In this episode of The Elemental Educator Podcast, host Tyler Comeau is joined by Andrea Perry, an experienced K-12 teacher, life coach, and wellness advocate, to discuss practical ways educators can overcome burnout, reduce stress, and rediscover their joy in and outside the classroom. Learn how to align your work with your core values, set healthy boundaries, and implement small but meaningful changes that make a big difference.
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Timecodes:0:00 - Introduction 0:28 - Meet Andrea Perry: Teacher and Wellness Coach 2:53 - Journey into Education and Burnout Awareness 4:15 - Rediscovering Core Values in Teaching 9:24 - Setting Healthy Boundaries and Saying "Not Right Now" 12:43 - Helping Teachers Overcome Guilt When Prioritizing Self-Care 15:29 - Internal vs. External Burnout: What’s the Difference? 19:47 - Systemic Change vs. Personal Responsibility 23:22 - Practical Time-Management Strategies for Educators 32:18 - Recognizing the Physical Signs of Burnout 35:34 - Habit Stacking for Sustainable Wellness 37:39 - Encouraging Teachers to Take Ownership of Their Well-Being 42:28 - Key Takeaways on Prioritizing Core Values and Self-Care 44:57 - Andrea’s Future Vision: Life as a Family of Four 46:34 - Final Reflections and How to Connect with Andrea
#TeacherBurnout #TeacherWellness #SelfCareForTeachers #LeadershipInEducation #OvercomingBurnout #TeacherSupport #SustainableTeaching #CoreValues #TheElementalEducator #TylerComeau
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
don't give us one more thing to do.
(00:01):
Don't tell me to change.
I am surviving.
And we tell us that the lie that this is working for me right now.
Don't mess with it when it's clearly not.
(00:28):
Hi Alchemists and welcome back to another episode of Elemental Educator.
I'm your host Tyler and if you're joining us for the first time, thank you so very muchfor tuning in and welcome to a place where we redefine leadership and challenge the status
quo.
Be sure to like, follow and subscribe to Elemental Educator on Apple, Spotify, YouTube orwherever you get your podcast from and check out our website, ElementalEducator .com.
(00:48):
Get ready to let the alchemy of education ignite your passion for learning.
Today we're joined by Andrea Perry who is an experienced K -12 classroom teacher.
She holds a Master's of Education in Curriculum and Instruction and is also certified as aLife, Health and Wellness Coach.
Her passion is supporting stressed teachers to overcome burnout, increase their overallhealth and wellbeing, and rekindle their passion and joy.
(01:09):
Andrea, welcome to the Elemental Educator Podcast.
It is a pleasure to have you here today.
Thank you, it's a pleasure to be here.
Absolutely.
I want to just jump right in and learn how did you get to where you are now, Andrea?
Yeah, so I actually was a K through 12 teacher for 12 years.
I taught everything from Spanish language to five -year -olds all the way up to Spanish inhigh school.
(01:33):
Also taught a lot of English at the secondary level.
But when I was a maternity leave, actually, my school post -COVID had a lot of financialissues, had some budget cuts, and my teaching position was cut.
but I wasn't quite ready to be done with education, teaching, supporting teachers yet.
(01:56):
And so it just kind of coincided with being a mom and realizing that going back into theclassroom with the cost of childcare wasn't something that would fit for us.
And as I was brainstorming, like, can I continue in education?
How can I keep supporting teachers that I have this passion for?
It just lined up perfectly with getting a coaching certification.
got certified as a life coach, and it just didn't seem to cover enough of what I wanted tohelp teachers with in this crisis that we have right now, not just in the United States,
(02:24):
but in different parts of the world of burnout.
So I continued on with my health and wellness coaching certification, and I've just foundthat that, along with my teaching experience, has been the perfect combination to support
teachers in this season of my life and continue being part of the world of education.
and through teachers supporting students.
(02:46):
So before you got into that K to 12 teaching experience, what led you to wanting to jumpinto the realm of teaching?
Yeah, good question.
So unlike many teachers who say like they felt this calling from an early age, I didn't somuch.
enjoyed school.
was kind of thinking, I'm gonna be something medical, maybe a veterinarian.
