School Leader Well-Being: Perceptions of Canada’s Outstanding Principals

Abstract

The decrease in well-being of school leaders has become an area of concern among scholars and practitioners around the world. Globally, increasing social, political, economic, educational, and professional demands faced by school administrators have led to an unmanageable workload, stress, burnout, and a lack of work–life balance. However, some principals thrive amidst challenges and are recognized by various national and international awards as outstanding school leaders. Examining the challenges that award-winning school principals face can both prevent conditions that decrease their well-being and help understand coping strategies and support systems necessary for successful school leadership. Our study examined the sense of flourishing among the national award-winning principals in the Canada’s Outstanding Principals (COP) program that recognizes outstanding contributions of principals in publicly funded schools. In this article, we describe participants’ perceptions regarding the significance of principal well-being, barriers and challenges to their well-being, coping strategies to promote and sustain their well-being, and necessary policy and school system supports for enhanced principal well-being.

1. Introduction

The well-being of members within the education field has long been known to suffer [1,2,3,4,5] due to the high stress, ever-changing expectations, and professional demands placed on individuals within their roles. Playing a pivotal role within the success of the school itself, principals are expected to not only meet the demands in their roles but also help meet the demands of stakeholders, parents, and colleagues. As a result, principals have been reporting lower satisfaction with their roles, higher levels of stress, increased pressures, and a lack of time to complete their daily tasks [3,5,6,7,8]. It is not surprising, then, to see higher principal attrition rates [5,9,10], with principals leaving or indicating higher intention to leave their role in the upcoming few years [6,11].

At the same time, a number of studies from around the world have also demonstrated high rates of overall job satisfaction and work enjoyment among school principals compared to the general population [8,11,12]. Results of these studies have shown that principals are mostly fulfilled with their chosen profession and, if taken back in time, would still choose to be school principals. Being naturally highly motivated and resilient individuals who display advanced problem-solving skills, optimism, and work ethic [13], many principals succeed despite significant challenges and even experience flourishing at work, which is characterized by optimal functioning, feeling good, and achieving a balanced life [14]. As a result, some of these principals are nominated for and recognized by various national and international awards as outstanding. Learning from such school leaders and examining how they flourish and what they do to overcome the tremendous barriers, obstacles, and challenges could offer valuable lessons for school leadership research.

Our mixed-methods study, conducted in 2019, examined the sense of flourishing of the national award-winning principals in the Canada’s Outstanding Principals (COP) program. This program was operated between 2004 and 2022 by the Learning Partnership [15] in association with the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management and the Canadian Association of Principals [16]. It was designed to recognize, celebrate, encourage, and support the outstanding contributions of publicly funded school principals who demonstrated innovation and entrepreneurial spirit and have done something truly remarkable in public education [15]. This competitive award acknowledged exceptional educational leadership, with principals nominated by parents, colleagues, and community members. With the voices of parents, teachers, and community members sharing remarkable stories and extraordinary contributions, it says a lot about the chosen principals, who were clearly able to create a profound impact within and beyond their school buildings. Winning this prestigious award has already informed us that the participating principals in our study are exceptional leaders who demonstrate effective leadership practices and behaviors, creating a positive impact in their schools and beyond.

In this article, we aimed to understand what aspects distinguished outstanding principals in terms of their performance and well-being. Assuming that principalship is a demanding job that can impact one’s well-being, we sought to investigate the kinds of barriers they face and how they deal with these barriers to maintain and foster their well-being. The following research questions guided our inquiry: (a) What significance do recipients of Canada’s Outstanding Principals Award attribute to their well-being?; (b) What challenges to well-being do recipients of Canada’s Outstanding Principals Award experience in their work?; and (c) What supports, promotes, and sustains the well-being of Canada’s Outstanding Principals award recipients in their work? In this article, we detail findings from the section of the online survey (n = 73) that gleaned participants’ perceptions regarding the well-being of principals. Upon a brief review of relevant literature and research methodology, we describe the participants’ perceptions regarding the significance of principal well-being, barriers, and challenges to their well-being, coping strategies to promote and sustain their well-being, and necessary policy and school system supports for enhanced principal well-being. We conclude by discussing the findings of this study in relation to the literature and offer implications for further research.

2. Review of the Literature

In order to theoretically frame the discussions in this article, we offer a brief overview of the literature on the challenges faced by school principals worldwide (and specifically in Canada) and highlight research on school principal well-being.

2.1. Challenges Facing School Principals

Worldwide, principals experience unprecedented and constant pressures that lead to poor mental health [3,5,17,18,19,20]. Some scholars even claim that school leaders across the globe may be at risk of burnout [21]. One of the most prevalent challenges faced by principals today includes excruciating working hours, far exceeding the standard expectations [21]. This increasing trend of sheer quantity of work reported by school leaders indicating the intense workloads school leaders experience has been mirrored across the world and at various time periods [19,22,23,24].

Other competing trends further exasperate the mental health crisis [22], including growing student population needs, economic challenges, shifting family and societal structures, and the global pandemic. Studies show that school leaders experience poor mental health due to the increasing societal and community pressures tied to the growing expectations of the role [3]. Contributing to these experiences, for example, are the challenges imposed due to varying and increasing student needs [2,25] and the societal expectations that are normalized as a result of these demands [26]. Ultimately, the ever-changing environment in which school leaders operate may significantly put their well-being at risk on a daily basis [3,27].

In the Canadian context, the situation is very similar, with school leaders facing increasing social, political, economic, educational, and professional demands. Studies have shown that school leaders experience stress and burnout due to the enormity of their jobs within the confines of insufficient time, inadequate resources, and a lack of training and leadership development [4]. In fact, “stressed” may be one of the most frequently used words by school principals in Canada to describe their well-being [4]. The national study results [26] demonstrated that principals perceived schools to be overloaded with responsibilities as a result of increasingly stringent accountability measures coupled with a lack of long-term vision for public education. Some authors suggested that school leaders’ well-being in Canada may be at serious risk [8,28,29,30].

