5 Tips To Avoid Educator Burnout In The Midst Of A Pandemic

1. Create Boundaries

As an educator with over 14 years of experience in the world of public education and school leadership one of the best pieces of advice I can offer is the importance of creating boundaries. Boundaries sets ground rules and  limitations regarding your role as an instructor. This is critical because the field of public education is an extensive one. Many will agree that as an educator you wear the hat of: teacher, leader, college & career advisor, counselor, parent, nurse, minister, social worker, therapist, and the list goes on and on! As you can see, setting parameters surrounding your availability to be accessible to your students and parents is key. The earlier into the school year you create and communicate these parameters, the easier it will be for your pupils and their parents to adhere to. 

Developing “office hours” is a great way to create boundaries for your classroom. Schedule your office hours and clearly communicate them with your students, parents, administrators and colleagues. Get creative with your office hours and make it unique for your subject, grade level and even teaching style. Ensure that your office hours are clearly visible within your classroom (or office) as well as incorporated within your course syllabus, virtual classroom, teacher website, office voicemail and even your work email signature. Office hours can refer to a number of things including the non-instructional times in which you will be available in your classroom (or office) for: 1.) direct phone calls, 2.) classroom visits, 3.) additional assistance or questions with assignments, 4.) or even times in which you will read and reply to voice messages and emails.

If you are one of the lucky teachers who is blessed to have a swarm of students hunting you down throughout the school day, craving to be in your presence for advice, assistance, a listening ear, or just a pick-me-laugh then let me offer you another great way to create boundaries for those unexpected moments. Implement a restricted “open door policy” and be sure to set parameters around when your door is open. You can achieve this by creating open door hours, periods, or even days of the week. These are designated times in which your students can come to you outside of scheduling an appointment. They can just pop in for the assistance they need as long as they adhere to your open door policy procedures. A great example would be identifying a day of the week such as “Walk-in-Wednesdays” or designating a period such as a “Pop-in-Period.” This strategy is solely for the purpose of getting ahead of your school year stress so, get creative and remember to have fun with setting boundaries for your kiddies. 

Outside of setting boundaries for others to follow I have to mention the importance of setting boundaries for yourself for this upcoming school year. Remember, my goal within this post is to share tips on how you can avoid educator burnout this year as we all navigate through educating our youth in the midst of a pandemic. You have to set your own limitations as to how you will meet all the requirements that come with the role of teaching. How will you balance lesson planning, teaching, grading, reading and responding to emails, making parent phone calls, providing support to students who are lagging behind, continuing professional development, along with completing the additional requests that will roll down the pipe from your administration team? These next four tips will definitely help you answer these questions and more!

2. Embrace The Power of “NO”

Have you ever taken on so many school-based responsibilities that you soon realized you are overloaded with additional work and unable to complete your actual main job or duty? You know, the actual job that is engraved in a metal plate on your door or the title listed next to your name in the staff directory? Or better yet, the job that is reflected on your paycheck? Well ba-bay, if this sounds like you in the past then let me advise you to stop doing that. Let me be very clear with this one. Do not overextend yourself! Embrace the power of “NO.”

The word “no” requires no explanation so do not feel guilty saying it. “No.” functions as a complete and clear thought. “No.” is a full statement. Do not apologize for saying “no.” The word “no” shows self awareness of your own limitations, ability to manage time, prioritizing skills, as well as your interests and passions. If “No.” seems too harsh for you then try these equally powerful versions of NO: 

• I cannot… 
• I am unable to… 
• I am fully committed to other priorities…
• I will only take on additional responsibilities that I can guarantee quality work… 
• In order to do my best in  _____ (identify a specific job you already have), I must decline this _____ (mention the new job being asked of you)…
• I am sure there are several talented individuals working here with our school/company that would be excited to take on this new initiative if it were advertised…

By now you catch the drift. If you learn the appropriate time(s) to express the word “no” then you are far less likely to overextend yourself in future school years to come. By the way, that last example of how to say no kindly is my all-time favorite!

