How Can I Achieve a Work-Life Balance in my Teaching Career?

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​Work-life balance as a teacher may seem impossible but learning to manage your time effectively and shift your mindset slightly could make all the difference.

Endlessly working at home after long days teaching at school, whilst juggling family and life commitments is a sure-fire way to burn out and resent your career in teaching.

Catching ten minutes here and there to plan a PowerPoint presentation or mark thirty school books is never going to be an achievable goal.

​So what steps can you take to achieve a work-life balance as a teacher? Read our top 10 work life balance tips for teachers now to find out! 

​Read on and follow our ten tips to help you to master your work-life balance in teaching. 

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​The Top 10 Tips to Achieving a Work-Life Balance in Teaching

Put Yourself First
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​Tip 1 – Make a Priority List
Your priorities should not start and end solely with your career in education and the expectations of the headmaster, fellow colleagues, your pupils and the demands of their parents. You also have your partner, your children, your family and your pastime activities to prioritise too.

• Ask yourself what the most important things in your life are and then ensure that you make time for them in your life before you prioritise work over everything else.

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​Tip 2 – Have Some ‘Me’ Time
A teacher shouldn’t forget that they are still an individual outside of school. Being a teacher is all about leading by example, but sometimes it can become overwhelming and you need to let go and be your true self. Never forget the enjoyment you experienced before you became a teacher.

• Give yourself a break and have an evening with old friends, catching up on what they are doing and talking about old times. Taking yourself out of the teaching world for just a few hours will help you to gain perspective on your life.

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Tip 3 – Learn to Say No
A teacher who is over-worked is likely to feel unbalanced and this is where the stresses of the profession can occur. Teachers who don’t feel guilty about saying no (politely of course!) will be the ones who are more likely to feel most settled and in control of their teaching career.

• Although it is important to co-operate and be helpful, if you are already overloaded with work then there is every reason to decline a request which would only cause stress in the long run.

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Get Perspective
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Tip 4 – Remember: Teaching is Work
We are not saying that you shouldn’t enjoy your career in teaching, but you must always remember that it is a job and not your life. You are paid to educate school children; you are not paid to give your life to your career.

• There will always be many times where you are working past midnight trying to get work finished, but there should also be equal times where you are out past midnight enjoying yourself, or spending quality time with your loved ones. Remember that you have more priorities than just being a teacher.

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Tip 5 – Remember Your Choices
In life we all make choices and you made the choice to become a teacher. You knew it wasn’t going to be easy, you knew it would require long hours and that you wouldn’t be able to leave your work at school. But you made that choice. You should always re-evaluate why you wanted to become a teacher. Often you do still want to be a teacher, but it is the stress which you find hard to cope with.

• In tough times you must always remember that it is your choice to be a teacher and shifting your focus in this way can help you to gain control of a situation. Putting yourself in charge of your decisions can help you to leave behind the ‘victim mentality’ which may creep in.

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Control Your Emotions
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Tip 6 – Keep it Positive!
Shift your mindset and you will feel more in control of your situations. Don’t focus on all the work that you must finish and resent the opportunities you are missing out on. Rather know what you need to get done and set a time where you will close everything down and get on with your life outside of teaching.

• Setting yourself these time limits will not only help you to organise what is important and what can wait but will also make you happier and more in control knowing that you didn’t let the situation get on top of you.

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​Tip 7 – Only Think About Now
Stress can often raise its ugly head when we start to think about the future. When you are snowed under with work it can be overwhelming and you can often struggle to see a way out of the situation. Take every moment at a time and you will feel a sense of success as you plough through your workload.

• Thinking of the 40 years you have left before you can retire is the definition of wishing your life away. Focus on the here and now and let the future come in its own time.

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Tip 8 - It’s Good to Talk
Schools are full of teachers just like you. Teaching is stressful and demanding for everyone at times, so you should know that you are not alone in feeling these emotions. Talk to a fellow teacher whom you trust and open up about how you are feeling.

• Seek advice from teachers who have been in the profession for numerous years. The teachers who are in it for the long run are probably the ones with the soundest advice.

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Cut Yourself Some Slack
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Tip 9 – Never Waste Your Time Dwelling on the Negatives
Often the long-serving teachers are the ones who acknowledge criticism in positive terms. Criticism may seem like a disapproval of your teaching skills, but what if you saw it as an opportunity to develop and to be an even better teacher!

• A teacher should only want the best for their students, and if criticism is what is required to ensure that you are giving them the best then surely criticism isn’t all that bad. Criticism can push you to be better, if you retain your self-confidence and resilience you can only hope to improve.

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Tip 10 – Don’t Try to be Perfect
When you are constantly pushed for time you must let go of any ideals that you are going to be perfect. It is more important that you can deliver a well-structured lesson to your pupils than the fact that your wall displays are not as aesthetically pleasing as you had hoped. You must understand that you can’t do everything if you try to do it perfectly. Teachers who strive for perfection will feel the most frustration when they fail to achieve the unachievable time and time again.

• Remember that it is more important to motivate than to be perfect. Your students will learn more if you retain your enthusiasm rather than ending up as a stressed-out frustrated teacher at the end of their tether.

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