This is concerning, especially due to the impact the educational leadership role has on teachers, student achievement and success, and the overall school culture [31,32,33]. It is well understood that the actions taken by school leaders have a significant and widespread impact on not only the students and their families but also the livelihood and work experience of countless teachers and staff [34]. With the success or failure of a school often depending largely on how its principal performs the role [35], it is necessary to examine the well-being of principals to better understand the impact a school leader’s well-being has on the workplace and all its working parts. Moreover, understanding specific conditions that may positively or negatively impact school leaders’ well-being is imperative to informing policies and practices that can alleviate the above challenges in a sustainable, realistic way.

2.2. School Leader Well-Being

Most frequently, well-being is positioned in relation to health. The World Health Organization (WHO) [36] defined health as a “state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or disability” (p. 18). WHO [5] further differentiated mental health, describing it as the “state of well-being in which an individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with normal stresses of life, can work productively, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community” (para. 1). WHO viewed mental health as an integral component of overall health and well-being that underpins the individual and collective abilities to make decisions, build relationships, and shape communities.

In a traditional sense, well-being has been understood to include three hallmarks, i.e., it is a personal experience that varies among individuals, it includes positive aspects of mental health as opposed to the mere absence of mental illness, and it is measured in longevity [37]. Together, these hallmarks have been labeled as subjective well-being (SWB), which is further defined as “people’s overall evaluations of their lives and their emotional experiences”, including “life satisfaction and health satisfaction judgments, and specific feelings that reflect how people are reacting to the events and circumstances in their lives” [38], (p. 89). Thus, well-being as the combination of feeling good and functioning well incorporates not only the positive emotions such as happiness and contentment but also the development of one’s potential, having some control over one’s life, having a sense of purpose, and experiencing positive relationships [39]. Several elements have been attributed to positive well-being (also referred to as holistic well-being), including positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment (also known as PERMA [40]). According to Marks and Shah [41], well-being is more than just happiness; it also means “developing as a person, being fulfilled, and making a contribution to the community” (p. 9). Thus, well-being is not just an individual responsibility; it is a collective, organizational, and communal imperative [42]. Well-being as a multi-layered construct is also impacted by social, emotional, and physical components that also shape our understanding of the world, beliefs, mindset, and actions [43]. Therefore, well-being can tremendously influence our decisions and overall trajectory not only in life but also at work (e.g., [43,44,45]) and is highly susceptible to the changes that occur around and within us [38].

Understanding the well-being of individuals has long been a topic of interest, with the well-being of leaders being a more recent topic of investigation. In general, studies have demonstrated the impact of leaders’ well-being on that of their followers as well as the work environment as a whole [46,47,48]. In terms of educational leadership, the impact of the role on principal well-being has been studied internationally, expanding our understanding of how educational leaders are affected by the role. As pertinent to the discussions in this article, leader well-being can sometimes be differentiated as a personal or work-related phenomenon. Although the focus of our study is on leader well-being at work, we recognize that both individual and work-related well-being are intricately linked and co-dependent. Therefore, rather than trying to focus only on personal (individual) or only occupational (role) well-being aspects, the lens we take on the leader’s well-being in this article is holistic.

2.3. Factors with Negative Impact on Principal Well-Being

One of the key findings across is the negative impact of increasing workload on school leaders’ well-being. The 2020 New Zealand Primary Principal Occupational Health, Safety, and Well-being Survey, for example, sought to understand the true work hour requirements in comparison to the prescribed standard and found more than half of the school leaders who participated in the survey worked more than 50 and up to 70 hours per week [49]. The authors also highlighted the increasing trend of sheer quantity of work reported by school leaders, indicating the intense workloads school leaders may experience. School leaders in the United Kingdom reported working an average of 58 hours per week [50], showing a continual increase of 8–10 hours per week since 2007 [19,24]. Similarly, a Canadian study supported by the Ontario Principals’ Council (OPC) determined that Ontario principals spend an average of 58 hours per week at work (during the school year), aligning with the average number of hours reported by other principals across Canada [22]. The study highlighted an increasing trend over the decades, as the reported average in this indicated a 4-hours increase compared to the numbers found in the late 2000s, which were already 4 hours longer than previously reported. In 2014, it was found that principals worked 14 or more hours per week longer than other managerial positions within the Canadian public sector [23]. Collectively, these studies demonstrate that the demand to keep school leaders “at the office” beyond what is typically prescribed has been consistently growing over the years and across the globe. It is no surprise that the negative impacts of long working demands are also increasing. Below are several examples of recent studies shedding light on the matter.

Another factor that poses a threat to school leaders well-being is stress. Several studies in the United Kingdom examining headteacher occupational stress and job satisfaction (e.g., [51]) determined high levels of work-related stress. Similarly, a 2018 study of health literacy and mental health of primary and secondary school principals reported that close to half of the demonstrated low well-being, with some indicating symptoms of clinical depression [52]. Another study examining the well-being of school principals at a larger scale in Germany determined that close to a third of the participating principals had low well-being, with some indicating very low well-being and suspected symptoms of depression [53]. Wang et al. [8] found that 80% of surveyed school leaders perceived their work as one that “often/always puts them in emotionally draining situations”. Similarly, a study of educational leaders’ stress conducted in rural Pennsylvania determined that due to the stress and interpersonal demands of connecting with varying individuals (e.g., students, parents, teachers, and stakeholders), relationships with others could induce stress and lead to individuals feeling emotionally drained [3]. A 2017 study of vice principals across Canada demonstrated that almost half of the participants reported experiencing “emotional drain” while working with students with mental health challenges [4] (p. iv).

