You are working too hard

When I first started teaching about 20 years ago, a department chairperson who observed my teaching said she liked my style and methods but felt I was working too hard.  I didn’t quite know how to take that.  I thought working hard was the point.  When she said it

again after another observation, I told her I didn’t know what that meant.

She asked if I was exhausted at the end of the school day.  I said practically everyday.

She asked if my stress levels were high.  As a new teacher I naturally said my stress levels were quite high.

She then said both of my answers meant I was probably working too hard.  She said at the end of each day it’s the students who should be exhausted.  That’s because they should be doing most of the thinking and working, not you.  She said my stress levels were naturally high because I, the teacher, wanted things to go perfectly and was too concerned with things I could not control like the natural interuptions, changes in schedules, fire drills, assemblies, etc, etc. that throw curves at teachers all the time.

Does this sound familiar?

Are you more exhausted (physically and mentally) than your players after games and practices?  Are your stress levels higher than the players?  Often coaches say yes to both.  And it’s probably because they are working too hard.

To avoid this, coaches can do some or all of the following:

• Have the players set up all the equipment before, during, and after practices and games.
• Have players work on the field.
• Let catchers and pitchers call their own games.
• Allow runners to go on their own and look for opportunities to do so.
• Allow players to bunt for base hits on their own.
• Make players responsible for their own defensive positioning.
• Hand over all pitching responsibilities to your pitching coach.
• Hand over hitting duties to your hitting coach.

Be honest … are you working too hard?

Tomorrow’s post:  Pinch on passed balls at home plate