In Avoiding Burn-out - What's Your Advice, Mr. Byrnes asks, “What's your advice for avoiding burn-out as a teacher?”
Having taught special ed for 30 years, I think I did a pretty good job of avoiding getting burned out. But I did not have one thing that worked and instead had a variety of things to do depending on where I was in my life at that time. I think it is good to have a list that you can refer to from time to time to energize yourself.
1. Here are things I have done to avoid burn out:
2. When things get stressful, take a minute to stop, take a deep breath and calm yourself down.
3. Have a support system (my husband, close friends, close colleagues that I can trust).
4. Have a hobby. Over the years, I have developed different hobbies and move through them as I feel in the mood for them. I garden, hike, knit, read, travel, and play an accordion.
5. Get involved in a group outside of school (I belonged to a hiking club, gardening club, music club, knitting club, - not all at the same time of course).
6. Exercise at least 3 times a week! This is very important. I planned a scheduled time for exercise and stuck with it.
7. Drink more water. I never drink enough water.
8. Look for the good things in life every day. I wake up every morning with a positive statement that puts me in a good frame of mind.
9. If there is someone I dislike, I make it a point to think of one good thing about them when I come in contact with them.
10. “Fight” the important battles that really matter and let the petty battles go. They aren’t worth the time or the energy.
11. Read a good fiction book (great escape!)
12. Watch a good movie.
13. Get enough sleep.
14. Don’t skip meals. (I see too many teachers who skip meals end up getting burned out).
15. Eat chocolate!
Did I leave anything out? What would you add?
Posted on the Successful Teaching Blog by loonyhiker (successfulteaching at gmail dot com).
Image: 'Burnout'
http://www.flickr.com/photos/39911851@N05/5357683026
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