The vice principal has the potential to significantly influence everyone in the school building. The expertise required to effectively carry out the duties of the role include interpersonal skills, leadership skills, reflective practice, and knowledge of the current research in the field of education. The position of vice principal requires a skillful blend o f practice and theory to successfully maximize the role’s impact on students and staff. Foremost among the necessary skills is interpersonal relationships, as the majority of the vice principal’s activities involve interactions with students, staff, parents, support staff, and members of the community. While often viewed as a preparatory stage prior to becoming a principal, the vice principal position has a significant impact on the lives of many people. It is therefore important that the vice principal build a repertoire of skills and knowledge in order to maximize the positive impact that the vice principal exerts. To that end, this paper describes 10 lessons the author learned as a vice principal in Ontario, Canada, and the theory underpinning those lessons that also had to be learned in order to make the role as effective as possible. This blending of theory and practice is imperative for the vice principal’s role to be as effective as possible for students and educational institutions. This paper provides a practitioner’s viewpoint of how theory supports practice. While functioning in the role, the author had the opportunity to impact the lives of a large number of students and staff. In addition, the author learned a great deal about current research and how it applies to the role of vice principal. By typifying the role of lifelong learner, a vice principal can maximize their impact while also serving as a role model for aspiring school administrators.