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Ask These 3 Questions to Live More Intentionally

January 8, 2023 by Inspired Together Teachers Leave a Comment

Do you want to live more intentionally in 2023?

We’re all ready for something more and better. It’s been a rough few years to be a teacher. We’ve felt stressed and overwhelmed. We’ve had our share of frustration and exhaustion. We’re over it.

We say, out with the old and in with the new. It’s time to say goodbye to the bad mojo that has been draining us and open up to new possibilities. This year, we want to live more intentionally.

We’ve been reflecting on the sorrows and joys of the past as well as the possibilities for the new year.

We want more joy, in our lives and in our work. Shouldn’t our days include fun? Happiness adds meaning to our lives.

We want to be more confident and proactive, rather than hold back or be reactive. So much has been out of our control in the past few years, and often that meant that were reacting to circumstances.But there are things that we CAN control and controlling what we can has the potential to improve our lives.

We want less stress. Some stress is due to external circumstances, but other stress, such as excessive worry, or things in our environment that stress us are under our control. We can choose to eliminate stress where we can, and choose how we handle it when we can’t.

2023 offers us an opportunity to change things.

What would it feel like to take more control of your life so that you could have more of the things that matter? Could our lives be better? If so, what can we do to change things for the better?

Here are three questions we are focusing on this year, with the goal of living more intentionally in 2023.

What would I like to start doing this year?

This one sounds suspiciously like a new year’s resolution, but it doesn’t have to be. Yes, like the rest of the world, maybe you want to eat more healthy foods and exercise more. That’s great. But maybe there are other things, even tiny things, that would improve your life even more. Could you practice one act of kindness each day? Could you practice taking deep breaths and count to ten every time you feel stressed? Maybe you want to find time each day to spend a few minutes doing whatever feeds your soul. Drawing, reading, listening to a favorite song, walking in nature- even a few minutes a day has benefits for your mental health.

What is one thing, however small, that you could add to your days to make your life better?

What would I like to let go of this year?

Is there something, that if you let go of it, it would improve your life? Guilt is often weighs heavy on teachers who feel that that they must do everything for everyone and there is never enough time to do it all. Think of gremlins such as excessive worry, self-doubt, anger, or jealousy. Or perhaps there are physical things such as an overly cluttered home, not being able to see the top of your desk at work or digging through a closet full of clothes only to find out that you have nothing to wear.

“If you want to fly,

you have to give up the things that weight you down.”

Toni Morrison

What is weighing you down?

What would I like to celebrate this year?

When your life is busy, it is easy to skip celebrating, but if you want more and better in your life, that is a mistake.

Negativity bias is the human trait that encourages our brains to spend more time focusing on the negatives in our lives than the positive things. In our evolution, it is what kept us alive when we were in danger of being eaten by a tiger. Negativity bias keeps us focused on danger, and that can be good. But it can also mean that we spend far more time worrying about the bad stuff than enjoying the good stuff.

What you think about triggers your emotions and your emotions trigger your actions. If you think about how bad the world is, your emotions follow. For example, you may become sad or depressed and your actions might include isolation or lashing out.

Celebrations, whether celebrating major life events like weddings or birthdays or small life events like a successful lesson, remind us that there are good things in the world. Focusing on the positive things in our lives brings us happiness and joy. This is why gratitude practices are often successful in increasing our life satisfaction.

What would you like more of in 2023? What would you like to let go of? What would you like to celebrate?

Join us as we live more intentionally this year so we can live our best personal and professional lives.

Our Best,

Is Feeling Stressed Inevitable?

October 27, 2022 by Inspired Together Teachers 1 Comment

If you are a teacher and haven’t felt stressed in the past couple of years, you just might be a unicorn.

There are many factors that combine to make teachers feel stressed. You know them all, challenging student behaviors, demanding parents, lack of time, increased expectations, lack of work/home balance, …you name it.

Teachers are not the only ones feeling stressed. According to a 2022 research study by the American Institute of Stress, 76% of US workers say they have felt workplace stress and that it has had a negative effect on their personal life.

Many of the factors that contribute to stress are out of our control. So, is stress inevitable?

It’s complicated. There are things we can do to feel less stressed but most of those revolve around changing how we react to stress.

If we can’t control the things that cause we stress, we CAN control our reaction to stress.

