Life in the classroom can be challenging, but by practicing some mindset shifts for teachers, you’ll be able to approach your teaching career feeling more balanced and grounded.
When I first started teaching, I was full of excitement, hope, and expectation. All these things filled me with energy to go into the classroom each and every day and feel like I was changing the world, one student at a time!
The only issue was that as time wore on, the energy drain that can come with the teaching workload and the demands of teaching started to wear me thin. My positivity and teaching lifeblood started to crumble as I sank deeper and deeper into teacher burnout.
I ended up in a really negative state because I had let the stress get to me. By then, my whole outlook was stuck in a fixed mindset. I felt dark and honestly ‘yucky!’ I probably wasn’t very nice to be around because all of this ‘yuck’ just poured out of my mouth to anyone who would listen.
This is when I discovered the power of making positive mindset changes by controlling my thoughts and emotions. This was a huge awakening for me!
Our teaching experience hinges on the types of mindsets we choose to cultivate for ourselves, which then spills out into our classroom environment.
Here are the three most important thoughts I practiced to get into a growth-oriented mindset.
Mindset Shifts for Teachers No. 1: Teaching isn’t your life, it’s your job
One of the best lessons (but also one of the hardest!) that I had to learn was that teaching isn’t my life. It is my job. And wow. It’s a tough but powerful move. Too often, we see our job as our whole identity. We can get so wrapped up in our students, the school year, or even professional development that our daily life becomes consumed with school.
I stayed stuck in this for too long.
It was only after burning out and having a mental breakdown that I realized that I am more than a teacher. More than who I am when I am serving others. I’m a wife, a mother, a grandmother, a sister, a daughter, a friend, a blogger, a coach, and ALSO a teacher. (And this doesn’t include so many of my other passions!)
It’s not only okay to have a life outside of teaching, but essential to better health and having vibrant personal lives outside of our careers.
Too often, what happens to teachers is that we end up feeling guilty when we aren’t planning, getting ready for school, laminating, or doing anything for our jobs. Over time, this can develop into resentment and negative attitudes toward our careers.
Unfortunately for me, it took over 12 months away from the job I originally loved, as well as lots of soul-searching and LOTS of reading/study, to develop this understanding.
So, out of all this, I want you to know, whatever you can do to ‘get’ what I’m saying, DO IT! Because TEACHING IS NOT YOUR LIFE!
And, if you need to take some time away from school to work this out (before it takes too big a toll on you), DO THIS TOO!
Intention becomes Action:
To start the process and to begin reconnecting with who you are as a person (outside of teaching), answer these questions:
- How can you make small changes to do more of what you love every day?
- What makes you light up when you think or talk about it?
- What do you enjoy doing outside of school?
Mindset Shifts for Teachers No. 2: You can’t do it all
This is a great step to take when making mindset shifts for teachers. As a classroom teacher, I would struggle to get through my MASSIVE to-do list every week.
While I did work on improving my productivity, and I think every teacher should do that, what I truly needed was to create a new habit around how I thought about my time in general.
Teachers always talk about how even if you work 24 hours a day, there will still be things that don’t get done. There’s even an ongoing joke about setting up a camp bed at school so we can keep working as long as possible. Talk about needing a paradigm shift!
If this feels familiar, it’s time to develop the right mindset about your time. A mindset that helps you implement new practices that will ensure the most important things get done, and helps you still know that you’re an effective teacher, despite the things that don’t get done.
This simple mindset shift can take so much burden off of you as a teacher and help relieve you of so much guilt you may be carrying.
Work Smarter, Not Harder as a teacher with my guide!
Intention becomes action:
- Notice the thoughts you have on repeat that contribute to feelings of guilt or “not-enoughness” and reframing them into something more neutral
- Use this effective to-do list system to learn to manage your workload and your to-do list
Mindset shifts for Teachers No. 3: Good enough is OK
This shift is about reframing your perception of perfectionism.
This is a BIG mind shift that I needed to make personally, and I also think it’s needed for many teachers to make, too. It’s that “good enough,” truly is okay!
