Who’s Taking Care of the Principal: A Wellness Approach for School Principal Self-Care

Principals who engage in wellness strategies can both enhance their holistic wellness and leadership abilities. These strategies may include engaging in physical activity, seeking personal counseling, having a sense of purpose, and maintaining professional and personal relationships and support systems (Visger, 2016). However, like principals, many leaders have difficulties engaging in self-care activities due to the demands in their work environments (Pignatelli, 2015). The Indivisible Self wellness model (IS-Wel; Myers & Sweeney, 2004) can serve as a conceptual foundation for recommending strategies that may aid school principals in achieving holistic wellness. This in turn can help principals engage in healthier work practices that benefit themselves and the school communities they serve. Wellness strategies for principals will be shared utilizing the IS-Wel model. Implications for future practice for school principal wellness will be explored.