(03:08):
But it was actually career tests that I took that was really showing that I had a strongaptitude for language, for writing, and...
teaching service to others.
So, well, let's give this a try.
And it was when I got to college and I took my first education class, the very first yearwe needed to be in classrooms doing clinical, basically, know, experience in the
(03:30):
classroom.
And I just fell in love with teaching and with kids.
from there, it was just a no -brainer for me.
It's interesting because everybody, when I asked that question, what led you intoeducation, it's always one of two ends.
It's always, you know, I grew up playing teacher as a kid or not at all, wasn't on mymind.
There's no gray area, whereas I hummed and hawed over it and then decided to try it out.
(03:51):
So it's always nice to hear those stories.
Similar to me, I wasn't thinking of becoming a teacher growing up either.
And here we are in the education world.
It's segue so nice to what you're doing now because it's rooted in the same type ofvalues.
And we'll unpack that here because Earth represents those core values and really rootingyourself in those beliefs.
So Andrea, how do you help teachers reconnect with their core values?
(04:15):
Yeah, great question.
Because we don't often think about our values.
We figure at this point of our life as adults, they're set.
We know what we value.
And so we just kind of operate on autopilot.
But our values actually do change over time and in each season of life.
And burnout usually comes when we're living our life out of alignment with those values.
(04:37):
So this is like one of the first things I focus on with clients.
just creating space, first of all, for clients to question, like, what are my values inthis season of life?
Have they changed since I started teaching 10 years ago, five years ago?
And then I also provide some tools to help them start evaluating what their values areright now in this season of their life.
(05:02):
And it's a resource that I love to share to all the listeners as well.
It's a downloadable, very quick.
two page workbook, kind of helping you of figure out like what are my core values?
Because sometimes we say core values, well what's even in that?
So it has a really nice list where you can kind of rate them and figure out what are yourcore values right now?
(05:23):
So then they can start aligning their life in the areas that they see are misaligned.
And that will help start the shift towards overcoming burnout and finding maybe theirpassion again or being reminded of it.
So what core values are you rooted in right now?
Right now it's a great question.
My core values have definitely changed since I started teaching and a lot of that hasrevolved around family.
(05:46):
So I taught in private school many many years and there was a very easy blurring of linesof work -life balance there, especially as a young single teacher.
But as I've moved on in my profession and grown in my life, met and married my husband andnow we have
a little baby girl, you know, my values as a young single teacher who could just pour allof my time, my heart, my soul, you know, into my students, take the extra coaching, go,
(06:16):
you know, weekend trips, sponsors, you know, all that kind of stuff.
Those values that were so important to me at the beginning have shifted to, okay, I have ahusband, I have a little girl at home, these are my values, this is very important too.
and I want to make sure they're prioritized as a high value.
And those weren't part of my life in the early season of it.
(06:37):
So just seeing a shift, it doesn't mean that I value less, you know, the importance of mystudents and the work that I do in the classroom, but there's a shift in mindset of, I
need to make sure that there is space made for those core values because if I'm spendingtoo much time at work or bringing work home and it's cutting into my...
core value of relationship with family, I'm gonna feel pretty burnt out pretty quickly.
(07:03):
So that's kind of been a huge one for me and has shifted my current core values.
So I look at the value of family a little differently here, and I wanna pick your brain onit.
Not that I don't value my family, I should say that, but my core value is love.
Because when I think of it, I have to remove, to find out what my core value truly is, Ihave to strip everything that is external in my life away.
(07:28):
If I removed my family, I remove going to the gym.
I remove all of the externals.
What do I stand for?
And one thing is love, love for myself, love to my family, and that's why they've becomean emphasis and a priority.
Love for my kids, that's why I love teaching, right?
So could you share maybe the difference between why you're stating family over the corevalue of love?
(07:49):
Yeah, definitely.
Good question because you're absolutely right.
It does stem from love and if we broke it down like that I would say mine.
I share that with you as well.
I think it's difficult for many of us to go from the very concrete of family to the morevague idea of emotions like I value love because then we need to break that down further.
(08:10):
Like, okay, well what does that look like in action?
And so it's just a way to kind of make those emotions and those core values like you weretalking about, like love, more tangible.
