The Lies We Tell Ourselves as Educators

Girl, Wash Your Face!

Over the summer, I listened  to a book by Rachel Hollis called: Girl, Wash Your Face. It's such a great book! If you are a guy and you are reading this, just pass the recommendation on to your wife, mom, sister, or girl friend. :) As I was listening, it got me thinking of how this relates to us as educators. We wear a lot of hats! Which means, the lies that run through our heads causing doubt and burn out, are very real.  Rachel mentions the lies we tell ourselves through negative self-talk, then touches on how to get out of that mind trap.  

The Lies...

Some of the lies she mentions in the book really go hand-in-hand with our lives as educators.

• "Something Else Will Make You Happy" ... this is hard, I'll never be happy doing this.  
• "I'll Start Tomorrow"  ... that's a lot of work, I just can't ... today. 
• "I'm Not Good Enough" ... I don't know enough, I'm not experienced enough, etc. 
• "I'm Better Than You" ... my class/school runs like a well oiled machine, no need to change.
• "No Is the Final Answer" ... I tried something big, but got shot down, so I guess that's it.
• "I Should Be Further Along by Now" ... those big plans I had,  passed me by somehow.
• "I'm a Terrible Writer" ...  I want to write a book/start a blog, but I'm not a writer.
• "I'll Never Get Past This" ... I messed up, I may as well quit while I'm ahead. 
• "There's Only One Right Way to Be" ... If I was like Mrs. Jones, I'd be the perfect teacher.

You may not have all these thoughts running through your head, but I'm sure at least one strikes a cord with you. 
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My Life Long Lie...

One more I'd like to add is very personal, and I hesitate to even mention it, but I can't be the only one that feels this way sometimes. It stems from growing up with a lot of negative comments from my dad because of how I was as a student . Really, I didn't put ANY effort into my educational experiences between 3rd grade and my senior year of high school.  One day, I'll write a book to get into that full story.  

• "I'm Not Smart Enough"

Now that I'm 47 years old and have been an educator for 23 years, it's not something I tell myself as much as I used to, but the phrase does try to rear its ugly head when I'm starting a new endeavour or stepping out of my comfort zone.   

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Rewriting Those Lies! 

I wouldn't do Rachel's witty humor justice by summarizing them, so check out the book if you want to hear her thoughts on rewriting those lies.  I have been gathering some quotes and resources to keep that negative self-talk at bay and focus on what really matters. I hope you find them helpful too!   Check out our conversation on Twitter as well. 
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Blog Posts: 
14 Confidence Quotes to Help You Beat Self-Doubt and Achieve Your Goals

Planning Resources: 
Cultivate What Matters #Powersheets Goal Planner - walks you through a VERY in depth reflection process to get to the bottom of your goals based on what matters most to you right now.  Powersheets start at the beginning of the year, but there are other great planners available year round. 
Passion Planner - a journal that has a unique reflection process, including space after each month to reflect on how things are going and what you might want to change for the next month. 
DBCInc. Journal #JournalLAP - a journal filled with inspirational quotes from your favorite DBCInc. books to help you reflect through out the year. 

Books: 
I find a lot of books to be inspirational, but here are my top 2 that I refer to often as an educator! 

 1. Tara Martin's Be Real "In Be REAL, BookSnaps creator, Tara Martin, encourages you to share your unique talents and passions as an educator. Through her personal and engaging stories, you’ll learn the power of being true to yourself and find the courage to “cannonball” into the adventures life offers." - It's a wonderful book that I plan on reading again over the summer to get my head in the right place before starting a new school year in a new position.  
​Get your copy here! 

2. Dan Tricarico's The Zen Teacher "In The Zen Teacher, educator, blogger, and speaker Dan Tricarico provides practical, easy-to-use techniques to help teachers slow down and create a sense of focus, simplicity, and tranquility in the classroom - and in life. As a teacher, you have incredible power to influence, even improve, the future..." 
​Get your copy here! 

I could add more, but I think that's a good place to stop and share more later. This subject is more than one blog post for sure! 
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Twitter conversations on the topic...

@msrachelhollis's book, "Girl, Wash Your Face" got me thinking... what lies do we tell ourselves as educators? What dialogue runs through your head that keeps you from trying new things or staying in EDU?#REALedu #leadlap @burgess_shelley @TaraMartinEDU @BethHouf @ShakeUpLearning

— ᑭᗩᗰ ᕼᑌᗷᒪᗴᖇ (@specialtechie) May 17, 2020

​You can also check out this Wakelet collection from our #pd4uandme chat on 1/30/2021 to hear from some of our educator friends on the lies that they have to over come just like you.  Then come back soon for more on this topic. I've found myself having this conversation with educators a lot recently because of our current pandemic situation and it really makes me want to help!
​In the meantime, please take care of yourselves! ~Pam

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