In a book we both loved, Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle, Emily and Amelia Nagoski discuss the stress cycle- what causes it and what we can do about it. Using the example of two women- a teacher and an engineer, the authors discuss how women can combat stress by completing the stress cycle.

When we experience stressors-our body engages in a neurological and physiological shift. It is an evolutionary reaction- if a lion is chasing you, your body responds with changes that will increase your chances of surviving. Epinephrine pushes blood into your muscles to help you run faster. Glucocorticoids keep you going, and endorphins help you ignore how uncomfortable you feel.

You’ve felt the affects of stress on your body- increased heart rate, faster breathing, and heightened senses. You may not have noticed that your digestive system and other organs slow down, including your immune system and reproductive system, so that other systems have priority as you face a perceived attack.

What happens when the stressful situation is over? You’ve outrun the lion, and your villagers have come together in celebration. You cheer and relax into the loving arms of your family and friends. The lion becomes dinner, and you all enjoy a feast. All of these things are cues for your body that the fight or flight is over, and you can now relax.

The stress cycles has been completed and your body systems return to normal.

What happens with modern day stress? There is no celebratory dinner or stress relief with friends. Sometimes, stressful situations keep coming, perhaps in a different place. We leave a stressful day of work behind only to find more stress at home. Our bodies, still full of adrenaline and cortisol, don’t relax. Our bodies don’t return to normal. We haven’t completed the stress cycle.

The result is an ongoing barrage of stress hormones. Toxic stress has many negative results including headache, anxiety, irritability, depression, insomnia, higher blood pressure, higher blood sugar, higher risk of heart attacks and even fertility issues.

All is not hopeless. Despite ongoing stress there are things we can do to complete the stress cycle so that our bodies can return to normal. We aren’t changing the stressors- just changing our reaction to the stress so that our bodies can let it go and reset to more normal pattens.

What can we do to complete the stress cycle? In the book Burnout, Emily and Amelia Nagoski suggest:

Do anything to help your body move and sweat.

This is the best way to complete the stress cycle. Run, swim, dance, chase your kids at the park- anything that keeps you moving for 20-60 minutes.

Stand up and take a few big breaths.

Tense all your muscles and then shake them out. Exhale deeply. This can start the cycle that reduces the physical and neurological changes caused by stress.

Breathe deeply.

Take multiple slow, deep breathes. Try this when you feel stressed and need to get through a difficult situation. Later you can do something more physical to reduce the stress.

Engage in positive social interactions.

Talking with friends or even chatting with someone at the grocery store tells your body that it is safe and allows the stress cycle to lessen.

Laugh.

You’ve heard that laughter is good for the soul- it is also good for reducing the effects of stress on our body. In a heightened stress state, we don’t laugh, so laughing tells our brains that we are safe and can let go of the stress hormones.

Show affection.

When our body recognizes that we are with people we care about, it will feel safe and stop the stress reactions. Hug your partner, your children, or even your pets. Hug until you feel safe!

Have a cry.

You’ve likely experienced having a big, sloppy cry and then feeling better afterwards. Crying is one way your body can reduce stress hormones. Put on your favorite tearjerker movie- the one that makes you cry every time. Let go.

Do something creative.

The arts encourage big emotions, and literary, musical, dramatic, or visual arts allow us a way to move through our emotions. Allow yourself to feel the emotions.

Telling yourself to let go of your stress doesn’t complete the stress cycle. We need to do something.

Sometimes, after doing any of the previous activities we will feel better immediately. Other times, especially if we have been hanging onto stress for a long time, it will take longer.

If you experience stress every day, you will probably need to complete the stress cycle every day. Try different strategies until you find which ones work best for you. According to Burnout, “ with practice, you’ll begin to notice what different stress levels feel like in your body, and you’ll get a sense of which days require more or less time or intensity to complete the cycle. (p. 23).

If you are feeling stressed regularly, we highly recommend this book. If you aren’t feeling a lot of stress, but want to prevent yourself from feeling stressed, this book will also be insightful.

Wishing you less stress,

Nagoski, E. & Nagoski, A. (2019). Burnout: The secret to unlocking the stress cycle. New York: Ballantine Books.

6 Ways to Strengthen Teacher Well-being

October 13, 2022 by Inspired Together Teachers Leave a Comment

Teacher well-being is a critical component to teacher success, not just at school, but in the rest of their lives as well.

