It was so rewarding to read all the responses to my post earlier this week. It was great to know that I'm not the only teacher who feels like the passion could be gone and wants to do something about it. While I was doing my Biggest Loser DVD on Tuesday, I was thinking about what the next step could be and what the next blog could be about (I am pretty sure Tuesday's was the best I had in me this week.). During the DVD, I told myself "push, push, push" when the move was hard or I wanted to quit. I frequently give myself "pep" talks during exercising. It helps me keep going. There are many different techniques used when exercising for motivation and encouragement. What if we applied these techniques to our professional and everyday lives?
When I was in 8th grade, we went to visit the high school and Carl Mays spoke to all the 8th graders there about how to achieve your dreams and be successful. He suggested using visualization where you don't just visual yourself doing things but succeeding in them. Something about this technique stuck with me. I have always visualized myself completing sporting events. In high school, it was swimming now it's running. I can picture myself running the whole route I plan on doing and completing it successful. It gives me the confidence to do it for real. I googled visualization and discovered a lot of material out there about using these techniques in everyday life. One suggested use is a vision board. (If you watch Jerseylicious on style, Olivia uses a vision board. It made me laugh to see it as a real strategy.) A vision board is a visual representation of the things that you want out of life. I like this idea. I like the idea of putting the things that I want my class to be up so I can see it every day. But what would be on there? What do I envision for my class this year? I want my students to know they are loved and in a safe place. I also want them to love learning new things and reading. I wonder if a visual reminder of these goals would help me to stay focused and not let the negative in. I could even use real pictures from classes in the past where I was successful in creating this kind of environment.
A support system is important also to keeping motivated and encouraged. It's helpful to me when exercising to have a partner to do it with. Chris and I have been running together a few times a week. It helps me because he runs a little faster than me. I try to keep up with him at the end and it makes me push myself harder. I need this same support system at school. I am working through some ideas of how we can form a support group at my school. At some of the other schools I worked at, we had prayer groups that met once a week. In one school we had a devotion, breakfast, and then prayer time. It helped bring us together, gave me a support group, and was a great way to center myself and start my day. I needed these groups during this time because my uncle had been diagnosed with ALS. An awful disease for which there is no cure. I really learned about what prayer could do.
Now that the decision has been made to stay positive and passionate this year, I need to put a plan in place to stay the course and deal with the challenges I will face.
What ideas do you have about staying motivated and encouraged?
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