60 seconds with adam dovico: “i want people to feel seen, heard, and inspired.”

hot take: people – not computers – still say the coolest stuff. this series is dedicated to the soundbites, aha! moments & stories that are undeniably human.   

For many of us, the question “who was your favorite teacher?” is an easy one. From kindergarten to grad school, I’ve had countless educators over the years, but even now, it’s easy to recall my favorites. The ones who made a difference. The ones who shaped me into the woman, writer, person that I am today. 

And I know, without a doubt, that for many people out there, “Adam Dovico” will be the answer to that question. 

I knew that five minutes after meeting Adam via a Google Meet call several years ago. Because there’s something about his warm presence, even through the screen, that puts you at ease. And it’s knowledge that’s only been reaffirmed in me as I’ve gotten to know him the last couple of years – including having finally meeting him in person in October 2025.

During this time, I’ve learned Adam is many things: a teacher, an administrator, a podcaster (check it out!), an advocate, a collector of many noteworthy bowties & suit jackets. But what makes Adam such a memorable human being is that at his core, he is a good human being. He cares about his students, his family, and his colleagues.  

He cares about who people are and what they have to say – and it was something I felt on that first video call. And that is something that AI can never replicate. 

–steph  

toth shop (ts): What’s the throughline between Adam Dovico, the person and Adam Dovico, the brand? 

Adam Dovico (AD): Adam Dovico, the person, and Adam Dovico, the brand, are not that different. What people experience in my work is a scaled-up version of who I really am and what I truly believe in as a person. 

Whether I’m leading a school, teaching aspiring principals, running a pediatric office with my wife, or up on stage speaking to thousands of people, the mission remains the same: I want people to feel seen, heard, and inspired. I suppose that can be best summarized by saying that I enjoy bringing people together. That throughline, I believe, has allowed me the space to work with diverse groups of people and come off as authentic and credible in my work and as a human being. When the brand is really just an extension of who you really are, I have found that people feel that and believe in you.

ts: You partner with your wife, who works as a pediatrician, on various projects, such as the EdMed podcast. What unique perspective/take does she bring to the table when you work together? What do you bring? 

AD: First and foremost, my wife is the smartest person I know. Her bank of knowledge and ability to critically think is incredible, which is a tremendous asset when we come together to work on projects like our podcast. She also brings traumatic life experiences, having lost both her parents at a young age, to her perspectives and approach to things. Those challenges made her stronger, though, and gave her a deep appreciation for relationships and overcoming barriers to become successful.  

While I find it much easier to talk about my wife, I believe that I bring a level-headedness and rationality to our partnership. After years of dealing with tense situations and high-pressure decision-making as a school leader, I aim to approach situations with calmness and perspective. Another area I have been able to contribute to is comfort with stage presence. Since the majority of partnering with my wife is audience-facing, I can coach and support her on things like podcasts, interviews, and speeches. 

ts: Why the bow-ties and bold prints? How did that become a core piece of how you show up in-person & online for your audience?

AD: As a career educator, I lost my shame a long time ago. Particularly as an elementary school teacher and principal, if you can’t have fun at work, why are you even there? The crazy suits started many years ago with a tiger print suit, simply to get a laugh or smile out of my students. Over time, I purchased more, and it became “my thing,” and then eventually “my brand.” While the suits are definitely work attire and not my casual wear, I appreciate the attention they’ve gotten and it has certainly made me memorable in settings where I may not have otherwise been remembered. I often say during speeches, “You may not remember a single word I say today, but you’ll remember the goofy guy in a ridiculous suit and I hope it makes you smile. And if it does, I’ve done my job.” 

ts: You’re passionate about education – why did you transition from in-the-classroom-teacher to administrator? 

AD: I bring a different perspective to that question than what others typically say. I’ve heard other administrators answer this question, “I wanted to support teachers as a principal” or “I was ready to move on from the classroom.” 

I view my transition not as “from classroom teacher to administrator,” but rather “from single classroom teacher to every classroom teacher.” When I became a principal, I made a commitment to never stop teaching. And I maintained that promise. I taught lessons weekly in the classrooms across my building, from math lessons in kindergarten to science lessons in 5th grade. I even taught a sign language lesson in my Deaf and Hard of Hearing Pre-K classroom, which is the ONLY time in my career I was nervous before a lesson!  

I simply love teaching, and there is no rule when you become an administrator that you have to stop teaching. Most importantly, teaching those lessons helped strengthen the relationships with students and staff. It showed that I was human. I made mistakes; I bombed some lessons. And that is the beauty of teaching. 

ts: Mile 18 is generally considered to be one of the hardest miles in a marathon. You’re hitting a wall. You’re forced to dig deep. What’s mile 18 in your line of work or at a point in your career, what do you tell yourself when you find yourself in the middle of a mile 18? 

AD: Being an educator is about relationships. This is not a transactional profession. So when you pour your energy and heart into building a relationship with a student or any other stakeholder, only for it to be thrown back in your face, that is my mile 18.

It may be a student or parent who cusses you out, a colleague who lets you down, or a boss who doesn’t support you. When something like that happens, you want to give up. Your tank feels like it’s empty. I’ve been there on various occasions, and it’s terribly hurtful.

In those moments, I have to remember that I can’t control others. One of my favorite quotes is “Control the controllable.” I have learned to put my energy and efforts on the things I have the power to change, while accepting the things I cannot. At the moment, those interactions certainly sting, but the older I get and the more leadership experience I gain, it gets easier to handle them.