I was scrolling through social media the other day when I came across this quote:

“Something I’ve thought about a lot: the people who helped me the most never asked for anything in return. And because of that, I’ve wanted to do more for them than I would have if they’d kept score. Generosity without accounting turns out to be a better strategy than generosity with it.”

This sentiment made me pause.

Because immediately, I could clearly see the people who have helped me. I carry them with me every day.

My father, who always told me to salute the person, not the title.

My fourth-grade teacher, who I still speak with weekly, and sometimes daily. She saw something in me I didn’t yet see in myself. She named gifts I didn’t know I had. And even now, she continues to mentor and guide me, never expecting anything in return.

Mentors who have walked alongside me on my path, reminding me that I am still becoming.

People who gave to me during specific moments in my life, some of whom I may not speak with anymore, but I am so grateful they were placed in my life exactly when I needed them. The lessons they left with me continue to shape who I am.

And even in my own life as a mother, I think about this kind of giving.

These days, it looks like cooking multiple dinners for two growing boys, making sure everyone has what they need, even when it’s different. It’s constant. It’s given without hesitation and without keeping score.

And the more I think about it, the more I realize…

This is leadership.

In education, especially, leadership is not about keeping track of what you give and what you get back.

It’s about showing up for kids, for teachers, and for the community you serve.

It’s supporting teachers in their classrooms.

It’s working alongside colleagues to design professional learning experiences that are accessible and meaningful.

It’s sharing lessons that worked with students so someone else doesn’t have to start from scratch.

It’s stepping in to cover a class when a teacher needs to handle something important in their life.

It’s being proactive, offering solutions to problems that may not even exist yet.

It’s giving… without expectation.

The other day, a teacher apologized for taking my time. But time is our greatest resource.

And the best kind of giving we can offer is our time. Our presence. Our willingness to listen, think, and move forward.

That kind of leadership doesn’t always get recognized in the moment.

But it matters.

Because, as I wrote in my book, The Leader Inside,

“Your actions create a collection of stories that can positively impact others.” That is what this kind of leadership does.

It creates stories.

Stories of being seen.

Of being supported.

Of being lifted at just the right moment.

And those stories don’t end with us.

They carry forward.

I find myself thinking not only about the people who have given to me, but also about the people I will give to… the ones I haven’t even met yet.

Because that is how leadership that doesn’t keep score is carried forward in others.

It lives on in the people we impact.

Just like the people we carry with us every day.