2.4. Coping Strategies for Enhancing Principal Well-Being

As the above and more studies demonstrate the decline in school leaders’ mental health around the globe, some researchers have shifted their focus to examine coping mechanisms and help-seeking behaviors demonstrated by school leaders to offset the noted challenges. A scale and cross-country study comparing school leaders’ health in Germany and Switzerland found that German school leaders reported to be more stressed than their Swiss counterparts, leading them to be more prone to engage in self-endangering coping strategies to manage their stress [7]. Reported coping strategies to manage the work-related stress included work intensification and either longer working hours or a reduction in the quality of their work [7]. Though participants in the study indicated various stressors due to their role, the coping strategies they listed were accompanied by feelings of guilt, with school leaders indicating that they do not engage in ‘self-care’ and they often feel guilty for spending time with their family and/or relaxing [3].

Seeking to understand the underlying reasons for choosing potentially harmful coping strategies over seeking professional help, several reports [5,26,54] have indicated that poor mental health was highly stigmatized for school leaders, and school principals felt inclined to value optics over attending to the state of their well-being. As a result, there were fewer help-seeking initiatives among school principals, as doing so may have been counterintuitive to the essence of their profession, which is grounded in helping other people. Not surprisingly, the rates of mental health problems are alarmingly high among school principals compared to the general population, according to the above reports. This “growing global crisis” [22] (p. 19) does not only effect principals directly, but it may also trickle down into individual schools for generations to come.

Demonstrated in this section is the plethora of research studies reporting the declining mental health state for the average school leader across the globe. While the adverse impacts of school leadership on school leaders’ overall state of well-being have been well documented, the mechanisms by which leaders may acquire and sustain well-being remain unclear [55]. Research has shown that principals need more support regarding managing their health and well-being [17], professional and personal social support networks [20,56], and personal growth [26], all of which are necessary for maintaining well-being. Bennis [57] reminded us of the criticality of attending to the needs of leaders themselves. While there is ample research on the effect of leadership styles on the followers’ performance [58,59,60], there exists a dearth of knowledge regarding the processes by which leaders maintain their own well-being. Bennis [57] suggested casting a wider research net to capture all aspects of fruitful leadership, as well as how leaders may achieve it. What is often excluded from research are the stories of school leaders who, despite facing similar and at times more challenging work conditions compared to the average school leader, manage to develop strategies that enable them to do well, be well, and inspire wellness. We may be able to argue that this select group of outstanding school leaders would not be able to achieve and exceed expectations had they not taken care of themselves—their emotional, social, and physical well-being.

3. Research Design and Methods

This article draws from the larger mixed-methods (survey and interviews) study that explored the sense of flourishing among the national award-winning principals in Canada’s Outstanding Principals program [42]. For this article, we exclusively use the results from the online survey that was developed by researchers based on the systematic review of the literature and adaptations of similar instruments [61,62,63,64]. After being piloted among school principals, the finalized survey instrument included 62 closed questions and 12 open-ended questions, which were thematically organized based on the systematic review of the literature into the following sections: flow, thriving, resilience, grit, and well-being. These constructs were identified in the literature on positive psychology as critical for the notion of flourishing, and the connection and correlations between these constructs for this particular study have been established and discussed elsewhere [65].

The invitation to participate in the online survey (administered through Qualtrics) was shared via the Learning Partnership communication channels in 2019 to all past recipients of the Canada’s Outstanding Principals award prior to that time (N~500). All ethical guidelines for recruitment and confidentiality of responses were followed throughout the data collection and analysis process as stated in the study’s ethics application, which is approved and governed by Queen’s University Graduate Research Ethics Board (GREB). We have received 102 responses to our survey (about 20 percent return rate). Prior to data analysis, the researchers removed unusable data (incomplete or partially completed survey responses), which resulted in total 73 usable survey responses. To understand the Canada Outstanding Principals awardees’ perceptions of well-being, we have chosen an open-ended question approach rather than closed Likert-style questions present in other sections. Due to the subjective nature of well-being, we wanted the respondents to be able to fully describe their lived experiences and how they view their own well-being. Hence, establishing correlation between the construct of well-being and the other four constructs (flow, thriving, resilience, and grit) was not statistically possible. In addition, the rich qualitative data from the well-being section warranted a separate, in-depth analysis of the respondents’ perspectives.

Therefore, for this particular article, we solely analyzed the school leaders’ responses to the questions in the well-being section that contained the following four open-ended questions:

• What are the most important supports that promote and sustain your well-being in your work?
• What are the biggest challenges to your well-being, and how do you mediate these?
• Why do you think principal well-being matters to a school?
• How can your school system (school board/division) support and grow principal well-being?

Using a qualitative data analysis approach, we created a mix of a priori coding from the literature (deductive approach based on survey constructs) and open coding (inductive approach based on emergent themes) [66]. The codes gathered from the participants responses were subsequently grouped into the following thematic categories: (a) the significance of principal well-being; (b) barriers and challenges to their well-being; (c) coping strategies to promote and sustain their well-being; and (d) necessary policy and school system supports for enhanced principal well-being. Following the demographic information, research findings are presented below in these four thematic categories that corresponded to each of the survey questions.

3.1. Demographics

The demographic questions in this survey included age, gender, province/territory, education, years of experience as an educator, years of experience as a principal, and training in mental health or well-being. The mean age of the respondents was 54 years of age, with 49% male and 51% female. The majority of respondents were from Ontario (36%), followed by Manitoba (7%), Alberta (7%), and Quebec (6%). All provinces and territories were represented apart from Yukon (see

Table 1. Province/Territory.

