Busyness...

How many of you set new school year goals? I have too many to count, but the personal one that I have been struggling with already on the 4th day of school is to "be less busy." I know that sounds ridiculous, but I mean it. We spend so much of our lives being "SO BUSY" and I really do not think that is necessary. Yes. You heard it right. I do not think it is necessary, even in a fast-paced school environment, to be busy all of the time! Being too busy is stealing our ability to connect, to reflect and to breathe - all of THE most important things we do in a school.

What we often forget is that our students notice us. They notice all the little, and big, things that we do every day. I like to say that "every day is a job shadow" for our students. They are watching how teachers go about their work. And these moments with each student matter. Every single one of them matters. I love this article (below) that said it best when it stated, "There is a whole eternity present inside each of these moments, these breaths, in which we are truly present. And there is a thief that robs the grace inside these moments. That thief is scatteredness, busyness." Here is where that comes from: The Thief of Intimacy .

I took a step back to think about whether or not my busyness was robbing me of moments with my students and the answer was a resounding YES! That means I have work to do, and it is so possible. My goal is broken down into things like this:

1. Walk slower in the halls - you don't need to practically run everywhere!
2. Make sure your body language doesn't scream "I'm busy!"
3. Smile more (I have a case of the RBF - look it up ;))
4. Keep your desk clear and neat so the "scatteredness" isn't shining through
5. Breathe. Take more deep breaths to reset your brain.
6. Spend less time on emails/computer work, it can wait.
7. Answer the question "How's it going?" with positive remarks about the day - Never, never say things like "Oh, it's going." or "I'm busy!"

To name a few. :)

How are you going to cherish the important moments with your students this year? What's your strategy to be less busy? I'll take all the advice I can get! Remember, connecting, reflecting and breathing - that is the real work. The important work.