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The beginning of the school year is always a whirlwind. The bubbling excitement to welcome students back. The nerves of the unknown. The hope that this school year will be incredible and fulfilling.
Amidst all the excitement and preparations of the new school year, you must remember one thing: maintain solid boundaries. When the new year begins, I find my boundaries slowly slipping away. I keep checking my phone and email. I open my laptop after dinner. I neglect to spend the time I should with my loved ones.
Because of the boundary slippage, I become cranky, stressed, and anxious – three things that I work very hard to keep at bay. But unfortunately, like droplets of food coloring in crystal clear water, those feelings begin permeating my home life.
This past week, my husband broached this topic with me, “I’ve been meaning to talk to you about something.”
“What’s up?” I questioned over the phone as I bolted from school to grab a mid-day coffee and a much-needed caffeine boost.
“I noticed you seem a little stressed.”
“Well, these past few days have been a bit stressful preparing for opening week, but other than that I’m fine.” I was trying to move on from the topic as quickly as possible.
“It’s been longer than that….” And he was absolutely right. My stress levels which were at a low most of the summer started to amp back up as summer lulled on and we entered August, or the longest Sunday night ever. Numerous things outside my control came together simultaneously, and I was in scramble mode. And not scramble eggs mode, although that’s sometimes how my brain felt. 🥚
Mental health is critical to overall well-being, and maintaining boundaries between work and life plays a key role in protecting your mental health.
I don’t know anyone who functions optimally in scramble mode. While I was able to accomplish everything, it impacted my well-being which was apparent to my husband and probably my kids as well.
In this week’s post, I’ll explain why maintaining boundaries is essential for well-being and success. I’ll then provide some pointers on how to maintain and keep solid boundaries which will be important to remember not only at the beginning of the school year, but as we progress throughout this year.
Work-Life Balance and the Importance of Boundaries
Ever since COVID, I feel like people have been stressing the importance of boundaries. During this time, there were no boundaries. As an administrator, sometimes I would get a 7:00 pm text exhorting that we needed to begin contact tracing. It was the absolute worst. I felt like my work life was my home life and having two young children at the time, it was debilitating.
Back in March, I explored self-care and what educators can do to ensure they are not overstretching themselves. One of these points was about creating some boundaries so that you do not burn out. But I am human and have slowly been drawn back into allowing the lines of work and home to be blurred.
Teachers frequently work well beyond school hours with grading, lesson planning, and extracurricular commitments. While this dedication is commendable, maintaining clear boundaries can help prevent burnout, protect your mental health, and even lead to long-term job satisfaction.
Preventing Burnout
Teaching is a highly demanding profession that requires emotional resilience, patience, and innovation. Without proper boundaries, the relentless demands of the job can lead to burnout, a state of chronic physical and emotional exhaustion. I recall being a teacher and feeling like I was in this constant rat race to improve and get everything done. I felt like I would never catch up.
Research shows that burnout among educators is a significant issue. According to a study by Skaalvik and Skaalvik (2017), burnout is often caused by factors such as high workload, time pressure, and emotional demands. By setting clear boundaries, teachers can allocate time for R & R, reducing the risk of burnout and ensuring they remain effective and engaged in their roles.
Protecting Mental Health
Mental health is critical to overall well-being, and maintaining boundaries between work and life plays a key role in protecting your mental health. Constantly being "on" and available for work-related tasks can lead to increased stress and anxiety. This is what my husband was picking up on when he broached the topic with me. I was “on” all the time, whipping out my laptop and preparing for opening week when I should have been hanging with the family.
The American Psychological Association (APA) highlights that chronic workplace stress can contribute to serious mental health issues, including depression and anxiety (APA, 2019). For educators, who are often deeply invested in their students’ success, you must recognize the signs of stress and take proactive steps to manage it.
If you don’t do this, then the chances of you staying in education go down significantly.
There are the contracted hours… and then there are the hours that teachers actually work.
Enhancing Job Satisfaction and Longevity
Maintaining work-life balance is not just about avoiding negative outcomes; it's also about enhancing positive ones, like job satisfaction and career longevity. Educators who successfully manage their time and energy are more likely to feel fulfilled in their roles and sustain their careers over the long term.