Province/Territory	n	%
Alberta	7	10
British Columbia	5	7
Manitoba	7	10
New Brunswick	5	7
Newfoundland	1	1
Northwest Territories	5	7
Nova Scotia	3	4
Nunavut	2	3
Ontario	26	36
Prince Edward Island	1	1
Quebec	6	8
Saskatchewan	4	5
Yukon	0	0
Other	1	1

Note: The respondent in Other currently lived in the United States of America, but at the time of receiving the award was a principal working in Canada.

).

Over 60% of the respondents indicated that their highest degree was a master’s degree in education, with 16% having a bachelor’s degree in education as their highest degree. The majority of respondents (56%) indicated they have 21 to 30 years of experience as an educator, 37% indicated that they have 16 or more years of experience as a principal, and only 8% indicated having five years or less (see

Table 2. Years of experience.

Years as Educator	n	%	Years as Principal	n	%
10 or less	0	0	5 or less	6	8
11 to 20	8	11	6 to 10	16	22
21 to 30	41	56	11 to 15	24	33
31 or more	24	33	16 or more	27	37

). Finally, 75% of the participants responded that they had some form of training in mental health or well-being. These demographics are presented for general information purposes; due to the qualitative nature of the data for this article, we were not able to differentiate the findings based on demographics.

4. Research Findings

Data analysis is presented within the following four thematic categories: (a) the significance of principal well-being; (b) barriers and challenges to their well-being; (c) coping strategies to promote and sustain their well-being; and (d) necessary policy and school system supports for enhanced principal well-being.

4.1. Significance of Principal Well-Being

Effective leadership behaviors and practices are known characteristics of successful principals. The outstanding principals award winners in this study, with their powerful quotes and metaphors, invited us to explore their exceptional principalship world. From a healthy root that can determine the flourishing or survival of a tree to the foundation that can hold up the entire building and ensure it is stable and secure, this is how some of the participants described their principalship role:

• The stronger, more grounded, and more connected the leader, the better everyone is likely to be. A tree might have a few damaged branches and other branches survive, but start destroying the trunk and see how long the branches last.
• If the principal is not well, then the foundation of a school community can crack, and misunderstandings with respect to direction and expectations can lead to confusion and unnecessary situations.

Participants used another metaphor of the captain of the ship, who has the map and makes sure to steer the ship safely to its final destination, to describe the principals’ work: “Principals are the keepers of the vision and direct the ship. They influence the overall culture of the school in a tremendous way. They set the tone on a daily basis as the lead role model for behavior and expectations”. In their view, principal well-being matters, as when the captain of the ship or the principal of the school does not feel well, its consequences often trickle down to every level of the school: “If the leader of the ship is not well, the ship will sway off course and could eventually sink”. Another participant noted: “The job is too difficult to do when you are not feeling well”.

It is clear that principals were aware of the importance of their well-being and their responsibility as mindful, cautious, caring, and supportive leaders and captains who are the main source of positivity and assurance for everyone involved in the journey. Some of the comments included:

• You are the person that everyone looks to for strength, resilience, compassion, empathy, direction, leadership, integrity, and courage.
• Regardless of one’s leadership approach and/or philosophy, the principal is the face, the rock, and the spirit of the community. Stakeholders look at you for guidance, direction, and love.

The data have shown that effective principals were aware that all eyes were on them, indicating their understanding of the high expectations placed upon them. They also recognized that their leadership self-efficacy, or their belief in their capacity to execute effective leadership behaviors such as leading, motivating, supporting, modeling resilience, demonstrating understanding, showing compassion and empathy, providing direction, embodying leadership integrity, and acting with courage, is crucial to their roles, as one principal described it: “We are the mirrors that reflect the needs, challenges, and accomplishments of our communities. We are the brand that sells the school. We are the walking advertisement that champions everyone in the building”. The metaphors used in the above quote are powerful, in a sense that they all described how effective principals view themselves, i.e., “mirror” is supposed to be reflective of what is happening in school, “brand” is expected to be strong to offer assurance for stakeholders, and “advertisement” is assumed to be real, creative, honest, meaningful, engaging, and easy to be understood by all clients or stakeholders.

Other principals shed light on hardship, indicating the importance of resilience and emotional intelligence in dealing with tough situations that they face almost on a daily basis with their students or staff. One of the principals noted, “You are dealing with staff and students in difficult situations, and you have to be sharp and on your game at all times!” Another comment echoed: “Others watch who we are, how we lead, and how we deal with adversity—we model leadership, and that matters”. Many participants described themselves as the role models—individuals who model behavior and set the tone for the entire school, and they considered their behavior and attitude to be contagious. Therefore, it is not entirely surprising that they consider the school to be a reflection of its principal and the other way around. The following quotes are examples of what the principals shared with us:

• Principals are role models to staff, students, and the community.
• You set the tone the minute you walk into the building. Remaining a mature and self-aware person takes time and effort, as does modeling the same—always.
• The principal sets the tone for the staff; if they are positive, staff are more likely to be positive.
• Principals play a key role in setting the tone in the building and direction, etc. The principal leads by example too.

Participants in our study considered their well-being to be the basis of the well-being of all the individuals within the school, as well as the overarching culture of the school. For them, the health of the principal equaled the health of the entire school: “A healthy principal means a healthy staff and student success”. On the other hand, “If the principal is not well, the school is not well; it affects the school culture and school climate”. As effective leaders, participants made sure that well-being was embedded in their school culture. Therefore, for them, the functionality of the school and whether the school is on track to success and progress or not is related to everyone’s well-being (including the principals’ well-being), in which effective principals understand and value the connection between leadership effectiveness and well-being: “We can only be effective in our jobs if we look after ourselves and our colleagues”. As one participant explained it well: “You can’t protect the children at school if you can’t properly protect your own children. Students also notice quickly if you are not working to support them—so do teachers”.

