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Resistance Chronicles, Part 4: Growth Mindset

In this episode, Becca Silver explores how resistance shows up when the belief “I can improve” feels unsupported. Growth requires effort, feedback, and struggle. When those experiences feel risky or tied to judgment, educators naturally protect themselves.

This form of resistance is often quiet and easy to misread. It can sound like:

“I’m good where I am.”
“That’s just not my style.”
“I already know how to do this.”
Avoiding feedback or new learning after one imperfect attempt.

This is not laziness. It is self-protection. When effort feels like weakness, mistakes feel like exposure, and feedback feels evaluative, people stay with what feels safe even if it is not producing results.

In this episode, Becca unpacks the Growth Mindset™ lens of resistance and helps leaders recognize when hesitation is really about how struggle is being interpreted. She also shares practical ways to reframe effort, normalize iteration, and create environments where learning feels developmental rather than performative.

In this episode:

• What resistance looks and sounds like when growth does not feel safe
• How evaluation-heavy cultures shape risk-taking and feedback
• Why struggle must be reframed as learning, not failure
• How leaders can normalize effort, experimentation, and iteration
• Coaching language that shifts the focus from performance to development

[FREE RESOURCE]

The Resistance Audit: Diagnose where the resistance is coming from!

Resources Mentioned:

• The Resistance Playbook
• The Resistance Starter Bundle

Find both at 👉 thewholeeducator.com

Because resistance isn’t something to fight.
It’s something to understand.

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Have you gotten your copy of the RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK yet? Get it for only $7 HERE.

In this episode, Becca is joined by her friend and colleague Mia Pumo for an unscripted, honest debate about norms and whether they actually work.

Rather than offering a tidy answer, this conversation lives in the gray. Becca and Mia explore why norms are so commonly used in schools, why they often fail to change behavior, and under what conditions they can support trust, psychological safety, and productive collaboration.

The discussion challenges traditional, compliance-driven approaches to norms and asks deeper questions about what sits underneath behaviors like disengagement, side conversations, and surface-level agreement. Together, they examine the difference between norms rooted in control versus those grounded in connection, shared values, and ownership.

You’ll hear practical examples of when norms fall flat, when they work, and how leaders unintentionally undermine them by treating norms as static rules instead of living agreements. The episode also introduces a provocative reframe: using the Catalyst Mindsets™ to think about norms as a way to proactively address unmet needs and resistance rather than policing behavior.

This episode is for coaches and leaders who are ready to question long-standing practices, sit with ambiguity, and design learning spaces that prioritize trust, belonging, and meaningful engagement over compliance.

You can connect with Mia through her website!

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What if resistance isn’t defiance… but doubt?

In Part 3 of The Resistance Chronicles, Becca Silver unpacks the Success Mindset and the powerful role of self-efficacy. When educators aren’t sure they can succeed, resistance shows up , not as rebellion, but as hesitation:

•“I’m not sure that will work.”
• “That’s not really my strength.”
• “I’ve tried that before.”

This episode reframes resistance as a signal of low confidence, not low commitment. Becca shares how leaders and coaches can build belief through evidence, small wins, and targeted support, instead of pressure.

You’ll learn:

• What resistance sounds like when self-efficacy is low
• Why doubt is often misread as pushback
• How to build confidence that leads to action

Resources

• The Resistance Playbook
• The Resistance Starter Bundle

Find both at 👉 thewholeeducator.com

Next up: what resistance looks like when people don’t feel safe to grow.

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Be sure to grab your copy of the RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK is now available! It's only $7 HERE.

In this episode of Coaching the Whole Educator, Becca Silver sits down with Kurtis Hewson, co founder of Jigsaw Learning, to break down what truly drives authentic collaboration in schools. Kurtis explains why many teams think they are “collaborating” when they are actually stuck in compliance based routines that drain energy and limit impact. He shares how real collaboration begins with co created clarity. Teams need a shared understanding of why they meet, how they meet, and what success looks like.

Kurtis introduces the Collaborative Response Framework, a research informed, four layer model that helps schools organize people, strengthen problem solving, and respond to student needs with intention. He describes how leaders can shift from “set it and forget it” structures to predictable, purposeful collaboration that continues even when the leader leaves the room. The conversation highlights practical strategies for building norms, addressing dominant voices, creating psychological safety, and preventing teams from falling into the agreement pit.

This episode is filled with actionable insights for instructional coaches, school leaders, and educators who want to move beyond surface level collaboration and build teams that think together, problem solve together, and take ownership together. Listeners will walk away with clear steps to strengthen team culture, increase collective efficacy, and support meaningful change in their schools.

[FREE RESOURCE] The Catalyst Mindsets Quiz

This will help you identify which mindset may be limiting authentic collaboration so you can respond with intentionality. It's a powerful first step for coaches and leaders!

