If you work in the education industry in any capacity, you know how fulfilling your job can be but also how stressful, time consuming, and all encompassing. Working in education can make it difficult to spend time with family and friends and engage in appropriate self care.
It is one of those careers where you take the work home with you, and just because you’ve left the office or clocked out does not mean you’ve stopped working. But if you love your job in education and don’t intend on going through a career change anytime soon, there are things you can do to help ease your struggle. Here are 3 lifestyle tips for people who work in education.
Take Vacations
Taking days off is important, but sometimes you need more than one or two days to get your head on straight. One of the benefits of working in education is that you do get vacations. Take them even if you don’t plan on going out of town. You work hard all year long, and often well above your pay grade, so take advantage of the benefits that are offered to you whenever you can.
Take the time off to spend with your children, design your living room, do a deep clean, work on art projects, go on hikes, or merely just relax and take care of yourself! It’s up to you what you do with your vacation time – the important thing is that you take it.
Separate Work From Home
When you work in education, you can easily become very close to your students and their families as well as your peers/colleagues. When this happens, it is common to fall into a pattern where you spend more time than is required at work, and all of your friends are people you work with or among.
This can be problematic in many ways, so it’s imperative that you always try to set boundaries and keep a clear separation between work and home. For example, inviting students over to your home in your time off is not something you want to do if you are trying to make this separation.
Be A Trailblazer
In education, there are going to be many rules for you to follow. You will have to adhere to your school district’s regulations about what you should and should not teach, as well as undergo school leadership training. While you should always follow these rules, you should also try to be a trailblazer whenever possible and think outside the box to help your children learn. This may be just what your students need to thrive and you might end up being that one educator they will remember for the rest of their lives.
Working in education isn’t always easy, but in most cases people describe it as being well worth the challenges it may present. Use these easy lifestyle tips if you ever feel like you’re struggling!