The absence of well-being can also have far-reaching consequences for the entire community, posing a significant concern. In the words of one principal, “If the leader isn’t well, … the whole school community falls. A leader is the embodiment of the attitudes and skills and disposition needed to foster growth and change, … and if the leader doesn’t have this sense of well-being, then the whole community will be behind in meeting with their preferred future”. Another participant pinpointed that having an unhealthy principal in a school is problematic for the school culture and for all stakeholders: “So, when a principal is unwell or is not practicing well-being, others follow suit, and the environment in the building can crumble. Often times the direction is lost, and motivation or momentum dissipates too”.

4.2. Barriers and Challenges to Well-Being

While our participants placed importance on their own and others’ well-being, data also illuminated the kinds of barriers and challenges to well-being that tested them personally and their effectiveness as leaders to deal with obstacles. The two key barriers were time and dealing with difficult individuals.

Time, or lack thereof, was identified as the single most detrimental factor to the participants’ well-being. Principals seemed to agree that the time they are given may not match what is expected from them to do: “endless tasks, new initiatives, endless list of tasks to complete” or “time taken for work and the amount of mental energy it takes all the time”. Therefore, they appeared to be in constant battle to find more time or even take from personal time to continue to do their job well: “The amount of time required for my work, and I constantly work to achieve and work/life balance”.

Time appeared to be a precious commodity to these principals, and the most significant hurdles to their well-being appeared to originate from the notion of time scarcity: “Lack of time with so much to do as an administrator, being overworked, often under pressure, and often feeling like the changes never end”. “Pace and quantity of work”. In addition, not having enough time or time wasted doing less meaningful activities were the most prominent of these hurdles. As the principal noted, “Time management [is an issue]; getting lost in my work and the day is done”. In addition, a heavy workload that takes time, not having free time, and having too many things to do were identified by participants as other hurdles to their well-being. Many of them pinpointed the idea of doing paperwork or administrative work as the most time-consuming and least desirable activity and detrimental to their well-being: “Lack of time with so much to do as an administrator, being overworked, often under pressure, and often feeling like the changes never end”. Many participants mentioned how lack of time prevents them from achieving a work–life balance, which was regarded as a hazard to their well-being. In the words of one participant, the biggest challenge was “finding time to do things both personal and professional to the calibre I feel is necessary, as well as a home and work balance”.

The second most impactful barrier to the participants’ achieving well-being was dealing with difficult individuals, including teachers, parents, superintendents, and union representatives who had negative and demanding expectations, were opposed to change, were unsupportive of leadership, and created challenging work conditions for them to remain well. Some of the most common participants’ responses pertaining to this theme included the following:

• Negative union narratives are political ploys to maintain the status quo.
• Colleagues who have their own concerns that ultimately have a direct impact on positive relations and the school climate.
• Adults who have been taught that building relationships is for the weak.
• School division politics—the operation of the ‘in group’.
• Parents with unreasonable expectations or demands.
• Demanding individuals in the school community whose demands are unreasonable or unrealistic.
• Senior admin not supporting you—cannot mediate; they will not listen and use the power card to make decisions that do not reflect the needs of your school.
• Unreasonable directives and/or expectations from above.

While some of the principals’ job responsibilities were manageable, they described barriers and encumbrances to well-being that were particularly stressful and non-manageable. As one principal noted, there were “conflicts that I cannot control or beyond my scope as an educator, [and I] learned that I cannot always impact every situation”. Therefore, it was not a total surprise to find that outstanding principals, like their counterparts, can become angry, frustrated, or anxious over stressful burdens. These emotional exhausting feelings could be clearly heard when, for example, a participant said:

One of the biggest challenges I faced, beyond stupid bosses, was supervising unwell employees. Unwell employees have an emotional toll on students and their colleagues. Managing the unwellness of others impacts negatively on one’s own well-being and community relationships.

Additionally, some of the participants experienced burnout due to a heavy workload. They noted that it was a significant concern that could impact the principals’ personal lives if not managed well. In the words of one participant: “The job keeps growing. I see my colleagues burning out. I worry that I am spending more time at work and thinking about work, and doing work than I am with my own children and that I have not much left to give when I get home at 6 pm…” As a result, they argued that leaders needed to know their limitations, as some shared “we are human and more than our occupation,” and suggested to “take some things off our plate—do not keep adding accountabilities—stand up to political pressures that are unreasonable”. Another participant said, “We all need support in some areas from time to time”.

4.3. Supports that Promote and Sustain Well-Being

This section describes the supports and resources the participants identified and developed, which assisted them in their roles and contributed to their well-being. Participants’ responses about supports that promoted and sustained well-being while dealing with stressful situations that the principals faced in their jobs demonstrated the importance of leadership capacities, which can enable exceptional individuals to deal with strains while being mindful of the impact of any situation on their well-being. Responses highlighted a sense of flexibility, adaptability, and momentum among these outstanding principals to ensure they were effective in their work. One participant articulated it effectively when she emphasized the significance of ongoing learning in coping with challenges: “Well-being comes from competency. We need to grow the abilities and learning of leaders so they can do their jobs in a proficient manner. All the talk of balance and well-being is nice but if you do not understand how to do your job you will always be anxious”.

Leadership effectiveness, which enabled outstanding principals to maintain their performance and well-being, also helped them identify and utilize two resources that assisted them in dealing with stressful situations and fostering their well-being: (a) connecting with others (family, friends, and colleagues); and (b) connecting with oneself (walking, yoga, and getting outside).

