Well it seems that the hectic schedule has finally caught up with me. I feel like I am spreading it so thin that at some point somethings going to get missed. It’s sad really, because all of the things that I am doing I really enjoy. Blogging, tech help, discipline, talking to kids, meetings (yes I enjoy those) and many of the other things that are part of my day. This list doesn’t even include my family.
I don’t want to miss anything, I want to be involved in all of those things and more. I enjoy running around and getting things done, having it be slightly crazy and not boring. But the question is how to hold it together.
What if the thing I miss is really important, what if it is that kid who just needed two more minutes of my time or the teacher who was having a bad day but I couldn’t talk to them or I miss the signs that a fight is going to happen. Hopefully these things won’t happen and I can get a handle on some of what is happening.
This is the first time in my 5 year career as an administrator that I have had this feeling. I am not sure what to do, although I have some ideas. I know that I need to continue to have downtime for my own sanity and for my families sake. I know that I need to refocus on my discipline and make sure that I am supporting the teachers and helping the kids to improve their behavior. After that I am going to need to make some priority adjustments. I hope that I can pull everything together so that I can continue to do the things that I enjoy, however I understand that some of them may have to be shelved.
My main goal is to build up the layer a little more so it is not spread so thin. I need to make sure that I don’t miss something big and that I continue to do my job well.
4 responses so far ↓
1
kwhobbes
// Mar 10, 2007 at 11:23 pm
Brian,
I can relate. I don’t know if there is a sure fire way to avoid missing that one thing. Sometimes, being human, means we can’t catch it all – but my experience is that it all happens for a reason. The key, and this is just my opinion, is that you take whatever it is you are doing and treat it as the most important thing you are doing. If it seems you are doing something, only to get to something else, then don’t do it. Go on to whatever is on your mind. So, the other day, I was suppose to be talking with a student about their actions at recess but I wasn’t “there” – so I sent the him back to the room – went and did what was really on my mind and then went and talked over things with the student. Now, this worked grand because the student had to sit, knowing I was going to talk to him. He was cooperative and we were able to get to a solution pretty quickly. But I know what you mean about missing something. Sometimes I still ask why and what about the student who committed suicide. You’re not all-knowing, all-seeing, all-fixing. Your are Brian who is doing his best. Do what you can, the best you can and then, when you go home, be there. Tomorrow needs to wait. It will get there soon enough! Hope this helps a bit!
2
bsnaxton
// Mar 12, 2007 at 1:10 am
Kelly,
Thanks for the insight. It does help to hear other peoples opinions adn how they handle things. I am just going to continue to take it one day at a time and do things to the best of my ability.
Brian
3
Snacks and Staff Meetings » Pulling teeth
// Mar 16, 2007 at 12:37 am
[...] 1. Not enough time. As I wrote in “spreading it thin” it just seems that right now there is not enough time to go around 2. Not enough experience: Maybe they don’t understand the process. I could try to fix that 3. They are not reading the posts: Maybe they just don’t care. I need better posts. 4. Not into “blogging”. It takes a while to get into the whole blogging thing. I need to give it more time 5. They feel left out. The name implies Middle School. I need a new name? Yes 6. They just are not into “It”. Thats alright. I will keep trying after all I still have their email [...]
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Mr. Sherman's Blog : Spring has Sprung!
// Mar 25, 2007 at 4:34 pm
[...] It’s a beautiful Sunday afternoon in Chicagoland. The sun is shining, the thermometer has hit 80 degrees outside, and I think we have finally broken free of our winter doldrums. I have opened the windows, and a warm and wonderful breeze is blowing through my house. The daffodils and tulips are poking through the soft dirt, and I can officially announce that spring has sprung. Although spring break officially began on Friday at 5:00 pm, I am just now (Sunday, 3:00 pm) starting to wind down from a very busy, stressful, and hectic month of March. I was so busy the last few weeks with school and family responsibilities that I was not able to spend much time reading blogs or writing much on my own blog. As I was reading through some of my favorite blogs this afternoon, I noticed a common theme among a number of bloggers – “too busy, too tired, too stressed to write much.” It appears as if I am not the only edublogger out there with 25 hours of stuff to do each 24 hour day. Kimberly Moritz was barely able to keep her head above water this month. She writes:I don’t even have time to write and tell you why I haven’t had time to post. Brian Saxton shared his frustration with being spread so thin that he may be missing important things in his life:This is the first time in my 5 year career as an administrator that I have had this feeling. Kelly Christopherson very poignantly writes about the responses he received from a staff survey on his leadershp:The first thing that came through loud and clear was I have “too many irons in the fire,” to borrow a cliche. Not that I would ever want to use someone else’s stress to make me feel better, but I must admit that I was relieved to read that I was not the only educator who was on overload the last few weeks. But, now it's spring break. I am going to put school work on hold for a few days, and “goof around” with the family. I am going to teach my nine year old daughter how to correctly catch and throw a softball , I am going to kick the soccer ball around with my 12 year old, and I plan on reading a novel instead of something “professional.” Yes, we made it to spring break! I think I am going to grab my iPod and go for a run… Let the vacation begin! Sunday, March 25, 2007 3:25 PM dsherman [...]
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