It is no secret that teachers are suffering high rates of exhaustion, overwhelm, stress, and burn-out. According to the National Center for School Mental Health, 50% of teachers have seriously considered leaving the profession. Teacher stress is linked with lower engagement and lower achievement for students. It is also costly, teacher turnover costs the United States up to 2.2 billion dollars annually.

Many of the issues that cause stress and overwhelm are out of the immediate control of teachers. School organization, leadership, climate and culture, lack of resources and staff, high demands and lack of support are among the issues that lead to today’s stressful educational environment. The result is lower feelings of personal fulfillment, happiness and life-satisfaction.

We all know its a problem, but what can we do about it?

This week we spent two days at the Iowa BEST Summit, where leading psychologists and researchers from around the country focused on strengthening mental wellness supports for educators and students.

This conference validated our belief that while we can’t control everything, we can learn to put our time and energy on the things we can control. We can take step to improve our personal fulfillment and happiness which can lead to higher life satisfaction.

Our country, including legislators and our school districts, must address organization factors that negatively affect teachers. Many of those things are not in our immediate control. However, according to extensive research, there are things teachers CAN control that move the needle towards higher levels of life satisfaction.

The ideas we share below at not “toxic positivity.” This is NOT about masking your feelings and pretending that everything is okay. It is about understanding that things are NOT okay, and then doing what we can to successful move forward and do what we need to do. It is about taking care of our own mental health, to the extent that we can, rather than giving up hope or waiting for the world to fix all of our challenges.

To that end, here are 6 things teachers can do to increase their teacher well-being:

Shift Your Mindset.

Positive emotions are often under our control and have an impact on our well-being. Focus your time and energy on things you can control and let go of the rest. You can control your own emotions, attention, physiology, motivation and personal behavior.

There are many ways to shift your mindset. Mindsets are contagious, so be careful who you spend your time with. Find something every day to be grateful for. When you have a challenge, ask yourself, “What advice would I give a friend?” Develop self-compassion and let go of the need to be perfect. Holding unrealistic expectations for yourself will always lead to dissatisfaction.

Find meaning to find motivation.

Personal motivation requires understanding our purpose. Why did you go into this profession? Look for the higher calling. Think of a time when you know you made a difference in the life of a student. Remember the times when you felt empowered and loved your work. Take a look at your personal skills and strengths. What do you have to offer the world? When you are using your gifts, you are likely to be highly motivated. Consider how you can bring your personal gifts and talents to your work in new ways.

Recognize your accomplishments.

When your to-do list is long, it is easy to beat yourself up for all the things you didn’t finish. This is a recipe for self-negativity. Instead, try to focus on all of the things you did accomplish each day. Teachers do hundreds of things each day and then berate themselves for what didn’t get done. When you add up your daily accomplishments, you are likely to be astounded!

Negativity bias often causes our brains to focus or even obsess over things that don’t go well. We can counteract negativity bias by focusing on the things that went well. You will gradually be able to train your brain to see the positive rather than the negative.

You can also recognize small steps towards a larger goal. You’ll be surprised at how many little things there are to celebrate!

Bring the joy.

Joy is connected to feelings of well-being as well as increased learning and even physical changes in our bodies.

What brings you joy? Focus on the joy in your life. Plan something fun with friends. Take time to work on a hobby. Watch a funny movie.

Plan at least one small thing that brings you joy each day.

Write it in your planner.

Bring joy into your classroom too. If you don’t bring the joy into your classroom, who will? If you are tired and grumpy and bored, you can bet your students will be as well.

We can never expect students to bring more to the room than we bring. What do you want? Engagement? Motivation? Energy? We set the tone in our classrooms. What we bring is what students get.

Find ways to bring in playfulness and fun into your classroom and watch things change for the better. For more ideas read our #1 most downloaded post 8 Simple Ways to Bring Joy to Your Classroom.

Prioritize self-care.

We all know the importance of self-care, but often put it on the back burner. You need to eat, exercise and rest. Sleep deprivation affects almost everything about our day- our energy, our attitude, and our ability to solve problems. If you do nothing else, try to get enough sleep. That alone will increase your sense of well-being.

