Hi, I’m Brianne Beebe, your favorite teacher productivity mentor!
One common misconception about productivity is that it’s a fixed trait you’re born with. In fact, anyone can be a productive teacher. It just takes some focused work.
My expectation for my fourth year of teaching was to finally have it all together. To finally be able to leave school at the end of the day, and not think about it again until I returned the next morning. I had three years of experience under my belt after all. What I wasn’t expecting was burnout.
As a newlywed, I was so excited to start planning a family with my husband. Instead, I continued to arrive at school early to work, stay late after school because I wasn’t finished working, and then come home and continue to work. This wasn’t supposed to still be happening. Tearfully, I told my husband that we would never be able to have children of our own. My teaching job just wouldn’t allow for it.
There were lessons to plan every day for three different courses. And there were stacks upon stacks of assessments to grade. There was record-keeping, and tutoring, and grades due, and all the teacher things. It was time to accept that I could be a teacher or I could be a mom, but not both.
This revelation, combined with unsustainable working hours and the other hardships of teaching, led me to complete burnout. I had it. I was beyond miserable, and ready to quit teaching. So, I started looking into other jobs I could do instead with a math degree. It turned out that those jobs either necessitated a long commute or a move, and I was not a fan of either option.
And yet, I had the rest of the school year to get through.
What else could I do? Working around the clock was making me miserable. Little by little, I started finding ways to make the most of my time during the school day. I started using to-do lists effectively. I started prioritizing my tasks, and avoiding my distractions. Eventually, I discovered how to batch my grading and lesson plans.
These little changes created big results. By the end of the following school year, I was loving teaching more than ever. When I went home, I had time for myself. I even had time for hobbies.
Fast-forward to now, and I am blessed with a family that includes two beautiful children. With time to spare, I am also a business owner. Now I help other teachers master their productivity at school so they can lead a fulfilling life in and out the classroom too. And, I am still a full-time high school math teacher, excited to work with my students every day.
Are you ready to build freedom back into your schedule? Click here to get started with the Ultimate Secondary Classroom Systems Checklist!
If you want to know more about me, check out the video below.
(Somehow, I managed to leave out my love for 90s Alternative Rock.)
I also documented the how and why about my decision to become a teacher. Check out the video below.
