Striking a Balance

One of the questions I get asked the most is around work-life balance. HOW ON EARTH do I get to switch off and recharge every weekend and not think about or do any work? I want to start by saying that I remember my NQT VERY well, it was 11 years ago now and it was the time I felt the most like I wanted to quit. The workload was relentless. Back then, I had to create a physical lesson plan Word document for EVERY lesson I taught – this, alongside the PowerPoint creating and resource designing made planning a laborious task to say the least. It was what was taking up the majority of my time outside of being in the classroom and so when my school decided to remove this as an expectation, it was such a relief! I know this isn’t necessarily the expectation now, but the point is, I think it’s important to not enter teaching thinking you’ll never have to do work at home at the weekend at the start of your career. The workload can feel daunting at first, but only whilst you’re finding your feet and learning as you go will things take as long as they do in that first year – a lot of the time you gain later in your career is just from you getting quicker at completing the same tasks! Stick with it, it won’t always feel as overwhelming as it does at the start.

That being said though, it’s still important to have boundaries at the beginning of your career. I remember being up until 10pm most nights squirelling away on planning or marking, working 10-hour days in school and STILL working on the weekends but I also remember feeling ill and stuck and unhappy. When I look back on the choices I made and the motivations behind them, I think I was driven by what people thought as well as the fire of ambition that has always been alive inside me. I wanted to run before I could walk and it took a LOT of graft to continue to prove myself, not just to others but to myself too. I wanted to receive the illusive ‘Outstanding’ grading before the end of my first year, I wanted to be promoted in my second year and then have a middle leadership role within the first 4 years of my career. And whilst I did in fact achieve all of those things, as well as becoming a Specialist Leader in Education, a coach, Second in Department followed by Head of Department, alongside delivering training whole school, and a number of other whole school responsibilities when I reflect on it all, the happiest I have been in my career is now – where the job doesn’t rule my whole life, when I don’t invest every ounce of my soul into teaching and only teaching. I am super proud of all that I have achieved, don’t get me wrong, but if I could go back and slow down, I would. The truth is, there is no rush. I prioritised school over everything and it showed in my reputation and the things I achieved, but also in my health and my enjoyment of the job.

One of the things I hear a lot is this idea of HAVING to do it because it NEEDS to be done. I challenge you to reframe this concept in your mind or at least reflect by asking yourself some questions. What do you actually mean by it NEEDS to be done – is there a deadline you need to meet? Does it need to be done because it will stress you out if you don’t? Is someone relying on you? Are you generating this pressure for yourself? Are you worried about it building up? Have you been told to do it? Have you decided to do it? Is there a quicker way? Just some questions to maybe consider.

I am a LOT more honest now than I used to be about how I am finding the workload. I used to carry it all on my back like a sack of rocks and hope I didn’t come down with ANOTHER cold because my immune system and spirit was down due to the sheer weight of it all! Now, EVEN IF someone has asked me to do something, EVEN IF there’s a deadline, EVEN IF someone is relying on me, if I feel like it’s a step too far or my teaching will suffer or another priority will suffer that is more important, I tell someone and I can’t recommend that enough. Being open with how you’re coping and feeling is paramount, I think, for happiness within this profession. Teaching is an emotional and unpredictable gig and so some days are going to feel as light as a feather and others as heavy as that bag of rocks I mentioned earlier. Admitting you need a bit of support isn’t a bad thing and it shouldn’t cast a shadow over your reputation if you’re worried about what people might think, it should just be a

reminder that you’re human and there WILL be times you need some support. Whether it be a deadline extension, someone to support you with completing a task, someone to bounce ideas off, someone to take the task off your hands entirely, support is there. I am so lucky in that I have always felt supported at my school, from day one which is why I am still here 11 years later. I have a brilliant relationship with my Line Manager who is an incredible leader and person who I have the utmost respect for, but I know that this isn’t the case for everyone – I know that some people are currently working in a place that doesn’t feel like that. If that’s your situation, it doesn’t mean you just have to suck it up then and crack on with your rock bag slung on your back, destined to shoulder your struggles alone – you perhaps just need to reach out further. It may be a colleague in the school is feeling a similar way and you can connect with them for support. It might be that you go to a member of the senior leadership team for advice. It might be that you reach out to a teacher in another school or even reach out to me on Instagram – the point is, there will always be someone in this teaching community who wants to help, you aren’t alone in this.

And I think that this plays a massive part in the balance I have created – the acknowledgement that some weeks I CAN do it all and others I CANNOT – being open about that and seeking support where I need it helps me to remain positive and not feel like I am constantly drowning in a sea of things that NEED to be done. What’s the worst that can happen? You make the decision to have a weekend off and you have still got that marking to do the following week. You mark it the following week feeling refreshed and well rested and therefore less resentful of the workload and time it will take to complete as it wasn’t INSTEAD of doing bath time with your son, or having a lie in, or going for that long overdue catch up with your friends. Being a good teacher isn’t defined by how many things you can tick off your to do list each and every week until you retire. Know that. Read it again. Challenge yourself to just decide to have a weekend off or at least reduce the work you do over the weekend and see what the consequences are, experience them – was it worth it? How can you restructure your work week to allow for that balance? Perhaps it’s committing to leaving on the bell once or twice a week. Maybe it’s doing a bit of work on a Friday night and then downing tools completely until Monday. Maybe it’s having one late night a week and that’s it. Play around with it and keep a log of how it feels so you can keep adjusting until you find that balance that works for you.

The final thing I will leave you with is something that Charlie from Forge said to me on a recent podcast when we were discussing healthy habits and it’s about flexibility. I think it’s all well and good crafting a detailed schedule for workload and work/life balance, but what about when the job throws you a curve ball, which it inevitably will? I think there’s a real tendency in our profession for us to use almost everything as another stick to beat ourselves with – I wasn’t able to complete my to do list, I haven’t stuck to my schedule for the week, I didn’t email that person back before I left because I got caught up with something else etc. It’s about being flexible with yourself and learning to adjust without attaching any unnecessary negative emotion to it. I wasn’t able to mark those books this week doesn’t make you a bad teacher. Say it with me! IT doesn’t mean anything OTHER THAN you’re possibly struggling with the workload and might need a bit of support, or that you’re tired and so you need to switch off for the day and try again tomorrow. Make a plan but be prepared to deviate and not berate yourself for doing so.

Remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day – achieving the ideal work/life balance won’t happen straight away and won’t be the same week in week out. Be patient, try different approaches to see what works for you and prepare to be flexible.

Speak soon,

Jodi x