership Summit in his book Courageous Leadership. That’s a pretty intimidating list of character traits! But you can implement them into your leadership style by pursuing these qualities that set servant leaders apart and make school cultures stronger.
Selflessness: Servant leaders make decisions based on what’s best for the school community, not their personal agenda. They lead with mission in mind.
Empathy: They take time to understand the experiences of their teachers, staff and students—especially during difficult times.
Humility: They own their mistakes, ask for help, and never act like they have all the answers.
Trust: They delegate well, give others room to lead, and follow through on what they say they’ll do.
Caring: They notice when someone is struggling and show up with compassion.
Discipline: They model consistency and character, even when no one is watching.
Vision and Persuasion: They cast a clear vision and inspire others to join them in achieving it. They understand that progress toward a shared mission doesn’t happen by accident—it happens through alignment.
How to Practice Servant Leadership in Schools
Servant leadership is more than a mindset—it’s a daily practice. Here are a few ways to live it out:
Seek feedback regularly. Ask your team what’s working and what’s not. Then take action on what you hear.
Leverage strengths. Get to know what each person brings to the table and create opportunities for them to lead in those areas.
Have the hard conversations. When something’s off, address it directly. You can be clear and kind at the same time. “Once I understood that I am serving my team by leading them, just like I am serving my children by parenting them, I relaxed. I might serve a team member by reprimanding him or even by allowing him to work somewhere else . . . I am serving them by teaching and mentoring them. I am serving them to their good and the good of the organization,” explains Dave Ramsey, founder and CEO of Ramsey Solutions in his book EntreLeadership.
Celebrate people often. Recognition builds morale and trust. And it reinforces the kinds of behaviors you want your team to repeat. Start with these easy ways to recognize your team.
Protect the culture. When you build a healthy school culture, it doesn’t just benefit adult staff members—it sets the tone for how students treat each other and engage with learning.
The Leadership Your School Needs
When you lead with humility, clarity and consistency, your team will want to follow you. That’s the heart of servant leadership. It’s not about titles. It’s about treating others the way you want to be treated, or you won’t win (not for long anyway). Always remember that people have value beyond their work and what they can do for you—and you can help them grow into their potential.
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Colleen Barrett, president emeritus of Southwest Airlines, sums up servant leadership this way: “Servant leadership means you serve first. You lead second. You give 110% every day. And if you make decisions based from your heart and your head and some plain old common sense, 99.9% of the time . . . you’re going to be okay.”
Servant leadership takes intention. It takes self-awareness. And it takes courage to put people over pride. But the results are worth it: Stronger teams. Healthier schools. And students who benefit from the kind of culture only servant-hearted leaders can create.
The ideas shared in this article are based on EntreLeadership principles—the same principles Dave Ramsey used to build Ramsey Solutions into a multimillion-dollar company over three decades. These best practices have been tested in the trenches of business and are also valuable for educators who want to grow their leadership skills, build strong teams, and improve the workplace culture in their schools.
