Nate Eklund on Punching the Shark: Why Teacher Retention Beats Recruitment Every Time

The Ruckus Report

Quick take: Most districts are dumping water into leaky buckets while wondering why they can’t fill them. Nate Eklund shows us why we’ve been solving the wrong problem — and how “punching the shark” creates the workplace conditions that make educators want to stay.

Meet Your Fellow Ruckus Maker

Nate Eklund is the founder and CEO of Vital Network, a national organization focused on improving educator retention and well-being through workplace improvements. A former classroom teacher and author of How Was Your Day at School? Improving Dialogue about Teacher Job Satisfaction, Nate brings deep experience and research-backed insight to the conversation on creating sustainable, joyful workplaces for educators everywhere.

Breaking Down the Old Rules

In this episode, Nate Eklund challenges traditional education paradigms:

Key Insight #1: We Don’t Have a Recruitment Problem — We Have a Retention Problem

  • What’s broken: Districts frantically recruiting new teachers while ignoring why good ones leave
  • The shift: Focus on the “leaky bucket” — in Minnesota, there are more licensed teachers NOT teaching than teaching (enough to fill the Vikings stadium)
  • Impact: When you fix workplace conditions instead of just hiring more people, you solve the math problem at its source

Key Insight #2: Burnout Isn’t a Personal Failing — It’s Environmental

  • What’s broken: Treating burnout as individual weakness (“eat more kale, get more sleep”)
  • The shift: Recognize burnout as systemic depletion that no amount of self-care can overcome — you can’t “kale your way out of your fifth reading curriculum in two years”
  • Impact: Leaders stop blaming teachers and start designing better workplace conditions that prevent burnout

Key Insight #3: There Are Two Versions of Every Educator

  • What’s broken: Accepting that some educators are just “difficult” or “burned out”
  • The shift: Understanding that everyone has a “fired up” version and a “deflated” version — external factors determine which one shows up
  • Impact: Instead of writing people off, leaders create conditions where the best version of every educator can thrive

Quotable Ruckus

“You can dump a lot of water into it and invest a lot of energy getting the water into the bucket, but if the bucket’s leaking, you’ve got a fundamental math problem.”

– Nate Eklund

Your Do School Different Challenge

Ready to implement these ideas? Start here:

  1. Tomorrow: Ask yourself: “What external factors are keeping my best educators from showing up as their best selves?”
  2. This Month: Survey your staff about workplace conditions — not just morale, but actual day-to-day systems and decision-making processes
  3. This Semester: Implement one “Punch the Shark” moment — tackle an uncomfortable workplace issue head-on with your team
target

Get the full episode transcript: here

Follow Nate Eklund: http://www.vitalnetwork.com

twitter

Follow Nate Eklund: Twitter

linkedin

Follow Vital on LinkedIn

Join the Ruckus Maker Movement

If education ain’t a bit disruptive, then what are your students really learning?

This show isn’t about doing school better.

It’s about Doing School Different — and joining a growing movement of bold, creative school leaders who reject legacy models and reimagine what’s possible.

Here are four ways we can help you on your Do School Different journey

notebook

Subscribe to the Free Newsletter

— An opportunity to Do School Different 3x a week. Tools, mindset shifts, and strategies that actually work: ruckusmakers.news

Read Ruckus Makers

— Exclusive content on Substack. Premium leadership insights, AI prompts and custom GPTs, new books before the bookshelf: ruckusmakers.media

 

Join The Ruckus Maker Club

Our private network + workshops, The Automatic School tools, AI Prompt Library, and more:
The Ruckus Maker

 
 

Apply to the Mastermind

— Weekly coaching, peer mentorship, and our proven leadership system (The Ruckus Maker Flywheel) to help you transform your campus:
Apply Now

 
Every tool, community, and coaching program we offer is built to help visionary school leaders play the new game — one where leadership is creative, tech-enabled, and unapologetically student-centered.

The podcast is your starting point. The movement is just getting started.

Today’s RUCKUScast in Partnership with:

IXL: Meet your students where they are and take them where they need to go. Join over 1 million teachers who trust IXL to drive data-informed excellence in their classrooms.
🔍 Learn more here

Expressability K12: Your inbox isn't a task manager. Your mind isn't for storing mundane processes. It's time to break free. With Expressability K12 Ruckus Makers can prioritize student success by offloading time sucking tasks. Visit Expressability K12 to learn how.
🔍 Learn how here

ODP Business Solutions®: Stop letting compliance kill innovation. Some leaders are transforming their campuses with flexible solutions that actually work for modern learning environments.
🔍 Learn more here

More Podcasts You’ll Love

If education ain’t a bit disruptive, then what are your students really learning?

This show isn’t about doing school better.

It’s about Doing School Different — and joining a growing movement of bold, creative school leaders who reject legacy models and reimagine what’s possible.

