A conversation with a retired principal changed how I see burnout

I was talking to Mrs. Patterson, a retired principal from a district in Ohio, last Sunday at a coffee shop. She told me she quit 5 years early because she saw too many young teachers crash out by year 3, and she said 'your first year is about survival, not passion.' That hit different because I'm in year 2 and I've been pushing myself too hard, thinking I had to be perfect right away. Has anyone else had a veteran tell you something that made you ease up on yourself?

2 comments

2 Comments

paige87015d ago

Survival, not passion" really stuck with me too. Year 2 is brutal because you think you should have it figured out by now, but you're still just barely keeping your head above water most days. It's like everyone expects you to be this amazing teacher the second you walk in, but the vets know it takes years to actually get good at it. I had a mentor tell me that her first few years she basically just copied other teachers' lesson plans and that made me feel way less pressure to reinvent the wheel every single day. The whole "fake it til you make it" thing is real, and honestly that's okay for now. You can't run a marathon at sprint speed, that's just a recipe for tapping out early.

lewis.diana15d ago

So copying lesson plans isn't cheating, just smart survival? Awesome.