The current emphasis on high-stakes testing is leaving an unmistakable imprint on all aspects of education. Our curriculum, our instructional methods and materials and even our understanding of the purpose of public education are being reshaped by the standardized tests. Another area where the impact of high-stakes testing can be felt is in the way we evaluate principals. Whatever methods a school district might be using, everyone knows that the bottom line is the bottom line. Of course, like any debate that is held in the public square, high-stakes testing has its advocates and its critics. In this case, at least, both sides can agree on one point: With high-stakes testing, the locus of control for education reform is external. Someone other than the teacher is setting the bar for the class, and someone other than the principal is setting the bar for the school. Regrettably, this carrot-and-stick approach to education reform misses a key point about how to motivate people to change. Change is an interior process. It is an inside job. Education reform will happen, if it is to happen at all, one teacher at a time and one principal at a time. And the way to better teachers and better principals is to recognize that change occurs when individual teachers and principals take personal responsibility for their individual professional growth. For the most part, people change when they set their minds to change. School principals are no exception.