The first important support for well-being identified by the participants was people. An important pillar of well-being appeared to be the existence of relationships with supportive, trusting, respectful, empathetic, and collaborative individuals such as family, friends, colleagues, mentors, and VPs and other managers. It was evident that their well-being benefited from having “supportive” and “positive” families at home, as well as “friends and the kids … always the kids”. At school, they also benefited from having regular and honest conversations with peers, colleagues, and supportive leaders. Responses emphasized the need to seek the supports from “solid colleagues who can relate, … trusted allies, [and] supportive supervisory officer,” and ensure they had an open and honest dialogue “on an ongoing basis”. As one of the participants shared, “having a supportive leader who has regular conversations” and who challenged her to “learn new things while maintaining a sense of security” was beneficial for her. Through strong and trusting relationships, many principals were able to find ways to energize themselves and keep going, even when things seemed ambiguous.

The following quotes are some examples of what the participants said about positive relationships and dialogues at school that were beneficial for their well-being:

• Positive staff who have similar values to mine, having close and dependable staff members that will support my decisions and believe in me (secretary, staff assistant, and other key people), supportive family outside of school, supportive colleagues that I can bounce ideas and problems off of in confidence and without judgement.
• People that I trust and having a sounding board during difficult, frustrating, and tiring times.
• Positive peer relationships—colleagues that you can have honest discussions with, especially during difficult times.
• The respect and cooperation of my colleagues and staff.

It was clear that these relationships were built on reciprocal trust and respect, which allowed the participants to be themselves and express their thoughts freely without hesitation or fear of judgment and contributed to their well-being.

The second most important support for principals’ well-being was identified as self-care, such as having fun, achieving a state of soul, mental and physical health, and feeling engaged. Work–life balance was an important strategy needed for their overall sense of well-being. Some of the representative comments in this subtheme included:

• Be physically active and give permission to take the time you need to stay mentally healthy.
• Taking a walk. Sitting in the Peace Pod (a passive sensory room). Joking around with staff.
• Strong spiritual life.
• Balance between work life and home/community commitments.
• Walking, yoga, coaching, getting outside.

In their responses, participants noted that in order to draw from within their own resources and capabilities, they needed to grow their own well-being capacity first.

4.4. Policy and System Support for Principal Well-Being

When principals were asked to reflect upon the different ways in which their school system could support and grow their well-being, they highlighted the following four key elements: (a) implementation of supportive policies; (b) workload regulation; (c) professional development opportunities; and (d) collaboration opportunities.

By having the policies that directly addressed the principals’ well-being implemented, participants believed they could better manage their work–life balance and attend to their personal well-being without fear of undue repercussions, such as losing their salary. Most frequent mentions of supportive policies included more time off allocation and paid wellness leaves. One of the participants noted the following:

I strongly believe that the district must support principal well-being by removing barriers to time off work (to use lieu time effectively); to not make decisions because of perceptions but because of well-being … all too often, principals are told to take the higher road to avoid upsetting the unions at the cost of doing the right thing. For senior executives to listen to principals and not dump on their workload and then say, leadership is a privilege.

This principal further noted the importance of the systemic recognition of principal well-being, which in turn can allow for more flexibility for the regulations that govern school leadership

Below is a highlight of what other participants referred to as supportive policies.

• Have a comprehensive HR plan around health and well-being.
• More flexible rules, more flexible work hours, holidays, and benefits.
• Look at the number of needs in a specific school and area and staff accordingly, not just solely by numbers.
• Provide specific additional supports for principals.
• Provide well-being activities.
• Annual leave days.
• This year we are receiving five personal days on our board. This recognizes that “hey, we are putting in extra time beyond school hours”.
• Providing time and promoting the use of time for well-being, showing that it is a priority.
• Time away, comp days, and mandatory training on mental health.
• Wellness plans, wellness training.
• A more formal approach to mentoring (pairing experienced administrators with those new to the position) and review of administrative tasks/reporting requirements that are of limited benefit.
• Implement change sensitively and sensibly.
• Change the metrics of education to be more reflective of real life and real teaching.

Such policies, many participants believed, needed to be embedded into their job description at the human resources level in order for them to be able to take advantage of them. In the words of one principal, such policies will “empower [principals] to do what is important … and support principals in creating school cultures where everyone in the school thrives”. Benefiting the principals’ well-being directly, these policies could additionally reflect a system that understands the challenges that principals face and their needs and, in turn, tailor guidelines that are more in line with the realities of school leadership.

Participants identified regulating workload as a way for the system to support their well-being. They reflected upon simple but time-consuming activities that their school board can minimize so their workload is manageable and does not harm their well-being. A few of the participants additionally pointed out the importance of respecting time off and holidays and reducing the work demands that at times distress their time outside of work. Below are a few examples of participants’ suggestions regarding this theme:

• Allow administrators to take lunch breaks uninterrupted or leave the building if they want.
• A better work balance—less new initiatives and fewer meetings—gives us time in our schools to impact positive change.
• Provide time to network; give us time back by minimizing the demands that can be carried out by admin assistants at the board office (e.g., send us your monthly enrollment, which can be pulled from the computer system).
• Remove meetings and communications not needed.
• Get rid of all the paperwork or streamline the paperwork.
• Do not send out system memos over holidays/weekends.
• Provide the appropriate amount of human resources (actual people) to do the job;
• The school system also needs to be more aware and understanding of the increased work intensification put onto school leaders from all stakeholders.
• Look for ways to offload rather than download.
• Do not send work-related emails during the weekends and evenings.
• Reduce the number, frequency, variety, and suddenness of demands from the board office.
• More flexible rules, more flexible working hours.

