So Many Hats…

After my first year of teaching, I was out interviewing for a new position at a new school.  I was nervous, but full of excitement.  My first year of teaching pre-k was so fun and fulfilling, so I was ready for whatever was coming my way. 

During the interview, the principal told me that “most staff members in the building wear many hats” and asked if I was prepared to have more than one role.  That was the first time I had ever really heard the phrase “wear many hats”. But like any new eager teacher, I immediately said that I was ok with it.  I didn’t mind doing the extra work.  I also didn’t want to seem like I wasn’t up for the challenge or not the best candidate for the job.  I ended up getting the job, and soon I was the after-school coordinator.  This was the first time I accepted responsibilities beyond my teacher duties.  It wasn’t overwhelming, and I was getting paid, but it’s not always that easy.

Later in my career, I would find that sometimes administrators will continue to throw many more hats at you, not really understanding how much pressure they are putting on. Most of the time we accept them and wear them proudly, no matter how stressful having so many responsibilities may be.  We feel flattered and honored that our hard work has finally been recognized, not realizing that we might be causing more harm than good.  At one point, I was the lead teacher for my team, a teacher leader for the network, a member of the instructional leadership team, a member of the culture and climate team, an after-school tutor, part of a technology team, and a teacher leader for the school.  This was all in addition to my normal teacher duties.  So. Many. Hats!  A lot of things fell on me at one time and trying to live up to all of those expectations was tough and tiring.  I was at school a lot, coming home late in the evenings, and missing time with family, especially my own children.

What should I have done?  In hindsight, it’s easy to say that I should have let some things go, taken off a couple of hats, hell, maybe a few hats, but easier said than done.  I didn’t want to disappoint and I was making extra money.  I still struggle with this.  I accept roles, even though it’s a lot to deal with.  Part of me knows good and well that I should just say no, but the teacher in me just wants to help, and the extra money doesn’t hurt.  But although I have that innate need to help, I have realized that I do need to learn to take some of those hats off.  If I don’t, I’ll continue to be exhausted, overworked, stressed, cranky, complaining all the time, and most importantly, missing time with my family.  I still have some of those leadership roles, but I have learned to let administrators know when things are becoming too much, and sometimes they listen and are ok with me stepping back.  Others times it’s not like that, but that’s a whole other blog post.    

On the road to being a better you and a better teacher, we have to know when enough is enough.  When to say no when we feel pressured to say yes or agree to new roles.  You don’t have to be the coach or tutor or team member or teacher leader if you don’t want to.  So, if you find yourself wearing too many hats and you start to sweat, it’s ok to take some of those hats off.  It doesn’t make you any less helpful or unwilling to be a team player.  It just means that you value your time and energy. You also understand that what will make you a better you is knowing that you control how you will spend that time and energy, not your administrator.  Don’t feel bad, don’t feel guilty, do you boo boo! 😊