5 New Year’s Resolution Ideas for the Overwhelmed, Busy, Tired, AMAZING… Teacher
Should I make a New Year’s resolution this year? Will I stick to it? Is there even a point? What should it be about? Maybe working out…I did just have a baby last year…ehh who has time for that with 3 kids? Plus I love cookies. Oh, I know- I’m going to be more patient with my kids. Yup! 2023 is going to be the best year yet!
I bet this sounds like some of you! Feeling the pressure to pick a resolution while thinking of something you can actually stick to. Questioning why you’re adding another thing to your big, heavy plate of already overflowing responsibilities. If you’re wondering why you are even doing this to yourselves, just blame the Babylonians! JK, you’d have to go back about 4,000 years ago! According to History.com, every year during the middle of March, the Babylonians would hold a festival called Akitu, that lasted for 12 days. During this time, they would reaffirm their loyalty to the current king while also making promises to the gods to repay their debts and return anything borrowed. They believed that if they stuck to their promises, the gods would reward them the following year. If they did not stick to their promises, they believed they were basically in the dog house. The Ancient Romans later changed the beginning of the New Year to January 1st.
Ok, maybe it would be easier to focus on a resolution that would serve us professionally more than personally (although at some point I think they become interchangeable). Teachers….students…administrators…colleagues… Let’s think of something that’s easy to do, easy to maintain and that doesn’t add a lot more onto our list of to do’s.
Probably the #1 resolution that would serve all teachers best, but sometimes (a lot of the time) seems impossible… Finding more of a work + life balance. I know, I know. It’s probably safe to say this is the most needed but also the most difficult. So, how can we make this happen? Start off SMALL! As we always say at CMDI, BABY STEPS. Pick one day a week (maybe even 1 hour a week) that you dedicate to yourself. Go for a walk, get your nails done, work out, read a book, meditate, watch a movie or even just rest. You deserve it!
You may be the teacher, but you will always be a student. Continue to learn. Pick a topic that you’d like to learn more about and find a variety of places you can educate yourself (it doesn’t have to be boring!). This may involve reading, watching documentaries, going to museums, talking with others who know about the topic you’re exploring, or even travel! It could be something pedagogical or unrelated to teaching altogether however learning about almost anything can make you more valuable in the classroom. One year a colleague of mine vowed that for 1 year, she wouldn’t go a day without learning something new about someone or something.
Something all of us aspire to: be more patient! Being in a classroom with students can definitely chip away at our patience. Now add life on top of that! It is not easy- it’s nearly impossible to be patient all the time. But maybe you’ve noticed it’s been getting cut short a little more often. If you’re like me, you’ve been reflecting on this and not loving this side of yourself. When you feel your patience thinning, count down from 10, use some of the meditation tools you’ve been working on from resolution #1; ask more questions about the situation before jumping to conclusions and/or yelling (I’ve been really working hard on this one!). If you incorporate more mindfulness activities into the school day, this may be a way to increase calmness and patience among EVERYONE in your classroom!
Although you never know what the day will bring as a teacher, sometimes it can feel like you’re just going through the same motions every-single-day. Wake up, run around like a crazy person because you hit snooze too many times, grab a breakfast/coffee on the go, hurry and get out of the house by 6:00 because if you leave a 6:03 traffic will be a nightmare, work-work-work, try not to lose your mind in traffic on the way home, and then get to all your at home responsibilities-just to do it all over again tomorrow. I started to follow this girl on Instagram named “hotpinksunrise” who is documenting what she calls 365 Days of Discomfort in which each day she is going to do one thing that pushes her outside of her comfort zone. She initially started this because she was struggling with depression and mental health issues. Although she feels self conscious at times, she says life is too short to keep yourself from doing things that make you smile. Not only could this be applied to your own life, this may be something you try within your lessons, classroom management or even with your students! I LOOOOVE this idea and highly recommend checking her out for both entertainment and inspiration! (Step 1- make a bucket list!)
In a world filled with so much negativity, especially now, make a resolution to bring others up! Showcase talents, celebrate little and all successes, write handwritten notes, and call home for good things too. You may only be one person but a positive attitude is contagious!