SERIES OVERVIEW

Special Focus Titles

Explore unique perspectives on modern management and visionary leadership through these carefully selected titles, curated to provide deep insights into the evolving landscape of organizational success in special situations like schools

Standing Tall: Discipline, Respect, and the Durable Adult

Are you the only adult in the room who still expects respect?

In too many classrooms, gyms, and workplaces, discipline has quietly disappeared. Students curse, shove, and refuse to follow directions. Employees roll their eyes, argue every instruction, and show up late with no real consequence. Meanwhile, the people actually trying to lead—teachers, PE instructors, alternative-ed staff, supervisors, and managers—are told to “de-escalate,” “build relationships,” and “stay positive,” while support from above gets weaker every year.

Standing Tall: Discipline, Respect, and the Durable Adult is a straight-talk guide for adults who are tired of chaos and ready to lead again.

Drawing on real-world situations—from an alternative-ed PE class full of high-risk behavior to workplace teams where employees act like middle-schoolers—Chet Matterson lays out a practical path back to order:

How to reclaim your authority without yelling or bluffing
The standards every room or team must have—and how to enforce them
Consequences that actually work, from simple corrections to full progressive discipline
Handling high-intensity behaviors (hitting, spitting, threats, blow-ups) safely and firmly
What to do when leadership above you fails or refuses to back discipline
Re-teaching respect as a behavior, not a feeling
Becoming a durable adult who stays calm, clear, and consistent under pressure

Whether you’re in a rough alternative-education classroom, a noisy gym, a shop floor, or an office full of drama, this book gives you the scripts, ladders, and daily habits to restore order—one space, one standard, one steady decision at a time.

If you still believe adults should lead, standards should mean something, and respect can be taught, Standing Tall is your manual.

On Amazon

Time Management When You Have No Time: Leading Special Education When Every Day Is an Emergency

Leading Special Education When Every Day Is an Emergency

Most time-management advice assumes you can protect your calendar, block off planning time, and politely decline interruptions.

If you supervise special education in public schools, you know that world does not exist.

Your day starts with a crisis, ends with an email, and is filled with:

Students in emotional or physical crisis
Teachers on the brink of burnout
Parents who are afraid or angry
Principals who need immediate support
Law enforcement or CPS involvement
Legal timelines that don’t care how chaotic the day was

You can’t turn off your phone.
You can’t shut your door.
You can’t “just delegate.”
And you definitely can’t wait for a quiet day that never comes.

This book was written for you.

Drawing from the real, messy world of special education leadership, Time Management When You Have No Time gives you practical tools you can use in five minutes or less, even on the worst days.

Inside, you’ll learn how to:

Build anchors, not rigid schedules—small routines that still work when your day explodes
Triage email, calls, and messages so you answer what truly can’t wait
Lead through crisis with simple checklists and post-crisis debriefs that don’t take all afternoon
Document incidents in a few focused sentences that protect you and your staff
Set up a Survival Binder so your system travels with you from building to building
Train teachers and principals to use clear “When to Call the Supervisor” guidelines
Communicate with parents in crisis using language that calms instead of inflames
Work with superintendents without panic—and without surprises
Protect your own health and family while staying in a job that never really ends

You won’t find color-coded planners or hour-long planning blocks here.
You’ll find simple, repeatable systems designed for hallways, parking lots, gym bleachers, and the front seat of your car.

If you are a special education supervisor, director, or building administrator who feels like every day is an emergency—and you still want to lead with integrity, calm, and clarity—this book is your handbook.

You may never have enough time.
But you can learn how to manage the time you do have, in the reality you actually live.

Turning Bad Days Into Good Leadership: How to Stay Calm, Solve Problems, and Lead Through Crisis

Some leadership jobs are filled with celebration and recognition.

Others are filled with difficult conversations, urgent problems, and constant pressure.

For leaders in roles like these, a “good day” rarely means an easy one.

Turning Bad Days Into Good Leadership is a practical guide for people whose job is solving problems all day.

Through real-world leadership situations, practical tools, and clear decision frameworks, Chet Matterson shows how strong leaders guide teams through difficult moments with calm thinking and steady leadership.

This book focuses on the reality many leaders face but few books discuss: the jobs where problems rise to the top.

Inside you will learn how to:

• Stay calm when emotions are high
• Handle crises and unexpected situations
• Support overwhelmed staff and team members
• Guide difficult conversations with confidence
• Make clear decisions under pressure
• Turn difficult days into meaningful leadership

Packed with real leadership scenarios and practical strategies, this book offers a clear roadmap for leaders who carry the responsibility of solving problems every day.

Because in difficult roles, leadership is not measured by easy days.

It is measured by how people are guided through the hard ones.

On Amazon

Running A Good School: A Seminar in Leadership for Schools

What makes a school run well every day?

Not programs. Not slogans. Not new initiatives.

The answer is found in how people act—consistently, clearly, and with purpose.

This practical guide presents a complete leadership seminar in written form, designed for teachers, principals, and school staff. It focuses on what actually happens in classrooms, hallways, and offices—and how to handle it effectively.

Inside, you will find:

Clear standards for what makes a good school, classroom, and teacher
Practical strategies for managing daily classroom situations
Real-world scenarios with direct, usable responses
Guidance on working with students, parents, and staff
A structured approach built on clarity, consistency, follow-through, and leadership

This is not a theory book.

It is a working guide that can be:

Used in staff training and in-service sessions
Applied immediately in the classroom
Referenced throughout the school year

Whether you are a teacher, administrator, or district leader, this book provides a clear, steady approach to running a school that works.

Strong schools are built through consistent leadership—every day.