Here are four ways we can help you on your Do School Different journey

notebook

Subscribe to the Free Newsletter

— An opportunity to Do School Different 3x a week. Tools, mindset shifts, and strategies that actually work: ruckusmakers.news

Read Ruckus Makers

— Exclusive content on Substack. Premium leadership insights, AI prompts and custom GPTs, new books before the bookshelf: ruckusmakers.media

 

Join The Ruckus Maker Club

Our private network + workshops, The Automatic School tools, AI Prompt Library, and more:
The Ruckus Maker

 
 

Apply to the Mastermind

— Weekly coaching, peer mentorship, and our proven leadership system (The Ruckus Maker Flywheel) to help you transform your campus:
Apply Now

 
Every tool, community, and coaching program we offer is built to help visionary school leaders play the new game — one where leadership is creative, tech-enabled, and unapologetically student-centered.

The podcast is your starting point. The movement is just getting started.

Today’s RUCKUScast in Partnership with:

IXL: Meet your students where they are and take them where they need to go. Join over 1 million teachers who trust IXL to drive data-informed excellence in their classrooms.
🔍 Learn more: ixl.com/leaders

The Ruckus Maker Club Community beats compliance every single time. The Ruckus Maker Club is your on demand network of bold school leaders designing the future of education. Join today for $100 a month and get coaching on demand courses, AI prompts and custom GPTs and all our automatic school frameworks and tools within our private digital community.
🔍 Learn more: here

ODP Business Solutions®: Solutions “Our STEAM program is too complicated” = Code for “We’re doing it wrong.” Stop letting fear kill innovation. Some leaders are transforming STEAM with a three-part framework that’s not what you think.
🔍 Get the playbook: ODPbusiness.com/education

Better Leaders Better Schools logo

Helping Ruckus Makers Do School Different since 2015.

Explore

Engage

Connect

© 2025 Twelve Practices LLC | All Rights Reserved
read the Ruckus Maker newsletter
Danny Bauer

Daniel Bauer

As a chronically late student, Danny Bauer once told his Chemistry teacher a fib about saving an entire girl scout troop from a burning building to get out of a tardy.

Danny is not sure if it was the very made up story, the very real cookie he offered his teacher, or a combination of both that got him out of a detention that day …

That experience taught him it pays to develop your storytelling skills.

Danny has been telling stories since then, most recently on the Better Leaders Better Schools podcast, ranked in the TOP 0.5% of 3 million global podcasts, and via his two bestselling books, Mastermind: Unlocking Talent Within Every School Leader and Build Leadership Momentum: How to Create the Perfect Principal Entry Plan.

He also loves telling stories while facilitating in person leadership workshops at national conferences and for school districts.

Danny’s mission is to help Ruckus Makers Do School Different™.

Soniya Trivedi

Soniya Trivedi

Soniya, hailing from the culturally rich land of India, is a dynamic professional in the field of web services, crafting digital landscapes. Soniya’s journey into the world of technology is a testament to her unwavering passion and commitment to excellence, transforming ideas into impactful online realities.

Since 2022, Soniya has played an important role in supporting BLBS with her comprehensive website services.

She loves to travel and cook new recipes.

Dragan Ponjevic

Dragan Ponjevic

Music is an inspiring art form. Sound is conveyed via the air to the ears of living beings, and each being perceives it in its own unique way, eliciting a certain feeling. Dragan feels the same sensation every time he hears music, from infancy to now, as if it were a part of his existence that he couldn’t fathom living without. Dragan opted to deal with sound his entire life despite his formal degree, and today he is one of the most passionate audio producers you can meet and chat to about sound and music all day long. His enthusiasm for audio production, student-like thinking, and curiosity keep him continually mobile in generating new, quality, and enjoyable sound on a regular basis.

Dragan has been producing BLBS audio and video content since 2020.

Christina

Christina

My passion for both baseball and literature was the initial catalyst that led me into education. Growing up as a softball player and a die-hard fan of the Chicago Cubs from the North Side of the city, I developed a profound appreciation for the South Side of Chicago, not enough to convert me into a White Sox fan. As a National Board certified teacher, with over 16 years of experience on Chicago’s South Side, my journey as an educator has taken me from my roots in the Windy City to Virginia, as an instructional coach.

From the very beginning, I have been an unwavering believer in the philosophy of BLBS. My journey alongside Danny has been one of daring innovation and audacity, right from the moment he challenged me to say, “boom” and drop the mic during our initial city-wide professional development event. He has cultivated a team capable of winning a World Series, and I am deeply honored to be a part of this community of individuals who consistently push the boundaries and endeavor to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others.

Premaria Mutambudzi

Premaria Mutambudzi

Premaria Mutambudzi is the BLBS Office Administrator, This is her 2nd year, she has served in the administrative field for 5+ years, Prim is originally from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. She has been married for 7 years to her husband Takunda, and is blessed with two children.

Prim loves meditation, creative writing, poetry, and reading. In her spare time, Prim is a talented and creative Makeup Artist.

