This qualitative exploratory study sought to investigate and uncover how Virginia K-12 school librarians define leadership and discover how they balance their roles and responsibilities of librarianship without the support of a district library supervisor during periods of complex challenges and organizational change. The American Association for School Librarians (AASL) ranks librarian leadership as a common belief central to the librarian profession. This research identifies characteristics of leadership and examines how librarians balance it with the other roles and responsibilities as outlined by AASL Common Beliefs. This study utilized interviews with current school librarians to capture participants' lived experiences with library leadership and complex challenges, revealing a need to revise and expand Everhart and Johnston's school library leadership definition (2016). Additional findings outlined strategies for balancing roles and responsibilities during challenging times without a district library supervisor and core leadership skills to meet challenges. Supplemental findings revealed the need for further research into the complex challenges impacting librarianship. This study demonstrated the adaptive, collaborative, and resilient nature of library leaders who model the power of problem-solving and inspire stakeholders to do the same.