Dear Teachers,

A little pep-talk.

I want you to know that you are seen for all the hard work you put in each and every day throughout the school year to serve our children and families. Teaching is hard work and we desperately need you. Where would society be without our civil servants? I am very worried about the future of education in our country, but I am also encouraged to know that there is still that incredible passion that drives you to show up every day to inspire students to learn. 

I’m sure that some of you are reading this and thinking that it is a bunch of crap! You may very well be sick of fighting the battle of behaviors, new curriculum, difficult administration, illness, family challenges, and the impending holidays, etc. You may be questioning why you are still doing this after all these years or maybe wondering why you chose to get into this profession in the first place. Well, I am here to tell you that it is because you are an integral part of developing the next generation of community contributors, professionals, leaders and neighbors. It sounds dramatic and picturesque, I know, but it really is the truth. Even though it is a hard job when you are in the thick of it, when you look back on the students that you have impacted no matter how big or small, you should realize the importance of your role.

Which leads me to my next point, and that is to encourage you to make sure you are taking care of your mental and physical health. If you think it is impossible with all of the hours you put into your job before, during, and after school, think again. If you don’t start taking back your personal life, you will not be able to sustain the level of professionalism and productivity that you’d like. The weight of the daily grind will start eating away at your confidence and capacity to do your job well. I understand that it is easier said than done, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be a lot of time spent or energy needed. 

Here are a few ideas: 

• Spend 10 minutes each morning doing something for you. (stretching, writing, push-ups or sit-ups, washing your face…) make it a little routine, but make it something that is just for you. It will trigger a feeling of self-care in a bit. 
• Schedule exercise into your day. Schedule it so you won’t have an excuse to skip it. (Ex: Don’t schedule it at a time when you usually have afterschool meetings. But, if you have it on your schedule to walk around the block each day before school starts or after your regular meeting time ends it will become a routine.)
• Find an accountability partner. I have said it before and I will continue to say this. If you are one of those people that will find any excuse not to exercise, take time for yourself, or simply have a hard time creating habits- knowing that someone else is waiting for you to show up is just the ticket! Find someone who also needs help. You will not regret it. 
• Determine a hard stop time to ignore email and work. This is the hardest one of all, and you may need to let your partner or family members in on this so they can help you enforce your own rules. With cell phones this may seem insurmountable, but keep in mind, the more accessible you make yourself to work, parents, colleagues when you need time for yourself, the more they will take advantage of you. This is really about setting boundaries!

Circling back to my original statement: We need you. So, please do me a favor and take care of yourself so you can continue to do the good work of teaching. Thank you for your service.