Morning Motivation for Educators

Leading into the start of this new year, I worked with a number of coaching clients on a 2024 Visioning exercise. The primary purpose of the exercise is to take the typical setting of New Year’s Resolutions — which are little more than intentions, or things we want to do — levels deeper, and turn them into a series of commitments — clear, actionable steps that no outside person or circumstance can prevent. 

Before we jump into goals for the new year, however, I believe it’s critical to spend some time on wrapping up the prior year. Specifically, in two regards:

When we fail to explicitly resolve negative experiences, they continue to burden us. Sometimes acutely, sometime beneath the surface. But in any case, they cause us trouble well beyond the point when they can positively serve us. 

Resolution comes in two forms: fix it or forget it. 

Have a damaged relationship? Mend it or move on. Otherwise, you’ll maintain proximity to something that only serves as a reminder of pain. 

Did you fail in some endeavor? Make a plan to try again or make a choice to let it be. 

Consider: let’s say you have a DVD player set up with your TV, but it’s broken. Every time you’re craving your favorite movie…frustration. It’s broken. Can’t use it. Every time you watch TV, even, and see it sitting there…why do we still have this broken machine taking up space?

Is the clock on the player broken? Well a broken clock is right twice a day, so that’s nice. It’s also wrong 1,438 times a day. Yikes.

Either fix the machine so it can serve you or throw it out so it’s no longer a burden. A strain on your psyche. 

What unresolved issues can you fix or forget today, and what will it do to improve your mental state?

Regretting a few negative encounters with a student? How might you be proactive about patching things up?

Upset by some less-than-helpful feedback you received? Would it be better to follow up and ask for clarification or just put it behind you and move on?

Having a hard time connecting with that one family? Don’t take it personal. Try another tact or perhaps recruit some help. 

In any case, don’t let the problems linger. Take a stand for yourself. Make a choice. And keep on moving. 

Oh and by the way, with that DVD player? Perhaps even if you fix it, you can toss it anyway. We have streaming now, after all. 

Ross Romano is a high-performance career coach working with individuals in all fields, a strategic consultant for companies and nonprofits in K-12 and edtech, and co-founder of the Be Podcast Network and host of the shows The Authority and Sideline Sessions. 

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