Resilience

Developing inner strength is important to achieving our long-term goals. Grit – the perseverance that keeps us going – is a high predictor of success. According to Prof Angela Duckworth of the University of Pennsylvania and author of the book, “Grit: the Power of Passion and Perseverance” there are four things that lead to the development of grit. Pursue what interests you It’s hard to stick with something over the long haul if you don’t care. The first step to grittiness is finding something that deeply interests you. Practice, practice, practice Hard work develops skill and we are more likely to stick with things we’re good at. Scientists highlight the importance of what they call “deliberate practice”. With persistent, focused…

Working in schools can be very rewarding and very demanding too! There are a number of reasons why working in schools can be stressful. Working in schools is far more complicated than work in many other industries. Staff in schools face unique challenges: Much of the day is already scheduled. There is very limited leeway in altering a class schedule, so teachers must work very efficiently with the very limited time that is flexible. Schools are people organisations. We deal with the myriad of personality types, social issues and stressors that reflect the broader community – the good, the bad and the ugly. We deal with emotive issues that surround one of the most important aspect of anyone’s life -…

I am petrified of blood tests. You just say those two horrific words and I feel sick instantly. Ew, ew, ew, no thank you. With this kind of thinking, it is unlikely I will change my behaviour and have a blood test. That’s not likely to happen! But what happens when I have to go and get one? I’m not going to all of a sudden find it an easy thing to do and having those negative thoughts about it just makes it even harder. So, before I can change my behaviour, I first must change my thinking. Blood tests are helpful. Blood tests are necessary. These are the type of thoughts I can use to replace the old ones.…

At times we can try to be all things, to all people. However, this can be to the detriment of our own well-being. The following strategies, inspired by author Kelly Exeter, are intended to help you slow down and bring some calmness to your life whenever you are feeling at risk of becoming over-whelmed. Reduce the Number of Decisions You Need to Make Decision making is incredibly tiring. Staff in schools make hundreds, if not thousands of decisions each day. The pure volume of decisions that we make leads to thinking fatigue. Establishing routines and pre-planning are great strategies for reducing the number of decisions we have to make each day (or at least reducing the number of decisions that…

During my career, the status of the teaching profession has declined. A generation or two ago I believe that a number of parents were more supportive of teachers. In times gone by, when issues arose parents were more likely to back and support teachers than immediately jump to the defense of their children and ‘attack’ or question the teacher’s judgement. The cartoon depicting an angry parent questioning a teacher about a student’s grades, that is found in many staffrooms, is an illustration of this shift. There are many factors contributing to this change in status. These include increased stress levels of parents, the competitive nature of an aspirational society and how busy and time poor most people feel. People under…

If you work with people long enough, there will be times when there are misunderstandings and upsets with colleagues. When difficulties continue over time, very significant hurt and distrust are often the result. This is very understandable, of course. I don’t know any perfect people and we are all allowed to be human. But at the same time I am concerned about the cost of holding onto hurt, both for the performance of the team and also for the individuals concerned. On this, the research is clear – holding on to negative emotions over the long term, has a significant detrimental effect on our mental and physical health. As soon as we possibly can, we are better off letting go…

At times we focus too much on the many things that we have NOT done, instead of celebrating the many things that we have achieved. This can especially be the case at the end of the year. At this time of the year it is important to reflect on the MANY things that you HAVE achieved during the year. Think back on the key events that happened each term. Remember the school events and trips that have been successfully undertaken, the parental concerns that have been resolved, the crises that have been managed, the many initiatives undertaken and especially the progress that students have made. This progress is easy to see in early childhood years where students emerge as readers…