This is a reflection for anyone who has ever stood in the in-between. The space where purpose meets uncertainty and the next chapter feels just out of reach. These are the moments that call for a leadership reset to pause, reflect, and begin again with renewed intention.
There is a strange stillness in the in-between. It is that quiet moment when one chapter fades but the next has not yet begun.
It is not regret. It is ache. The kind that comes from knowing you are at a crossroads. I have danced with failures and missed opportunities. I have wrestled with the silence that follows when you put your heart into something and it goes unseen. That silence has been my teacher.
I think often of those moments in music when an artist stood in their own in-between. When Miles Davis created Kind of Blue, he was leaving behind the familiar and stepping into something uncharted. He entered what is often called a liminal space, a threshold between what was and what could be. It was risky. It was uncertain. Yet from that space of transition came a timeless masterpiece that changed everything.
Or consider The Beatles during the Let It Be sessions. The band was fractured and weary. Yet in that fragile in-between space they still created moments of truth and beauty. They found the courage to keep recording even when it felt like the music had lost its way. Somehow, that honesty became the song that still echoes across time.
Liminal spaces are where the soul rewrites its melody. They are uncomfortable, but they are also sacred. They strip away titles, roles, and routines until only what is real remains.
What is real right now is that I still care. I still believe in people. I still believe in creativity, connection, and service. I still believe that words matter, even if no one reads them.
This is where the Leadership Reset comes alive. It is something I created and shared in a recent blog post. I was honored to share on a recent episode of the “Teachers on Fire Podcast” with Tim Cavey. It is a simple practice that can help any leader find rhythm again when the noise gets too loud or the silence feels too heavy.
Listen to the full conversation here: Take the 3 Minute Leadership Reset with Sean Gaillard
The 3 Minute Leadership Reset
1. Take a Breath (30 seconds)
Close your eyes.
Inhale slowly and say to yourself:
“I am still here.”
Exhale and say:
“I am enough.”
Do this three times. Feel your shoulders drop. Feel your pulse slow. You have just reclaimed your space in the moment.
2. Anchor in Gratitude (1 minute)
Ask yourself quietly:
What one small moment today reminded me I am alive?
What one connection, a smile, a song, a student, gave me a spark?
What one thing am I proud of, even if no one noticed it?
Write it down in a notebook or say it aloud. That is your leadership echo, a reminder that small actions still ripple outward.
3. Affirm and Reframe (1 minute)
Say these words out loud, slowly and intentionally:
“I am not invisible. I am building something that lasts beyond applause.”
“My work is meaningful, even when it is quiet.”
“The music I make through service, kindness, and creativity still plays, whether or not the crowd is listening.”
Let those words live in your breath. You have just tuned your soul back to the right frequency.
4. Reconnect (30 seconds)
Before moving on with your day, take one small action to reconnect:
Send a short message to a friend or colleague.
Share a kind word with a student or staff member.
Play a song that brings you joy.
These micro moments rebuild our leadership core from the inside out.
Maybe leadership is not about applause or spotlight moments. Maybe it is about keeping the song going when you cannot tell if anyone is listening.
So I will stay here for a while, between what was and what is next, trusting that this ache is not the end of the song but the bridge that leads to the next verse.
We are all in-between something. We are all tuning, listening, resetting. Wherever you are in your journey, may you find time to breathe, to notice, and to let your next melody emerge.
Leadership Liner Notes: Sean Gaillard 