Because you will definitely see that thread between all of your values.
You know, love of yourself, which should be like, yeah, yeah, for sure.
(08:34):
You know, love of showing yourself love, you know, by making healthy choices.
But that might show up as someone saying, I prioritize my health.
where they always see that underlying layer of, this is actually self -love.
And this is love to others by taking care of myself or whatever it might be.
But you're absolutely right.
You'll find a common thread.
(08:55):
Yeah, thanks for taking it there with me.
And with that, what you've done by saying family and what you do with people you work withis you simplify the process into tangible things that they can instantly relate to, right?
We just talked about love being that big broad category.
So as someone who helps teachers create sustainable careers, what core principles do youemphasize to ensure that they can maintain that, you know, healthy work -life balance and
(09:19):
a professional demand that is just excruciatingly exhausting?
Yeah, it's tough because it's a journey.
It's ongoing.
We never quite reach that destination as we continue to change as humans and ourenvironments around us change.
But I would just definitely say, number one, know your core values well.
Like when you know yourself well is when you're going to feel confident in doing all ofthe other things.
(09:43):
For example, the next one would be setting healthy boundaries.
what that looks like no one can dictate to you like only you can know right
You say that so much nicer than me, by the way.
I call it establishing your non -negotiables.
But you know what, it's the same idea, right?
Because you are, you really are, you're deciding what is worth your yes.
(10:06):
And I like to put it that way too, because we think setting boundaries is always saying noto something.
But so often as teachers, we have a really hard time saying no to things, especially whenit revolves around our students.
And so when you think about, okay, I know my core values,
So I need to make sure that I set boundaries that say yes to my core values.
(10:27):
So if you're saying no to sponsoring that extra club, what are you actually saying yes to?
Are you saying yes to family time, your physical health, your mental health, and theseason of life, whatever it might be?
And sometimes that makes it easier for those of us who struggle saying the no, kind offlipping it to the more positive, like, I'm actually saying yes to something else.
(10:47):
Absolutely.
And with that, just giving yourself grace.
I think this is hard for many of us.
We are so good at.
Guilting ourselves when we do set a boundary, because we worry that.
It's going to hurt this person or we won't be able to serve our students as well, or thistime might take away from this.
(11:08):
So just practicing a lot of grace with ourselves and in that getting support.
Because it's one thing to be your own mind telling yourself it's okay, you don't need tofeel guilty, this is good, but having that positive support, whether from a colleague or a
supportive administrator, a partner, whatever that might be, that can be a support for youas you're trying to stay true to those core principles and help you kind of stay
(11:36):
accountable to yourself.
Absolutely.
And saying no is hard.
And the kind of work around that I always tell people to start with is just say not rightnow.
Right?
Not right now.
You might believe in what you want to do.
That club might sound really cool.
Taking on that extra curricular might be something that you love doing.
Don't say no.
Say not right now.
(11:56):
Not right now because you might come back to it later because like you said, your valuescan shift, your time can shift, your experiences can shift.
Next thing you know, you might find yourself wanting to say yes.
Right?
say no, you can sometimes close that door that you wanna keep a little bit open.
Yeah, absolutely.
I agree with that.
And I always, I help my clients kind of go through a script if they're very havingdifficulty with saying no, like how to say no, kind of leave that door open and just be
(12:22):
really gracious about, thank you for thinking of me, because it's wonderful actually to bethought of, like you would be great in this position, you would do really well at this,
and it makes it even harder for us to say no when we can recognize, like thank you forthinking of me, I appreciate that you thought of me for this role.
Like you said, not right now.
You can maybe revisit it.
Yeah.
(12:43):
Absolutely.
acknowledging that, you know, I understand me saying no is not what you want to hear,right?
They want to hear yes, they want to hear that.
And sometimes it's warranted to say no.
But with that, in your experience, how do you guide teachers to rediscover, you know,we're just talking about saying no, that burnout digging into those core values.
How do they rediscover their joy and fulfillment both inside and outside the classroom?
(13:05):
Yeah, that's a big one.
So it's something that through my experience I've navigated in a messy sort of wayfiguring that out on my own.
So now I've actually created a signature program that helps support teachers in reallytangible steps, practical.
