Hello, my friends and welcome to the Live Inspired podcast Monday and Morning Moments with John

O'Leary.

Here we go.

Self-assured.

Self-made. Here we go. Self-assured, self-made, quick to decide, successful, sarcastic, snarky.

Recently, I asked a classroom of high school students studying leadership to describe the traits they most often see in leaders, whether they're leaders in politics, in media and social media. Those were some of the words they use. Let me go

through them one more time, self-assured, self-may, quick to decide, successful, sarcastic, snarky. That's their list. But let's not confuse common

with effective. So let me ask you something. What in your mind defines the very best leaders?

Most would agree descriptors like selfless, humble, sacrificial, other focused and loving

aren't just admirable traits for leaders, but they're transformational ones too.

And each one of those traits describes my friend, her name, is Amy Rizika.

If you ask Amy what she does, she won't lead with title.

She could, but she won't.

She won't mention that she serves one of the most diverse and one of the most successful school districts in all of Missouri.

She won't highlight decades of experience in education, nor call out the title, Superintendent, that rest on her door.

She'll simply say, probably, I'm an educator. Because for Amy, this isn't a job, it's certainly not a title, it's a calling.

She believes the best educators see potential when others can't.

And she knows they can call it forward and bring it to life.

Before the titles, Amy taught middle school math not because it came easy, but in fact, because it did not come easy.

She knew what it felt like to struggle with math, to feel stuck, to question if she was capable.

And because she had lived it, she could also meet her students in it and then lead then through

it.

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