3. Prioritize Yourself

Not only is it important to set boundaries and to avoid taking on too many responsibilities but it is equally important to feed your spirit in positive ways. Remember, without caring for your own health and wellness you are unable to offer others your best self. Try to incorporate healthy strategies, habits or routines into your lessons that are meaningful to you, your spirit, and your wellness and in doing so will leave a positive effect on your students. I know it sounds cliche but here is another opportunity for you to get creative. By making yourself a priority and modeling this behavior for your students you will ultimately teach them the importance of “self-care.” If you are wondering how this can be done I have a few examples you can implement in your class. 

Meditation might be your strong suit, so teach your students the power of mediating right before you start the lesson. By simply dimming the class lights, speaking softly, and requiring a few moments of stillness and silence from your students, you are teaching them how to unplug from stimuli, ground themselves in the moment, and prepare their minds for the information it is about to receive. The best part is that you get to dive into your lesson with less rambunctious students. Score! 

If you love journaling then why not teach your students the power of writing by incorporating it into your teaching routine. This can be achieved by starting each class session (or ending each class) with 5 minutes of silent journaling in their notebooks. The blessing in this scenario is you can journal along with your students because you’ve learned that writing helps you to de-stress. Another Score! 

Perhaps you enjoy music, expose your students to different rhythms, genres and instruments by implementing Free-Flow-Friday’s. During the class session you can softly play music that will expose your students to new musical styles while creating a pleasant yet synchronous backdrop to your lesson or activity. The music adds value to your learning environment and does not distract from it. In the end, both you and your students end the stressful week on a fun note (pun intended)! Big Score!

4. Carve Out Time For Yourself & Family 

In order to pour your talents into your students and your campus you must be healthy and in good spirits. Equally, your family’s health and happiness is important. For many, our family is our support system. Or perhaps our family relies on us. For others, we are focused on creating and starting our own family. Either way, we have to dedicate time to our family. Teachers, please remember that your personal time is sacred and your family time is sacred too. All the work you do and all the love, support, time, and energy you dedicate to your students means nothing if you do not model that same behavior with your own family as well. That is the bottom line. My tip for you is to maximize your time at work to make more time (outside of work) for yourself and your family.

One way to achieve this is to avoid bringing work home on weekends because this often results in the creation of a grey area between work and home life. On the flip side, I’ve heard many stories of how work went home with a teacher on a Friday only to return on Monday untouched but that is besides the point. Fellow educators, we must keep in mind that working from home may be our new-normal both during and post the COVID-19 pandemic. So we may not be able to avoid bringing work home, but again we have to set boundaries, learn to say no, and prioritize ourselves and our families while doing so.

Another helpful method is to be intentional of the time you carve out for your family and home life. Do not rob your children or spouse of their well-deserved time with you because you failed to properly manage your workload. Block out specific days (or times) for family then design your workload schedule around that time. Besides being teachers, many of us have a ton of family related responsibilities so we must be just as organized within our home life as we are at work. 

5. Schedule Breaks

Schedule specific times throughout the day to give yourself an opportunity to mentally check out. You can also try dedicating a specific day of the week if that works better for your schedule. (Do not confuse this advice with not doing your job or with taking naps. LOL!) I am simply referring to taking a short break from the planning, grading, email checking, advising…etc. that comes with the territory of educating our students. Just as our students need breaks in between subjects and lessons, we as educators need breaks as well. So, as much as it is important to use every minute of your workday as effectively as possible to avoid bringing work home with you, you must be mindful of the importance of giving your mind a short break as well. 

Here are a few examples of how you can schedule a short break.  Devote personal time to pray or meditate quietly in your room or office. Enjoy five minutes of stretching. Play music you love. Read a short chapter of a good book. Check your social media account. Call your spouse and enjoy a quick chat. Go to your car for a few moments of clarity and solace. Whatever it is, just take a few minutes to do something that feeds your mental health and wellness throughout the workday. 

Dear Educator,

I wish you a successful school year filled with many blessings! May you and your family continue to stay safe and please remember to…

…pour into your OWN cup so that you may pour into others!

XOXO – Sophie

How long have you been an educator? What are some strategies that you use to avoid burnout? Drop a comment below. Let’s chat! I’d love to hear some extra tips.