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Resistance Chronicles, Part 2: Belonging Mindset™

In this episode, I explore belonging as one of the most overlooked drivers of resistance in schools. Resistance does not always show up as pushback. It often appears as silence, surface-level agreement, avoidance, or polite compliance.

These behaviors frequently signal uncertainty about relational safety. When educators are not sure they will still be respected, supported, or valued if they disagree or struggle, they protect themselves by staying quiet.

This episode covers:

• What resistance looks and sounds like when belonging feels uncertain
• Why compliance should not be mistaken for connection or buy-in
• How “nice” cultures can still suppress honesty and risk-taking
• The leadership moments that either strengthen or weaken trust
• Practical language leaders and coaches can use to lower threat and invite real dialogue

The core idea: resistance tied to belonging is rarely loud. It is quiet, protective, and easy to misread without a relational lens.

Resources Mentioned

• The Resistance Playbook
• The Resistance Starter Bundle

Both available at 👉 thewholeeducator.com

Next up: what resistance sounds like when people aren’t sure they can succeed.

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The RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK is now available! Grab it for only $7 HERE.

In this episode of Coaching the Whole Educator, Becca Silver talks with instructional leader and writer Lauren Kaufman about how authentic questioning and a true coaching mindset drive meaningful growth for educators. With twenty years of experience across teaching, coaching, and district leadership, Lauren explains why effective coaching begins with curiosity, psychological safety, and open dialogue rather than hidden agendas or fix-it strategies.

Lauren breaks down the difference between authentic questions and leading or agenda-driven questions, sharing the three simple questions she uses to build trust, uncover real needs, and support teacher reflection. She and Becca also explore how judgment shows up in coaching conversations, how to recognize it in the moment, and how to reset back into curiosity when a conversation starts to feel rushed or directed.

This episode is a must-listen for instructional coaches, school leaders, teacher leaders, and professional learning facilitators who want to strengthen relationships, foster teacher agency, and use questioning as a powerful tool for growth.

Find out more about Lauren's resources on her website.
[FREE RESOURCE] The Teacher Growth Mindset Workbook

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In this first episode of The Resistance Chronicles, Becca Silver challenges one of the most common leadership mistakes we make: treating resistance as a compliance problem instead of a diagnostic opportunity.

She reframes resistance as a signal, not defiance, but an unmet need.

Becca introduces five core Catalyst Mindsets that often sit underneath resistance: value, ownership, belonging, success, and growth

In this episode, she focuses specifically on the value mindset, unpacking what’s really happening when someone says, “This just feels like more work.”

Instead of pushing harder for buy-in, she walks leaders and coaches through how to pause, diagnose, and connect the work to what actually matters to the person in front of them. Because resistance decreases when value increases.

This episode is practical, mindset-shifting, and immediately usable, especially for instructional coaches, teacher leaders, and school administrators navigating change fatigue.

Becca also shares two resources designed to help you respond to resistance in real time:

• The $7 Resistance Playbook for quick, in-the-moment diagnosis
• The $27 Resistance Starter Bundle, which includes a Resistance Audit, action toolkit, and mini-course

If you’ve ever felt stuck pushing an initiative that people aren’t buying into, this episode will help you stop fighting resistance, and start understanding it.

Next up in the series: The Belonging Mindset.

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The RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK was just released! Grab it for only $7 HERE.

In this episode of Coaching the Whole Educator, Becca sits down with Lindsay Deacon, veteran instructional coach and author of The EduCoach Survival Guide. Lindsay brings more than a decade of experience supporting teachers, coaches, and leaders across districts, and she joins the show to unpack one of the most essential skills in coaching and professional learning: how to read a room and adjust in real time.

Together, Becca and Lindsay explore practical strategies for recognizing disengagement, understanding group dynamics, and creating meaningful connection that leads to true adult learning. Lindsay shares actionable tools instructional coaches can use to scan the room, interpret body language, identify root causes of disengagement, and build psychological safety. She also explains how to respond when a single participant is checked out versus when an entire group loses energy, and she offers insight into managing resistance, emotional states, and value mindset during PD sessions.

Listeners will learn how to warm up a room, increase relevance, shift the energy of disengaged groups, and stay grounded in authenticity while leading professional development. This episode is packed with tips instructional coaches can use immediately to strengthen facilitation skills, boost engagement in workshops, and make coaching conversations more effective.

If you are an instructional coach, school leader, or anyone responsible for leading adult learning, this conversation will help you read the room with confidence, support your participants with intention, and keep your sessions human centered and impactful.

Learn more about The Educoach Survival Guide on Lindsay's website!
The RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK was just released! Grab it for only $7 HERE.

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