Self-care doesn’t work when it is prescribed. Self- care is very personal. You need to decide what makes you feel good. Maybe it is green smoothies and yoga, maybe it is a warm shower and a good book. Maybe it is a cup of coffee on your morning drive or a walk in the evening. What relaxes you? What recharges your battery? Doing more of what feels like self-care to you.

Foster positive relationships.

When we feel psychological safety, engage in meaningful collaboration, and feel support from those around us, we do better in all areas of our lives.

Think about how you want to feel in your classroom and in your life. What would it take for that to happen? Then work backwards. Keep moving back a step until you get to things that you can do.

Think about how you want your students to feel in your classroom. Then work backwards. What would it take for that to happen?

Make it a priority to get to know people. Provide acknowledgement. Create opportunities to work with others on something meaningful. Belonging increases our ability to cope with challenges and helps to assure that we will thrive.

Teacher well-being is a complex issue with many elements that need to come together so that teachers feel happy and fulfilled in their life and work. We can’t control everything that needs to occur, but we can influence our own happiness in significant ways.

Our best,

Would you like more ways to stregthen your well-being? We have create a virtual workshop which addresses all of these issues and more. The workshop is open from Oct. 15 until Dec. 1st and available on-demand, 24/7.

It might be just the shot of support you need to bring energy and happiness back into your life.

Check out our Reignite Your Passion: Renewal and Rejuvenation for Teachers here.

20 Things You Can Do to Make Your Life Better

October 6, 2022 by Inspired Together Teachers Leave a Comment

What if we told you that you could make your life better by doing small, simple things that have a big impact?

As a teacher, you exist in a world that is full of expectations. You want to help your students while also supporting your family and friends. It is easy to lose yourself, to fill everyone else’s bucket while leaving yours empty.

You deserve to find your own happiness and fulfillment in your life.

It is easy to get stuck in a rut and to accept the ordinary or mundane. That is not where life’s magic happens. Life’s magic happens when you are feeling alive, joyful, and empowered.

What are you doing when you feel most alive and joyous? What gives you the most energy? Consider how you can bring some of those elements into every day in small ways.

Small things, done repeatedly, have the power to make big changes. A slow trickle of water can create a canyon. One small rolling rock can start an avalanche. Choosing to take small actions can build momentum that will help you to continue a journey that will result in increased happiness.

“I always tell people if you want to know the secret to happiness,

I can give it to you in one word: progress.

Progress equals happiness.”

Tony Robbins

As individuals, we each thrive in different ways, and we need different things.

The following are some suggestions of small actions than you can implement to start building momentum. The actions start easy and get more and more powerful as you go down the list.

Smile at someone. They will likely smile back. Smiling increases our mood-enhancing hormones and decreases our stress hormones.
Add fruit or cucumbers to your water bottle. You’ll drink more and stay hydrated. Good hydration increases our overall energy and our ability to think clearly.
Text a friend just to say “Hi” or wish them a good day. Positive relationships increase our happiness and even our life expectancy!
Give a compliment- you’ll benefit from a good feeling as much as the recipient.
Look out at a beautiful vista in nature and breathe. You will relax and feel calmer.
Every day, congratulate yourself for one thing that you did well. Success builds more success.
Laugh more. Tell a stupid joke. Joke around with a colleague. Watch a funny show or movie. Laughing reduces stress.
Use the mindfulness feature on your smart phone or watch. It literally takes one minute!
Here is a trick from personal development trainer Mel Robbins, every morning when you are in the bathroom, look at yourself in the mirror and give yourself a high five. It is a daily shot of confidence.
No time for your favorite hobby? Try spending just five- to ten minutes. Play one song on the piano. Make a sketch. Do a few yoga poses. Read a few pages. Something is always more than nothing and engaging in a passion increases our happiness.
Ask yourself, what is one small thing I could do to care for myself right now? Then do it. If you don’t care for yourself, who else is going to?
Make plans to do something fun with a friend. You’ll have something to look forward to!
Spend a few minutes journaling- it helps you to develop self-awareness.
Think of a challenge that you are experiencing. Reframe it as, “how is this challenging offering me a chance to grow and be stronger?”
What are your instincts telling you to do? Listen to that message. Instincts are often our inner wisdom guiding the way.
Consider one routine that is working really well. How could you replicate it in other routines? Having strong routines opens up brain power and energy because you have fewer decisions to make.
When you feel overwhelmed, get out of your head and into your body. Take a short walk. Immerse yourself in water. Dance in your living room for five minutes. You’ll feel more at peace and calmer.
If you feel stuck, change a routine. Taking a different route to work, cooking something new, or talking with someone you don’t know well can open up creativity and new ways to solve a problem.
When you feel yourself doubting that you can do something, challenge it. Come up with at least one example that whatever you are doubting is not true. Look at the evidence that proves you can do something. Your experiences in the past will give you strength for the future.
Choose something in your life that is no longer serving you and let it go. This might be as simple as an article of clothing or a household object, or as complicated as a relationship. Letting go of things that no longer serve you will open space for better things.