It’s hard to make positive changes when you’re in a constant cycle of doubt because you focus on imperfections. But as humans, we are never truly perfect. We can always put effort in and do hard work, but perfection should never be the goal, because it will only lead to disappointment.
There’s a segment of people who wear perfectionism like a badge of honor. I should know, I was one of them. And it’s a big adjustment to realize that sometimes (oftentimes) done is better than perfect.
Brene Brown talks about perfectionism as this: When we’re focused more on making sure that we live perfectly, look perfect, and act perfectly, we aren’t really working towards healthy achievement and growth.
Instead, we are focusing on trying to minimize or avoid the pain of blame, judgment, or shame. She goes on to note that this is only serving as an avenue to try and earn approval and acceptance, which is just a crutch and an attempt to fill a deficit in our self-worth.
Ouch.
And unfortunately, this is something I learned the hard way.
Impostor syndrome in teaching
Something that happens to teachers is a feedback loop of worrying that we aren’t doing enough, and falling into a cycle of impostor syndrome. For me, I was so worried that the people around me would “find out” or see that I didn’t truly know what I was doing, and that I would “get in trouble.”
This is something that happens a lot across professions, but teaching makes it particularly challenging. After all, you’re supposed to be the leader, the one shaping the minds of future generations!
What it truly is, however, is evidence of our own feelings of personal lack or low self-worth.
We spend so much time trying to look perfect on the outside, have our classrooms look “Pinterest perfect”, have the most unique teaching methods, or even have the best student outcomes of everyone in our level. But what we’re really trying to do is prove something to ourselves.
This is neither healthy nor sustainable as a teacher.
And without some serious mindset and behavior change, it’s a fast track to burning out.
You don’t need to prove yourself in the classroom or in life to feel worthy. Focus on growing yourself as a teacher, aligning your teaching practices with student needs, and personal growth outside the classroom, and see what a difference it makes.
When you take the focus off yourself in the classroom, you’ll realize that you’re doing a better job than you’ve been giving yourself credit for.
This is pretty deep stuff – and what I’ve found out, these types of mindset shifts often don’t come easy to us… SO let it sink in for a bit…consider your motives and stop getting caught in the perfectionist trap!
Intention becomes action:
Leave your display boards blank at the beginning of the year. Only add material when you use it in class and when your students know what it is and what it’s for.
Reuse lesson plans, classroom resources, or other materials from previous work, so you don’t have to make new ones. If they work, why not use them again? Need some new resources? Check out the Teacher Toolbox!
Get my best productivity tips here:
Mindset Shifts for Teachers Lead to a Lasting Career
The good news is that your mindset is probably the most powerful tool you have to change the trajectory of your teaching career. I should know, because my story is a powerful example of how short term changes can create long-lasting impact.
When you’re feeling tempted to let teaching become your whole identity, pause. Or, if you find that it already has, also pause. Figure out who you are and what you enjoy outside of your career. Then, take action to incorporate more of that into your life.
Understand your limits. While we all have this bright vision of being able to do it all, clear every task, and have a clean calendar, teaching really isn’t a career where that’s likely. Absolutely, work on your productivity, but also realize your priorities. And then refocus your energy on them.
Finally, if you’re the type of person who identifies as a proud perfectionist…it’s time for a reframe. Not only is your version of “good enough” probably better than most people’s best day, but operating from a constant need for perfection is a recipe for disaster. And burnout. Not everything deserves perfection. Again, go back to your priorities and decide where you’ll put in more effort, and let the rest be “good enough.”
I hope these tips have helped you exhale a bit, let your shoulders down, and given you some ideas on how you can reduce your stress as a teacher.
Good luck!
Michelle x
More Helpful Articles:
- 6 Important Lessons I Learned from Teacher Burnout
- How to Enjoy Your Life with 9 Relaxing Hobbies for Teachers
- 6 Easy Holiday Energy Boosters for Teachers
- The Benefits of Fostering a Growth Mindset for Teachers
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