It is so important to stay stress-free and keep your energy, especially as the school year begins! Often times we end up EXHAUSTED just from the days of prep and planning before our students even arrive! So what can be done to help limit the amount of stress we feel?
I could write over 20 tips about things to try and do, but I will list 7 things that can help assist with living a more stress-free teaching life!
1. Balance: I have learned that even if you stay at work 4 extra hours, you may get 1 or 2 things completed but there are still 15 more on the list that were untouched. A great way to balance your time is to create a priority list (writing down all the items you would like to get done and level their priority) then assign those tasks to days of the week. You will feel much better about your progress knowing you accomplished the daily tasks.
2. Set a Timer: Along with balancing, a great way to not overwork is to set a timer! During the time you are giving yourself to work on tasks, commit to doing just that! Stay off Facebook, Instagram, text messages, etc. and listen to your music while you accomplish your goals. When the timer is up- you are done. Do not try to overdo it! You will find yourself less stressed knowing you are balancing the time spent on work versus your non-work demands.
3. Divide and Conquer: So often we are put onto teams but then end up operating on a team by yourself, in terms of prep! Find a teacher buddy, or two, and divide the tasks- at the end of the day, you will have 3-6 new things made or done versus the 2 or 3 you managed to do on your own! This is applied to center activities, newsletters, parent letters, whatever!! Find your buddy and work smarter, not harder!
4. Flash Drive: Save, save, save everything you make or create! If you take the time to save everything you make, it will become much easier for you, year-after-year, to make minor updates and get it ready for use! How much time do we spend on recreating the wheel? A TON! It is simple- save everything you make, type or do, save it in the folder (categorize it by school year, month, etc) and you will have saved yourself a lot of time and stress for years to come!
5. Organize: Organize things you love now. As you make a center you love, laminate it to help preserve it and store it in labeled bags or bins when you are done using it. Take the extra time upfront ensuring it will last a long time and creating a system for it. So often at the end of the year, we toss everything to "spring clean" or with the idea "I will just make it again next year." NO! Take the time to figure out the ways to store it and you will save a lot of time and stress recreating materials.
6. Happy Hour: This is not about getting a half-priced drink- this is about fellowship and decompressing. Take the time to be around other people and forget about your to-do list for the moment. This is an event that helps me to get through my week! There is something, preset, to look forward to and this releases stress! Find some people (coworkers or other friends) who can consistently commit to Happy Hour on whatever day of the week and simply ENJOY the time!
7. Hobbies: Make time for what you love! If you do not do the things you enjoy, you will quickly find your level of happiness decrease. Whether it is working out, reading a magazine, watching Netflix or going to pamper yourself- make time for it! Begin the day AND end the day with something that you love- this will help make sure you are including those important parts of your life that make you YOU!
The saying goes "It is easier said than done." however, in this case, it is actually pretty easy!
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| I know our "super power" is teaching but remember that you are also human! :) |
Happy 2017-2018 school year!
-Megan