Life is not about perfection. It is about moving in the right direction.You don’t need to upend your entire life to make your life better. You just need to focus on small, positive actions that add up to big momentum and that will help you make your life better.

Our best,

P.S.

If you would like more personal development for teachers, get our book, The Inspired Teacher’s Journal: A Weekly Guide to Becoming Yourt Best Self.

This guided journal is designed to help teachers live with intention in both their teaching life AND personal life.

Teaching is both rewarding and demanding. Teachers want to make a difference, but they also want a fulfilling life outside of school. The result of trying to be and do it all is stress and overwhelm.

In this guided journal, we will guide you to write, draw, reflect, and plan. In addition to the reflective journal pages, over 40 teachers share their best wisdom and advice. Together, we will inspire you to create your best life.

Best of all, you will learn to surround yourself with a star system of caring, supportive people who will encourage you, challenge you to rise higher, and lift you up when you need it.

Get your copy of The Inspired Teacher’s Journal: A Weekly Guide to Becoming Your Best Self here.

How to Reduce Parent -Teacher Conference Stress

October 25, 2019 by Inspired Together Teachers Leave a Comment

Do you dread parent-teacher conferences? Stay awake at night worrying about them?

If you have ever felt anxious about conferences, we’ve got some ideas to ease your mind.

Parent-teacher conferences bring up a mix of emotions from anticipation to dread on the part of students, parents, and teachers.

Students fear what teachers might say about them, and that their faults or abilities will be openly discussed by the adults who are the power players in their lives.

Parents fear that they may hear comments about their child that are hurtful or focus on their child’s faults. They may even feel that their parenting skill will be questioned.

Teachers fear negative reactions from parents, which often puts them in defense mode.

The best way to avoid any unforeseen uncomfortable discussions, and to ensure you are prepared with both positive statements and suggestions for growth for your students, is to have information prepared before the meeting.

Grades are certainly part of conferences, but often the most important part of conferencing is not the grade, but the story behind the grades.

More than just a number in the grade book, parents want insight.

What is the student learning? What skills has the student mastered? Which areas of curriculum or social/emotional growth is the student still working on?

Don’t focus on numbers, be ready with your stories and examples.

We have written an extensive post about how to get ready for parent-teacher conferences. Parent-teacher conferences don’t have to be stressful!

Read more about conducting successful conferences here.

We have also created a template that you can use to prepare for conferences. It will help you think through what to say and stay organized. Grab our template by filling out the form below and we’ll send it to you.

Whether you are preparing for upcoming conferences or already had your conferences and hope to make them better next time, we hope you find this information helpful.

Happy conferencing,

Paula and Michele

Here are three questions we are focusing on this year, with the goal of living more intentionally in 2023.

What would I like to start doing this year?

What would I like to let go of this year?

“If you want to fly,

you have to give up the things that weight you down.”

Toni Morrison

What would I like to celebrate this year?

What would you like more of in 2023? What would you like to let go of? What would you like to celebrate?

Share this:

Do anything to help your body move and sweat.

Stand up and take a few big breaths.

Breathe deeply.

Engage in positive social interactions.

Laugh.

Show affection.

Have a cry.

Do something creative.

Share this:

To that end, here are 6 things teachers can do to increase their teacher well-being:

Shift Your Mindset.

Find meaning to find motivation.

Recognize your accomplishments.

Bring the joy.

Prioritize self-care.

Foster positive relationships.

Share this:

“I always tell people if you want to know the secret to happiness,

I can give it to you in one word: progress.

Progress equals happiness.”

The following are some suggestions of small actions than you can implement to start building momentum. The actions start easy and get more and more powerful as you go down the list.

Share this:

Share this:

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