Are you a new teacher trying to figure out how to thrive in this profession? Or a seasoned teacher ready to make a change that helps you last, put yourself and your family first, and actually enjoy teaching again? Today I’m sharing some of the big mistakes, sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, that I made in my early years. Truth be told, I was a slow learner and didn’t put myself first until year nine. I’m sharing these so you can skip my missteps.
When I started teaching, the world was a different place. There was no Pinterest, no Teachers Pay Teachers, no Instagram full of lesson recaps and ideas from teacher bloggers. When I needed help, I was mostly on my own. You’re not. It’s so much easier now to learn from teachers who’ve walked this road before you, and to lean on a whole community as you go.
Now, if you’re anything like me, you’re headstrong and a little stubborn, and you might not want to hear advice. Early on, I tuned out people who were just negative and burned out, and you should protect your heart and mindset from that kind of negativity. But this is different. You are our future, and I want you to last. Read on and try to listen.
1) STOP HOLDING YOUR PEE
Did that make you laugh? Don’t laugh too hard, you might wet your pants, because I know you’re holding it right now out of pure habit. Stop.
If you have a bathroom near your classroom, train your students to stay engaged and working while you step out. (Independent reading time was always my window.) I used to tell my students how unfair it was that they could go whenever they asked while I couldn’t, and that being able to leave the room meant I trusted them. If slipping out doesn’t work for you, make a plan: grab the teacher next door, a special-area teacher, a volunteer, or call the office. And take your chance to go during planning, drop-off, pickup, and lunch instead of powering through. Take the minute. Let it out.
2) STOP SKIPPING WATER
I know you actually drink less water because of #1. But do you plan to teach 25-plus years dehydrated? You’ll shrivel up like a raisin, and no one wants to be a raisin. Make your health a stated priority, to yourself and your principal, so you can be there for your students. Drink water, go pee, repeat.
3) STOP RESERVING YOUR WEEKENDS FOR PLANNING
Have you heard of Parkinson’s Law? “Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.”
If you tell yourself the weekend is for planning, planning will swallow the whole weekend, bleeding into late nights and early mornings until you’ve got the Sunday blues and a creeping “I’m a teacher, I can’t have a life” resentment. That’s the road to burnout. For me it was always a new science or social studies unit, I’d pile on so much pressure to build the perfect, complete, engaging unit that I’d spin my wheels, when I should have just nailed down the first step and let the rest of the week sort itself out. Grading, prepping guided reading books, outlining a week of math, reading ahead on content, all in one weekend, was never actually possible.
4) STOP PLANNING WILLY-NILLY
Build a planning routine instead. Decide specific days and times for each part of your teaching load so tasks get handled when they’re actually a priority, not whenever they nag at you.
For example, I used duty-free recess to prep the week’s math homework. A teacher friend always typed her next-week newsletter on Friday afternoons, 30 minutes, and it helped her mentally close out the week before leaving. I also started using a weekly to-do list organized by day and time of day (morning before school, planning block, or after school). That one shift broke me out of the never-ending list and let me sort tasks by priority instead of preference, which I get into more in #11.
5) STOP RULING OUT HAVING CHILDREN
(I’m not joking.) Deciding you won’t have kids because you’ve poured all your energy into other people’s children is too big a sacrifice.
Ouch, right? I had myself convinced for years that I just wouldn’t have children, I couldn’t picture a baby and a classroom at the same time. I eventually made the choice to put my own family first, and I’m now a mom of two girls. Best decision I made.
You started this career to make an impact. Your own kids will make one too. You owe it to yourself to put your hopes for a family on the table and trust that the rest will work out. Plenty of amazing teachers balance both. Giving up a family because you’re a teacher is the kind of sacrifice you may come to resent, and you’re not a martyr. You’re a person. You deserve a life and an identity outside of teaching, and it’s okay to say so.
I’m not saying it’s easy or painless. I’m saying care more about yourself and what you deserve here. If you don’t have someone in your corner telling you that, let it be me.
6) STOP PUTTING EXERCISE LAST
It matters, we both know it, and it’s hard to fit in. But regular movement keeps you healthy for yourself, your family, and your students. Make the time.
7) STOP FEELING GUILTY ABOUT IDEAS YOU CAN’T GET TO
We have endless big, creative ideas. Jot them down for next year and make peace with being human. You can’t implement every great idea the moment it strikes.
8) STOP STAYING LATE EVERY SINGLE DAY
Pick two days a week to stay late, ideally the ones already spoken for, like staff meetings or PLCs, and protect the rest. On a “leave” day, mentally pick the one thing you’ll finish, get it as done as you can, and walk out by your cutoff no matter what. That means packing up before the bell so you’re actually out the door on time. Do it.
9) STOP SKIPPING SNACKS
For me, eating a small snack mid-morning and mid-afternoon made a real difference in my energy through the day. If you’re worried about your principal walking in mid-bite, build in a quick designated snack time with your students. Mine knew I’d be breaking out yogurt or a banana with peanut butter by the end of the day. The point: stop running on empty.
10) STOP SAVING EVERY APPOINTMENT FOR SCHOOL BREAKS
Your students check out for doctor and dentist visits all the time, so why do we wait for summer or a day off? I once paid for dental insurance for three years and didn’t go to the dentist. (Embarrassing.) Schedule appointments when they’re convenient, leave a little early or come in a little late twice a year. You won’t miss a beat, you’ll protect your vacations, and you can grab a coffee on the way back.
11) STOP DOING WHAT YOU WANT BEORE WHAT YOU NEED
Early in my career I managed my time by what I wanted to do, create, design lessons, hunt for the perfect idea, instead of what I needed to be ready for the next day. I assumed it would all get done and didn’t grasp how finite a teacher’s time really is.
To be fair, I taught my first couple of years in a leave-us-alone environment, few meetings, little oversight, so the “I’ll work on whatever I want and it’ll all get done” approach mostly held. Education isn’t that anymore. A teacher’s time is rarely their own, and that shift is exactly why you have to start with what you need before what you want.
New teachers, hard-headed, change-the-world, genuinely amazing teachers: I hope you listen. Take care of your kind heart, guard your personal time, prioritize your health, and build routines that help you plan faster and leave work at work. That’s often what makes the difference between lasting and burning out. And you’ll still be a rock star even when everything in your classroom isn’t perfect.
I’m rooting for you.
I’m sure I left things off, I could go on and on. Did something come to mind as you read? Drop it in the comments and help out a fellow teacher.
