What Motivates You?

The beginning of the school year has blown past us, and there are countless things you probably did to for the group of students that will be entered your classroom.  Setting up your room, completing you management plan, writing lesson plans, contacting prospective students, reviewing curriculum updates, and the list goes on.

All of those are important, but I think there is something that needs to gravitate to the top as you prepare for each year, but also as you navigate through the year.

Find your motivation.

At the end of the year you may have been worn out, wondering if you should return to the classroom.  You may not have been wondering at all, but you may have been completely drained emotionally, intellectually and physically.  No matter what the case may be, think back to why you felt called to this profession.  Is that still your driving force?  Have you lost sight of it?  If you have forgotten what drew you to this calling, try to find ways to bring that clarity back to the forefront.

Image Courtesy of Fraser University

How do you do that?

Any number of strategies might work.  Here are a few possibilities:

• Read for pleasure.  Find a book, series or topic that is interesting to you and read about it.  Allow your mind to relax and recharge.  That rejuvenation will help you make it through the first few weeks.  Once school starts, it is nonstop for the first few weeks and you barely have time to come up for air.  
• Read for growth.  If reading for pleasure isn't up your ally, maybe some nonfiction is what you need.  Find a topic applicable to what you do and dig into it more.  Find ideas for the rest of the year or future years that will enable you to be a better educator.  There are no perfect teachers, we all can use some room to grow.   
• Find some new resources.  These can be online, print, someone in your network or a mentor.  
• Watch some videos.  This one is multi-faceted.  I think we should do a combination of types of videos.  Some humorous (we all need to laugh), some educational (we all have room to grow), some you may disagree with (challenging thoughts help us clarify our own viewpoints).  

Bottom line, when you start to feel the pressures of the year or coming year impact you and your motivation as a teacher, take a step back an recharge yourself.  Remind yourself why you entered this profession, why you were called to this profession.  

As we approach Thanksgiving, slow down and think about the blessings you have and use that as motivation to see you through some of the challenges you may be facing.  If you need to, make a list of them to serve as a reminder and keep them accessible during those times of frustration.  

Thank you for reading The Cluttered Desk.  You can find me on Twitter @jasonbengs.  Please feel free to comment on the post and share your ideas with me.  You can also leave a response on The Cluttered Desk Flipgrid page if you would like to leave a comment on this or any other post or podcast episode by going to https://flipgrid.com/03fa4e01 If you found any value in this post, please share it with others.