Z-Rated Success: The Decision Lab for Education Leaders
Z-Rated Success: The Decision Lab for Educational Leaders is where educators, leaders, and student success professionals unpack the decisions that shape students, teams, campuses, and communities.
Hosted by Nick “The Zebra” Zizi, this podcast goes beyond surface-level success stories to explore the real choices, turning points, leadership lessons, and even the “knuckleheaded decisions” that help us grow. Each conversation is designed to be insightful, practical, and engaging—giving educational leaders fresh perspective, useful takeaways, and better questions to bring back to their work.
Because in education, every decision is a direction.
Better decisions. Better outcomes.
Z-Rated Success: The Decision Lab for Education Leaders
Too Fast, Too Slow: Leadership Decisions That Shape Student Success with Dan La Bar
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In this episode of Z-Rated Success: The Decision Lab for Education Leaders, Nick Zizi sits down with Dan La Bar, a seasoned K-12 public charter school leader, to explore how leadership decisions shape student outcomes.
Dan shares one of the most practical leadership lessons from his career: too fast, too slow. Move too fast, and you may leave out important voices, feedback loops, and stakeholders. Move too slow, and you may miss the urgency of the moment.
This conversation also explores what students need most, how trauma can derail a student’s day, why relationships make accountability possible, how innovation must fit the local community, and why leaders must take care of themselves if they want to serve others well.
If you lead students, staff, programs, or school communities, this episode will help you think more clearly about the decisions that create better outcomes.
In this episode, we discuss:
• The leadership danger of moving too fast or too slow
• Why quality teaching still matters
• How trauma can impact a student’s ability to learn
• Why relationships make accountability possible
• How schools can build pathways that fit their community
• Why innovation must be adapted, not copied
• Why leaders must take care of themselves first
• Why a leader’s words can stay with students for years
Guest: Dan La Bar
Connect with Dan: Search Dan La Bar on LinkedIn
Host: Nick Zizi
Learn more about Z-Rated Success:
Visit zratedsuccess.com
Bring Nick Zizi’s Decision Lab keynote or training to your campus, district, or conference:
Visit nickzizi.com