Sofia Hughes

Sofia Hughes

– Head Coach

Sofía’s lifelong search for a profession that would “leave the world a little better than she found it” led her to study philosophy and comparative religions, become a teacher, lead schools and educational projects, work for the Argentine Ministry of Education, contribute as a volunteer in various NGOs and become personally committed to causes that raised awareness about the world’s challenges and the potential of education to overcome them.

She is a practically-minded idealist, a profound believer in people and their potential for good, committed to collaborative leadership environments, and instinctively and naturally drawn to create order and systems in seemingly chaotic contexts.

After more than 30 years in the classroom and almost 20 as a school leader, Sofía now divides her time as Schools Development Manager for Cambridge University Press and Assessment, Executive Secretary for the International Confederation of Principals, Facilitator for the ESSARP Teacher Training Centre in Argentina and BLBS Mastermind Coach.

Each of her current roles allows her to travel near and far while contributing to her own lifelong learning, and that of school leaders across the world, in the slow way she cherishes: one experience, one adventure, one conversation and one relationship at a time.

Dan Watt

Dan Watt

– Head Coach

Once a roller derby ref, now enjoying “retirement”, Dan’s got some wild tales from the track. Picture this: Dallas, a Division 1 tournament, and Dan’s zipping around as an “outside pack ref” when suddenly, BAM! He gets bulldozed by “Ruthless Red” charging out of the penalty box. But did he stay down? Not a chance! Dan bounced right back up, finished the game like a champ, and jetted off to Barcelona for the World Cup, broken tailbone and all.

Bruises and broken bones couldn’t keep Dan out of the action. Those derby days weren’t just about dodging collisions—they taught him about grit, resilience, and leadership skills that he’s been flexing for 15 years as a school leader. Whether he’s coaching leaders as part of The Ruckus Maker Mastermind™ team or dodging freight trains in the fast-paced world of roller derby, Dan is always willing to lean into the next challenge.

Jason Dropik

Jason Dropik

– Head Coach

Jason P. Dropik (Babaamii-Bines / Eagle Clan) is the School Administrator for the Indian Community School (ics-edu.org), in Franklin, WI, which serves Native students in the metro Milwaukee area. A member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (BadRiver-nsn.gov), Jason is committed to supporting students, families, staff, school/community leaders, and the community both near and far.

Having recently completed a two-year term as President of the National Indian Education Association (NIEA.org), he advocated for and spoke on the importance of tribal sovereignty, policy, appropriations, and student support across the country. As a Board Member of NIEA, Jason continues with that work, championing training and providing information for schools and community organizations, while creating visibility and understanding of Indigenous perspectives.

His greatest passion is creating welcoming spaces for students to develop their identity, take pride in their language and culture, and to celebrate the rich legacy and the promising future of Indigenous communities.

Gene Park

Gene Park

– Head Coach

First and foremost, I’m a husband, father and son. I’m someone who is driven by my faith. I’m the Principal of A. Russell Knight Elementary in Cherry Hill, NJ. The Parks are animal lovers. We have 3 dogs and 2 cats. Some things that I’m loving at the moment is playing Pickleball and cooking for my friends and family. I also have the privilege and joy of serving as a BLBS Mastermind coach.

Jesse Rodriguez

Jesse Rodriguez

– Head Coach

Back in high school, Jesse used to painstakingly unthread the logos from his clothing and hats so that he wouldn’t be seen as part of the status quo.

He didn’t know it then, but that was the start of his journey as someone who finds unique ways of communicating ideas.

Then when he discovered his connection to youth with disabilities, he realized that he was among experts who’ve been finding ways to do things differently all their lives.

Leaning into these connections has brought him to become the Innovation Lead for a statewide project called I’m Determined – developing and producing animated videos and feature-length movies, facilitating events and building tools and resources for youth, families, and educators – all as ways to help students ink their journeys for the world to see.

As a leadership coach, Jesse is someone whose consistent presence is there to listen and add value and belonging.

Paige Kinnaird

Paige Kinnaird

– Head Coach

Leadership skills were evident as early as first grade for Paige Kinnaird when the teacher pointed out that “Paige is an eager beaver who completes her own work and then monitors what everyone else is doing.”

This taught Paige the importance of servant leadership. To never expect work from others that she is not fully committed to also putting forth the effort to accomplish.

Paige has used this as the central driving force of her work ever since… a willingness to be part of the work, not just driving the work.

Karine Veldhoen

Karine Veldhoen

– Head Coach

Karine Veldhoen, M.Ed., is the founder of Learn Forward™ and a creative force in education. While her name may be difficult to pronounce, her mission is simple, to champion extraordinary potential. As an educational leader (15 years) she created the first model Learn Forward™ school while simultaneously founding and serving as Executive Director of Niteo Africa. She’s taught Teacher Candidates at both UBC-O and UNBC and serves as a coach for Better Leaders Better Schools.

In all of her roles, she considers herself a modern-day pilgrim who stands for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

Now, she dedicates her professional practice to championing EdLeaders to design thriving schools. When Karine is not carving new paths for education, you’ll find her with her husband and three children, her heart-song.