In addition, acknowledging the heavy workload associated with their duties as school leaders, participants shared the opinion that the system remains inadequate in limiting their workload and allowing them to delegate paperwork-related responsibilities to their subordinates.

Professional development (PD) opportunities, many participants agreed, are a fundamental way for the system to support principal well-being. Many participants suggested that if systems offered “ongoing professional development” and “certification programs”, that would enhance their well-being. By creating opportunities that help principals grow, develop, and improve upon their skills, principals believed they would feel more confident in their decisions and subsequently have less stress. One principal advocated for “promotion of learning within the system amongst leadership [because] understanding the role of principal is demanding and taking time to reflect is important for growth”.

Finally, participants emphasized the need for increased collaboration opportunities, which entailed allocating time and space for principals to share ideas with colleagues. Through consulting with fellow school administrators, participants believed they could “learn new tools to better their practice” or simply “share their experiences with fellow professionals in a professional setting”. Some of the ways to do so included increased networking, peer-to-peer interactions, and professional learning communities (PLCs) for leaders.

• Promote PLCs of principals meeting monthly to share issues and new ideas off campus, e.g., breakfast meetings.
• Provide collegial opportunities to network and create an atmosphere of trust.
• Allow more opportunities for peer-to-peer collaboration. Explicit affirmation of positive work.

In addition, several of the participants suggested the need for mentorship to enhance their well-being:

• Provide strong mentorship and support from both colleagues and Central Office personnel.
• Perhaps a formal mentorship with another principal. Someone who is not directly a friend but you can trust. A trustworthy peer to be able to express your weaknesses without judgement.

Increasing their sense of belonging, as the direct product of the collaboration opportunities provided and streamlined by the education system, was an additional well-being benefit indicated by the participants. It was also prevalently noted that trust was critical for increased collaboration opportunities.

5. Discussion

There is no doubt that well-being was important for Canada’s Outstanding Principal awardees. Although our data collection occurred before the COVID-19 pandemic, which further exacerbated the barriers and challenges to school leaders’ well-being and brought well-being efforts to the forefront of their attention, we believe many of the issues raised by participants remained the same or similar during and after the pandemic. This study’s findings demonstrated the crucial role of their own well-being agency and the deep entanglement of the principals’ well-being with that of others through the social aspects of their work lives. Both individual and collective agency for noticing, nurturing, and sustaining well-being is a key responsibility for educational leaders [67]. Our participants viewed themselves as captains and champions, role models, tone-setters, and mirrors of the overall well-being in schools. The reciprocal nature of well-being meant that if leaders were well, that set the tone for the school culture of well-being; on the contrary, if the school was not well, it was negatively reflecting on their own well-being. While leaders hold the key to a positive school environment where students, teachers, and staff can experience well-being and flourish [34,68], in order to support others in experiencing and developing these capacities, the leaders themselves need to experience and develop them first [69]. The “mirroring” of well-being described by our participants resembles the phenomenon of positive social contagion [70], where one’s flourishing causes or leads to others’ flourishing, creating an upward spiral [71].

There is substantial evidence that effective educational leadership can improve schools, impact the performance and well-being of teachers and students, create a healthy culture, and succeed in challenging times [72,73,74,75,76,77,78]. School principals are required to develop skills necessary to successfully juggle competing demands [79], especially since there is a substantial relationship between leadership and student achievement [80]. Moreover, their behaviors can influence “teacher morale, burnout, stress, commitment, and self- and collective efficacy” [81] (p. 379), which in turn can impact the well-being of both teachers and students. The principals in our study shared their full awareness of the impact of the principals’ well-being or ill-being on people around them—teachers, students, and staff.

The outstanding principals identified their main roles in setting directions, building relationships, developing their schools (e.g., caring culture), and offering support, understanding, and help to others in their buildings, which demonstrates their leadership effectiveness. The data have shown the importance of caring principals who are aware of their critical impact on everyone in the school building. Studies have shown that caring school leadership can foster well-being, enhance performance, and lead to job satisfaction [82,83,84].

The data analysis has also uncovered the leadership internal resources (capacities) that principals exhibited (e.g., emotional intelligence, leadership self-efficacy, and resilience), which contributed to their well-being and performance. Leithwood et al. [32] listed these among personal leadership resources that principals need in order to succeed: cognitive resources (problem-solving expertise, domain-specific knowledge, and systems thinking); social resources (perceiving emotions, managing emotions, and acting in emotionally appropriate ways); and psychological resources (optimism, self-efficacy, resilience, and proactivity).

According to Tschannen-Moran and Gareis [85], “self-efficacy is a perceived judgement of one’s ability to effect change, which may be viewed as a foundational characteristic of an effective school leader” (p. 573). Outstanding principals expressed their beliefs in their capabilities to lead their schools and highlighted the connection between their performance and well-being and the well-being of others in their schools. Singh et al. [86] also found a positive relationship between self-efficacy and workplace well-being. Similarly, Ortan et al. [87] suggested that self-efficacy (among other factors) has a significant effect on job satisfaction, which in turn influences teachers’ well-being. Furthermore, our participants demonstrated leadership self-efficacy (LSE), which entailed the ability to “successfully exert leadership by setting a direction for the work group, building relationships with followers in order to gain commitment to change goals, and working with them to overcome obstacles to change” [88] (p. 217). Being patient, staying calm, and handling problems while modeling positivity, resiliency, hope, and optimism is related to leadership self-efficacy [89,90].

