How I Learned to Lean Into My Strength

Last week I made a slide show for Instragram talking about some of the life lessons I have learned over the last few years. Take a look at the slide show below, or you can read the text in the paragraphs below it.

I know most of us don’t like talking about 2020, and how many schools were shut down for almost a year and a half. For me, this is when I did a lot of reflecting on my life. I realized I wasn’t living up to my fullest potential, and I needed to examine some habits that needed to change. It all started when I heard a sermon from church that said things would be different after the lockdown. I knew I needed to be different to be ready for the challenge ahead.

I used to think that to be a successful teacher I had to be serious at all times, especially around my students. I realized that my students were not seeing the best side of my personality, and starting in 2021, I leaned more into my sense of humor. I found it easier to be myself in my classroom as opposed to trying to be someone else.

We all have things that we are good at, and too often in education, I see too many holding back what they are good at. When we share our skills with others, then we can make our world a better place. Starting in 2021, I looked for ways to share my strengths with others. It started with me creating math activities for my district to using my photography skills to capture moments at school. Today, I am working for my school district writing a science curriculum that will be used next school year.

I used to stay late and get up early because that is how I thought you were supposed to be successful as a teacher. I realized that I could have stayed up all night creating the greatest lesson in the world, and it failed because I was too tired to deliver it effectively. When I started to make rest a priority, I was able to have a greater impact in my classroom.