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Leading for Tomorrow, Today

School Leadership with Purpose, Alignment and Lasting Impact

By Janine Stratford

$39.95

You’ve worked hard to get where you are – but what got you here won’t get you there. This book is for educational leaders who sense they’re stuck in the weeds, overwhelmed by daily tasks, firefighting, and keeping their heads down while others seem to move ahead. Drawing on decades of experience as a teacher, school leader, and leadership coach, Janine Stratford reveals the game-changer that separates leaders who survive from those who thrive: strategic thinking. This isn’t corporate jargon or abstract theory – it’s a practical blueprint for leading with purpose, direction, and clarity that will transform both your team’s success and your future career.

Through the Leadership Blueprint Model – Brand, Recognise, Align, Nurture, and Demonstrate – this book shows you how to step back from the busyness, build the culture your team needs to succeed, and position yourself for the impact and recognition you deserve. Packed with real stories, actionable strategies, and honest insights about what actually works, this is the book that helps you work smarter, lead differently, and create change that lasts. Whether you’re an aspiring leader or an experienced one ready for your next step, this is your roadmap from overwhelm to strategic leadership – and from hard work to lasting legacy.

Also available via Amazon Kindle and iBooks

ISBN: 9781923403666

Size: 234 x 156 mm

Black & white, 200 pages

Published: May 2026

About the author: Janine Stratford

Janine Stratford is a former teacher and school leader turned leadership coach, career strategist and trusted advisor to educational leaders across Australia and New Zealand. After nearly 30 years in education, she founded Coaching Focus in 2015 to empower school leaders to enhance their strategic thinking, leadership capacity, and career success through high-impact leadership development programs, individual coaching and coach-training initiatives. Recognised as a 2024 Most Influential Educator by The Educator, Janine holds the Professional Certified Coach (PCC) credential with the International Coach Federation and is a Certified Professional Behavioural Analyst, helping leaders create lasting impact in their schools and communities.

Praise/Testimonials

‘Leading for Tomorrow, Today is a must-read for aspiring leaders seeking to identify and enact strategy – practically, and for impact. Having had the good fortune to work with Janine over many years, this focus on actionable clarity is her great gift to all of us who lead in schools.’
Dr Michael Horne, Principal, The Hamilton and Alexandra College, VIC

‘Few voices have influenced my leadership as steadily as Janine Stratford’s, and Leading for Tomorrow, Today captures the essence of her wise counsel with rare precision… Her writing is conversational yet disciplined, and her voice measured and wise. The carefully curated quotations give the reader room to pause, offering reflective openings into the minds of others who have grappled with strategy, responsibility, purpose and influence.’
Lorna Beegan, Principal, Strathcona Girls Grammar, VIC

‘Janine Stratford’s deliberate, explicit and intentional book… is almost a step-by-step recipe for strategic thinking and implementation. This book will capture the attention of all in leadership, whether you are leading a team for the first time or you are a leader who has worked across a plethora of settings. It reminds us that leadership is about clarity, purpose, commitment and intent, whilst also providing a very practical and accessible guide.’
Anne Marie Cairns, Principal, St Joseph’s College, Echuca, VIC

‘I heartily endorse what Janine has written. I wish I had access to this material 35 years ago when I was first appointed a leader of a team in a school. To have all my hard-won learning over the intervening time summed up in a succinct and easy-to-read volume is a credit to Janine’s own learning, experience and accumulated wisdom.’
Allan Shaw, former Principal, VIC