As a teacher, it is easy to find yourself in a state of being pretty negative at school. Not necessarily with the students, but with other teachers and staff in the building. The cycle of negative talk-particularly negative teacher self-talk- is one that can consume school buildings in various spots, in entire hallways or sections, and in entire buildings. It manifests into people not wanting to come to work. Think about it like the culture and climate of your brain. The thoughts that we are thinking when we wake up, the ideas that cross our minds throughout the day while we are making millions of decisions, and the contemplations that we feel driving home are all indicators of who we are as people and where we are at in terms of self-care and belief about our work. Simply, we are our thoughts. This post is all about the connection our thoughts have to our actions and bodies. If we can talk about negative teacher self-talk in a way that helps combat fatigue and negativity in the workplace, we have a shot at changing our point of view. First, recognize the signs of negative teacher self-talk in yourself and in others:
Significantly reduced patience with classroom management (Quick to snap)
Increased levels of stress and anxiety
Trouble sleeping or waking up with a 3 am a to-do list
Taking work home to your significant other or family in a counter-productive way or bottling up completely about the issues at work to appear like you are fine
Lack of creativity or energy in lesson planning or delivery
Not wanting to get up to go to work for repeated days in a row