The Question
How many times have you said, “There just isn’t enough time in a day.” or “Where did the time go?” How many times have you thought, “I know I worked all day, but it doesn’t feel like I accomplished anything.” or “I really need to find a way to be more efficient!”? If you’re like me there are probably too many times to count! In fact, I bet my fiancé Peter wishes that he had a penny (no really) a penny for any time that he has heard me say something of that nature. If he did we would already be sailing our way down the Mississippi in a decent sized yacht to travel the world from our boat. Sounds nice doesn’t it?
Now for those of you who don’t know my fiance, he is great at a lot of things including giving life advice to everyone and inspirational one liners. In fact, I’m sure as I continue writing about all of my life lessons, quite a few of his lines will probably be my catalyst for posting! A few weeks ago when we ended up in one of those pep talk/life coach moments, Peter said something that really struck me to my core. We were talking about time and how there was never enough of it (penny for the jar). Peter ended up asking me where I was investing my time, and so I went proceeded to ramble through the "quick" version of the list: checking in on family and friends, building the second iteration of a year-long project-based learning curriculum for my school (which included a 50+ page manual/workbook for every student), graduate classes, building digital curriculum in case we aren’t able to attend school in the fall due to COVID-19, oh and did I mention trying to plan a wedding in a pandemic? I digress.
What I found fascinating was what came next. “You know that it is okay to invest in yourself right?” Literal mic drop. Silence took over the room as I ran back through the long list again in my head. Invest in myself? Do I do that? Does doing the dishes count? Or maybe pulling weeds from the landscaping to stay in compliance with the HOA? That has to count right? Let me assure you, as Peter did for me that day, it does not by any means count. The rest of the evening I spent puzzling over how many people forget to invest in themselves, just like I had been.
How About You?
Where are you investing your time? Take a minute, flip over that grocery list or piece of junk mail next to you and write your list. Or even better, use the free printable that comes with this post to organize your thoughts! (After all, who doesn’t love a neat graphic organizer!) Look at your list. Is it centered on friends, family, work? That’s completely normal and beneficial to invest in those people and responsibilities! But are you investing in yourself? My guess would be that most of you are not. In fact I would guess that for a majority of teachers, investing in everything and everyone but ourselves is a pervasive problem. We dedicate our time to our students staying late at school creating lesson plans and running copies, coming home to make dinner, only to later find ourselves at the kitchen table grading papers until we fall asleep. We invest our time and ourselves in everyone else, because we are intrinsically driven to do so. The problem is that by investing all of our time in others we manage to only drain our energy, our drive, and end up feeling less than accomplished after long 12+ hour days.
Food for Thought
So how do you avoid the burnout that comes with being a teacher? Start by investing in yourself. Let me tell you why investment is important: time is a commodity and it is just as (if not more) essential than money. There I said it. And let me tell you, the way that you decide to invest your time will determine how full your jar is and how full you feel at the end of the day. If you take a break and invest in yourself you will feel more accomplished, energized, and motivated than if you dedicate your time to everyone and everything else. I promise that you will be happier (and more productive) for your students, your family, and your friends if you determine that you are important too!
You are worth investing in, so what are those dreams/passions/hobbies that you’ve been pushing off for everyone? Is it working out, gardening, crafting, making music, hiking, reading, laying in a hammock, or cooking? What are you waiting for? Decide that your personal endeavors are worth investing in too. Everyone will thank you for it in the long run. Make a list of all the items you would like to invest in, but haven’t had time to and choose one. Where can you make time for that particular endeavor this week, this month, and this school year? Make a goal to give yourself a set amount of time to invest in that endeavor this week.
My Journey
After my discussion with Peter I have done a lot of reflecting! I have decided to start making goals and blocking out small chunks of time to invest in myself a few times a week (like curling up with a personal book outside in the sunshine!). While it feels strange to schedule time for myself, I can already tell you that the investment is paying off. Afterwards, I feel refreshed, energized, and ready to tackle my next task. The beauty of it all is that by scheduling time for myself, I have learned that I am worth the investment. And For the Love of Learning I hope that you learn you are worth the investment too.
Love this. I love the personal touches with what Peter has shared and how it has impacted you. So inspiring! Thank you for writing and sharing. Please continue!
Love your blog! Very insightful and thoughtful... keep on writing, your blogs are a joy to read!!