How I Give My Soul Away Everyday

Everyday I show up to work with a sense of optimism and hope. When I leave to go home, I am drained. I’m physically tired, mentally worn out, and emotionally exhausted. As the days and weeks go by, I can feel myself losing momentum. Keeping myself motivated is my daily challenge.

I am a teacher, and I’m proud of it. I do hard work that needs to be done. Our society needs teachers to equip people with the necessary skills to live productive lives. In order for the U.S. economy to improve, more people need to have higher skills to thrive in an evolving global climate. 

It's a career filled with complicated politics and complex frustrations. I’ve always genuinely believed that all of my students are inherently good, and that will not change. My students are people, and many of them have issues: emotional issues, low self confidence and/or self esteem, and have academic skills well below their grade level.  For these students, they don’t see their futures as optimistic; working to change this is tiring.

Caring is tiring. The more I care, the more tired I get. The more I want my students to succeed, the more effort I put into my lesson plans, execution of the lessons, and the daily interactions with my students. My hope is that at the end of the day, my students leave the classroom better people. Hopefully they learned more skills, information, and how all that relates to the world around them. Maybe they absorbed some of my wisdom (I try my best to be a role model for them). If they did, it would make leaving the work day physically, emotionally, and spiritually drained totally worth it.

Roderick Conwi is an educator who writes about personal and professional development at Nourishment Notes. He has a background in instructional coaching, curriculum development, and educational technology. He is also the author of The Procrastinator's Quick Guide To Getting It Done. To get powerful insights to enhance your day, join his FREE newsletter.