Dealing with adversity can test leaders’ emotional intelligence, a key skill that distinguishes effective leaders from non-effective ones. Our findings support the claim that emotional intelligence is a key competency that effective school leaders should be equipped with [91,92,93], which might explain how outstanding principals in our study were able to deal with barriers, challenges, and adversity. Emotionally intelligent leaders are those who can manage their own emotions, recognize their people’s different emotions, personalities, needs, and expectations, and modify their approaches based on this important assessment, and they stand out in difficult times [94,95,96,97].

As award winners, participants in this study were deemed to be highly experienced and effective school leaders. Having principals who model resilience and who are adept at dealing with adversity can explain why some schools excel while others do not. School leaders’ resilience and their ability to foster resilience in others are critical to the overall sustainability of a healthy organization [98]. Effective leaders have been found in research and practice as exceptional people who have the capacity to deal with stressors, stay calm, and make good decisions, which we also confirmed in this study. Scholars demonstrated that more experienced principals, having worked under pressure and continuing demands, can better withstand adverse situations, develop stronger resilience to deal with emotionally draining situations, and protect personal free time, health, and general physical well-being [99,100].

The different workplace pressures and challenges that principals face on a daily basis can negatively impact their well-being. The data analysis revealed two types of job demands or stressors, i.e., challenge stressors and hindrance stressors [101,102]. Whereas challenge stressors are typically inherited in the principal’s roles, such as their job responsibilities, and can lead to job satisfaction, resilience, and personal and professional growth, hindrance stressors can interfere with performance, decrease job satisfaction, and negatively impact their well-being if not acknowledged and addressed well [103]. It is evident that principals in our study experienced hindrance stressors, such as long hours, heavy workloads, managing difficult individuals, and organizational politics. Similarly, other studies found that workloads, time, and relationships are serious stressors for principals that can affect their job performance and their own well-being [3,104,105]. Managing people can test the leaders’ soft skills, especially in professional realms, and can leave a long impact on leaders and followers [106]. In fact, principals’ behaviors are often acknowledged as a main element that can impact well-being in schools [75,107,108]. These hindrance stressors can impact their well-being and should be managed well [109,110]; thus, the principals in our study clearly listed the supports they needed from their school systems, including workload regulation, professional development, mentorship, and collaboration opportunities. Within the constraints and challenges of their work, school leaders do have agency for noticing and nurturing how they grow and sustain their well-being, and they also need supports and resources from administrators and district leaders [42].

In order to confront the challenge and hindrance stressors, participants were able to identify and utilize different strategies and resources that helped their well-being. The first strategy to enhance their well-being was connecting to others. These outstanding principals were mindful of the importance of asking for help when needed and were selective in terms of where to find the nonjudgmental supportive advice and assistance. Our findings align with other studies that explored the positive impacts of social support on well-being that demonstrate that empathy and social support boost resilience when experiencing stressful circumstances [111,112]. Having a strong social support network (family, friends, and colleagues), in which individuals can express themselves and share ideas, opinions, concerns, and issues, can reduce stress, release built-up tension, help gain new insights, enhance overall health, increase motivation, enhance performance, lead to hope, optimism, and resiliency, and contribute to overall well-being [113,114,115,116].

The second resource they utilized was to connect to oneself. Self-care, according to Drago-Severson et al. [117], is a vital, yet often elusive, component of effective leadership that requires learning and honing over time. Research shows that self-care is required for the leaders’ physical, mental, and intellectual well-being [118]. This factor highlighted the need to ensure the leaders’ own well-being capacity is maintained and sustained before they can attend to the well-being of others [42]. Hassed and Chambers [119] stated that over-reaching into individual resources will leave very little to draw from in times of adversity, which can in turn easily push us over to crisis mode. The scholars added that when people are not physically or emotionally well, they will have “very little left in reserve for when demands increase”. Therefore, in order to support school leaders in building their self-efficacy, skills, and self-care to increase their well-being, it is important to provide supports for stress management at the system level [12].

6. Conclusions and Implications

School leaders are faced with a myriad of challenges that can impact their well-being negatively if left unaddressed. Outstanding principals in this study showed us how effective principals take care of their well-being and the well-being of others surrounding them. In essence, it was quite clear that outstanding principals were equipped with effective leadership skills and capacities, in which their leadership self-efficacy and emotional intelligence assisted them in their roles, exhibiting their full understanding of the importance of their well-being and the well-being of others in their school buildings. They believed that their well-being is fundamental to the functionality of the school, and the well-being of its every member is an absolute necessity. At the heart of it all, it is noted that a healthy school environment begins with an effective principal who is and remains well. Full awareness of their strengths and supports allowed them to identify and deal effectively with the challenges that they could handle and understand those that were outside of their direct control. They were also able to identify their limitations, which clearly contributed to their well-being. Moreover, the resources the participants identified and developed assisted them in their roles and contributed to their well-being. They were able to identify and use the strategies to enhance their performance and well-being and highlighted the supports that were critical for this endeavor.

Learning from these outstanding principals, we suggest the need for continuous well-being evaluation, in which principals can appreciate their strengths, acknowledge their weaknesses or shortcomings, and identify stressors and opportunities. Important to their sense of well-being may be increased access to a variety of professional development opportunities and carving out time and space for principals to participate in professional development activities. This may include strategies suggested by the participants, like mentoring, collaboration and networking with their peers, and sharing of experiences, tricks of the trade, and potential avenues and resources. Opportunities that help principals grow and develop and improve upon their skills can increase the leaders’ self-efficacy, grow their decision-making confidence, and decrease stress. Our research demonstrated that taking time off can be vital for principals’ well-being. We acknowledge that some principals, especially those leading in challenging school districts, may not have the ability to step back for extended periods of time. However, this can be mediated at the system level by regulating their workload and incorporating incremental pockets of time for principals to step back and recalibrate. Finally, we encourage further research on the effective system-level supports that can promote and sustain the well-being of school leaders.