Inspiration and resources for balance before burnout
Archive for February, 2009
7 Colleagues Every Teacher Needs
Thursday, February 5th, 2009There’s a great article written by Lisa Earle McCLeod entitled 7 Friends Every Woman Needs. In it she address the 7 types of friends that are a must in every woman’s repetoire of gal pals. I love this article and everytime I read it I can go back through every one of my adult friendships and see the meaning and pupose in them.
In this month of building the Balance Reserve of Meaningful Connections, I suggest we reframe this and look for the variety of relationships we have at school. Who are the 7 Colleagues Every Teacher Needs? I’ve borrowed some of the titles, but let’s see how they fit in at school. Here’s the first:
1. The in-the-trenches-with-you Colleague -
This person is usually right next door to your classroom. They are extremely important when you can’t wait for your planning time to take a potty break, when you need a time-out for a student or yourself or just an ear to listen to your story at the end of the day.
Teaching can be isolating, but strong bonds are formed by geography. These are the colleagues who best know your daily routines. They witness your good days, and are the most likely to hear through the walls on your rough days and vice versa. They tend to teach the same grade level as you and are an amazing resource to help alleviate re-inventing the wheel.
Do you need more crayons? Have you run out of glue, or staples? Need a great lesson for teaching Egypt? These are the colleagues we turn to the most during our school day.
My last year in the classroom I developed a very close relationship with the woman who taught next to me. Every morning we shared a routine of relaxing music while we both checked emails. We each sipped our coffee and reflected on the previous day, while getting ready for the present. I made sure I was prepared for the next day the night before, so I could enjoy the morning "socializing". I felt that "adult" time helped me set the stage for a day full of "children".
Who are your in-the trenches-colleagues? What do they add to your day? Post a comment below. Tune in in a few days for "The Wise One".
The Rewards of Harmony
Wednesday, February 4th, 2009A choice that rewards you with a sense of harmony between yourself and what surrounds you reveals something you value. A choice that leaves you feeling empty, or worse — annoyed, resentful, sorrowlful — indicates you’re under the influence of something other than what truly matters. – from A Woman’s Guide to a Simpler Life by Andrea Van Steenhouse.
Wow! Why does this seem so simple yet so challenging? This month as I have been practicing simplifying and organizing my life, I have found that the first step for me has been rest and quiet. Last month after the hub-bub of the holidays I stepped out of the lime light of my business and withdrew to my comfy homelife.
In this quiet, I have been thinking about what is important to me. What I want to keep and what I must let go of. I have been able to begin little projects weeding and pruning by asking myself if they fit in harmony with my life.
This past month the landscape of my life changed drastically. My husband left his position at a bank to finally start his own business. It has been a wonderful and exciting time, yet shifted many family routines.
As I go through each day and make decisions on how to spend my time. I try to take the time to pause to ask myself if it fits in harmony with my new life. Our values are the same, yet the routines have changed, so I can’t take the outcomes of my decisions for granted. It is a whole new playing field.
This was terrifying at first, but now I am enjoying the change that was made to fit our values. He’s closer to home, doing what he loves, and even though he works most weekends, the times we are together as a couple or a family are more precious, because we appreciate them. I believe because he is following his own calling he has more love and energy to give us.
Subscribe
