Start Small When Thinking Big: Little Things Create Lasting Impact

Have a bias towards action – let’s see something happen now. You can break that big plan into small steps and take the first step right away.

– Indira Gandhi

INTRO

As a school leader, you’re no stranger to the challenge of improving your school while juggling the day-to-day demands of running it. It can feel overwhelming to think about systemic change when you’re also managing buses, behavior, and budgets. But transformation doesn’t have to be a monumental undertaking all at once. In fact, the most powerful changes often begin with small, intentional actions.

One practical way to approach school improvement is by chunking your efforts into three categories: Little Things, Key Moves, and Big Plays. This simple framework can help you prioritize your energy, pace your work, and build momentum toward lasting change.

OBJECTIVES

Introduce a practical framework for approaching school transformation
Encourage sustainable change through strategic pacing

RESOURCE LINKS

Simon Sinek Vi deo

Little Things: What You Can Do Tomorrow

Little Things are smaller efforts you can perform tomorrow, or within the next week or so.

These are the quick wins—small, meaningful actions that can shift your school’s culture, relationships, and routines. They don’t require big plans or extra resources, just intention and consistency.

Greet students by name at the front door to build connection and trust.
Share a story of student success in your weekly staff email.
Ask one teacher, “What’s something working well in your classroom?”
Post a quote about growth mindset in a staff common area.
Celebrate a colleague publicly for a behind-the-scenes contribution.

Why it matters: Little Things spark momentum. They model the culture you want to build and remind your team that every interaction counts. Over time, these small acts create a more supportive and engaged learning community.

Key Moves: What You Can Plan for This Semester

Key Moves are efforts that require a bit of planning, but can be implemented within the next three to six months.

Key Moves take more time and coordination, but they’re achievable within a three to six month window. They often involve building shared understanding, adjusting structures, or piloting new approaches.

Launch a teacher-led committee to define your school’s vision for student readiness.
Use student surveys to inform changes in advisory or SEL supports.
Realign team meeting agendas to focus on instructional practices and data-informed conversations.
Partner with a local organization to co-design a career-connected learning project.
Review and revise hallway or classroom norms with student input.

Why it matters: Key Moves create alignment. They shift how people use time, make decisions, and engage with each other. These are the efforts that begin to scale your Little Things into more sustained and systemic practices.

Big Plays: What You Can Build Over Time

Big Plays are more substantial efforts that take six to eighteen months to fully implement.

Big Plays are your bold commitments. These take six to eighteen months—or more—but they’re worth it. They often require cross-functional collaboration, stakeholder buy-in, and sustained leadership.

Redesign your schoolwide schedule to increase access to advanced coursework or student support.
Create a distributed leadership model that empowers teacher teams to lead change.
Implement a schoolwide framework like the Four Keys to College and Career Readiness to drive strategic coherence.
Redesign your family engagement plan to center culturally inclusive and student-centered practices.
Develop an equity-focused strategic plan that anchors all decisions in a shared definition of readiness.

Why it matters: Big Plays change systems. They allow your school to move from fragmented efforts to cohesive strategies. While they take time, these are the efforts that position your school to support every student’s success long term.

The Power Is in the Progression

Transformation isn’t about waiting for perfect conditions. It’s about taking the next right step—starting with what’s within your control, aligning others along the way, and keeping your vision in focus. You don’t have to do it all at once. Start with a Little Thing. Line up a Key Move. Rally your team around a Big Play. Together, they can transform not just your school’s outcomes—but how it feels to teach, learn, and lead every day.

Looking for a Step-by-Step Approach to School Transformation?

Schools that have a shared vision for readiness and a clear, shared school identity are positioned to succeed. The Inflexion Approach Navigation Tool lays out five steps that break the work of school transformation into manageable chunks for school leaders.

Inflexion Approach Navigation Tool

About the Author

Dr. Matt Coleman is the CEO of Inflexion, where he leverages his deep-rooted expertise in school systems change to drive impactful educational reform. With a career spanning various roles—from educational assistant to assistant superintendent—Matt’s experience encompasses every level of secondary education.