A blog post from Edutopia emphasizes the importance of self-care for educators, noting that teachers who prioritize their well-being are more effective in the classroom and more likely to stay in the profession (Gonser, 2024). By establishing clear boundaries, teachers can enjoy their personal lives, pursue hobbies, and spend time with loved ones, all of which contribute to a more balanced and satisfying career and an overall better life.
4 Practical Strategies for Setting Boundaries
Things seem pretty clear about why we need to maintain boundaries, right? But the how is the part that most struggle with… I know I do at least. So after doing some reflection and research (my other R & R), I solidified things into 4 strategies to help you keep your boundaries and lead a happier work and home life:
1. Set specific work hours
There are the contracted hours… and then there are the hours that teachers actually work. As a former English teacher, I recall planning and grading throughout the day at any free moment (including my lunch) and then having that bleed right into my time at home – an extra 1-2 hours at night. It was just my husband and I at the time, so the impact on my home life wasn’t quite what it is today with three kids under 6.
Conservatively, I was working 9-10 hours every day. And I was on all the time. Knowing this, I explained to my new teachers a few weeks ago the importance of maintaining work-life balance. I point-blank told them that some people pride themselves in being the first one in and the last one to go home. I explained this is not sustainable for any individual and that I need them to take care of themselves and establish boundaries.
Setting a clear end to the workday, whether that's by setting a specific time to leave school or by designating certain hours for non-work activities at home is key. Additionally, educators can benefit from creating physical and mental separations between work and home life.
This could involve having a designated workspace that you leave when the workday is done or practicing mindfulness techniques to transition out of "work mode" at the end of the day. These practices help reinforce the boundary between work and personal life, ensuring that both areas receive the attention they deserve.
If you feel like you need to do work at home, put a time limit to it, and literally have a timer to keep you focused. The Pomodoro technique is one strategy that can help maintain boundaries and improve efficiency.
2. Remove email from your phone
Along with the boundaries, I highly recommend removing email from your phone. This will help you keep those clear boundaries. Unless you need to access your email because you are an administrator, there is no need for you to have email on your phone. Open your work device and check your email if you must.
Having it so easily accessible can be too tempting, especially if you see those little numbers next to your email icon. 📨
As I enter the new school year, I’m hoping to keep the emphasis on self-care for myself and my staff.
3. Prioritize joyful activities
Like I suggested in the first point, if you can end your day with a joyful activity that helps you recenter yourself, that can be one way to establish and maintain those boundaries. What brings us joy could be the little things like exercising, reading to our children, taking a walk, or preparing a delicious meal.
Whatever brings you joy, use that to detach yourself from the stress of the day and to find meaning outside of the classroom.
4. Learn to say no
Saying, “no,” is super hard for me as I am a natural people-pleaser. I am also eager to work. I never want to make it seem like I am not a team player. Judgment can be a scary thing especially if we are saying “no” to a superior. It's all about how you communicate your no and your boundaries.
Setting realistic expectations for yourself and learning to say no is imperative. This might mean saying no to additional responsibilities that exceed your capacity, such as leading multiple after-school clubs or taking on too many committee roles.
Any leader would much rather you focus on one or two activities than be involved in everything. This is not healthy, sustainable, or equitable.
One Last Thought
I find it particularly hard to maintain boundaries because I feel like everyone depends on me. I need to respond to that text, which in all honesty, is not an emergency. I need to get back to someone before the 24-hour mark (even within a few hours) so I look like I am amazing and on top of everything. This need to please is deeply rooted in me. But if I keep doing this, it will destroy me and the connections I have with my family.
As I enter the new school year, I’m hoping to keep the emphasis on self-care for myself and my staff. If you remember anything from this article, remember this:
You are replaceable at work. You are not replaceable at home.
References
American Psychological Association. (2019). “Work stress and health.” Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/topics/stress/
Gonser, S. (2024, August 21). How new teachers can set healthy emotional boundaries with students. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/setting-healthy-emotional-boundaries-new-teachers
Skaalvik, E. M., & Skaalvik, S. (2017). “Teacher stress and teacher self-efficacy as predictors of engagement, emotional exhaustion, and motivation to leave the teaching profession.” Creative Education, 8(12), 1864-1881.
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