Because as teachers, we don't want to waste time on theory.
We just like, give me something to do right now that's going to make an immediate changefor the positive in my classroom, right?
(13:28):
Like don't make me sit through this long thing that's all theoretical.
I want to know, give me a tool right now that I can use.
So we go like week by week through very specific steps.
can take, and we just start with like identifying the root cause of burnout, because it'sdifferent for every person, right?
And it's usually a combination of a few factors.
But my experience with burnout might be completely different from somebody else who has adifferent life situation.
(13:51):
And then we do talk about core values and
strategies for how to be successful making change.
Because that's a huge thing that I work on as a coach, just as humans, right?
Making change is difficult.
And making change when we're already exhausted and overwhelmed and burned out is tough.
(14:12):
So strategies that make implementing changes stick to make them easy, to make themachievable.
And we work through a lot of mindset blocks.
Because boy, we as teachers have a lot, well as humans, we have a lot of things that wetell ourselves that are not necessarily true that keeps us stuck in this cycle of burnout
(14:38):
from misplaced beliefs about how something works or about our own value, different thingslike that.
So we work through mindset blocks.
That's a huge part of the process.
because if we still believe the same things that are not true, we can't move forward.
So I want to ask here, and I'm going to kind of challenge the status quo around burnouthere.
(15:00):
Now, we talk about burnout and wanting to work with the individual teacher on this is howyou can overcome your burnout.
But I actually look at burnout as more of a system problem.
burnout and a lack of retention of staff, that's usually related to and not just ineducation sectors, but in all organizations and sectors.
You don't have collective efficacy, you don't have alignment and
(15:21):
their personal values there are not aligned with the values of your company or at leastthe values that you're pushing out and actioning.
So could you compare the difference between you know internal burnout versus what I wouldcall external burnout which is more from the system?
Yeah, 100 % because you're right.
There's a lot of stuff out there that contributes to burnout and focusing here oneducation.
(15:44):
I know that there have been places that I have been where it was not setting teachers upfor success in this area.
know, being asked a lot, not feeling you can say no, lots of guilt, you know, talk down ofyou need to do this.
So I definitely understand that external burnout and how that can be really unhealthy, forsure, for sure.
(16:08):
mm -hmm.
And this is really important, right?
In those situations, we tell kids all the time, if something's not working, advocate foryourself and talk about it and stand up for yourself.
And yet here we are in situations saying, if you don't like how things are going, findsomething good to cling onto and it'll make you feel great.
Advocate for yourself.
(16:28):
Have that conversation with your leadership team.
Let them know that there's discomfort because you're not going to grow if you're nothaving that difficult conversation.
Correct, 100%.
And I definitely don't advocate for someone staying within a toxic work environment.
I have been there, and I did not realize I was there because I was a very young teacherand it took a change to a different school environment that really showed me that.
(16:54):
you know, if we think about relationships, we're not saying stay in an abusiverelationship.
We're not saying stay in a toxic environment where you're mistreated.
So yeah, I'm glad you brought that up.
I'm gonna be really clear because there are systemic issues, but then there's very toxicwork environments that can definitely lead to burnout.
then it's okay to advocate for yourself to make a change if you need to.
(17:16):
Unfortunately, I think sometimes we make a change out of the profession.
Instead of this school environment isn't healthy and...
I've tried advocating and change isn't happening.
So I do need to move locations, but maybe not professions, you know?
And so you said, yeah, it's not just like, find your happy place and just cling onto thatand just wrap everything else in a shiny little bubble because that just invalidates our
(17:39):
experience so much.
But I will say that I follow another coach and I think I'll talk about her a little bitlater on too, Jen Rafferty, and she also supports teachers really well.
And she says,
systemic change begins with the individual.
Because really, sometimes I think it's very easy for us as educators to sit in a room withother educators and complain about all the system things that we may not be able to
(18:06):
change.
Yes, we can advocate for ourselves, you know, and we should be advocating for ourselves,starting healthy conversations, being the change.
But what we really have control over, and I think where some of the burnout
comes from, from feeling like we're out of control, is saying the whole problem is outhere and I'm a victim of it.
And instead of saying, this system, there's a lot to work on.
(18:30):
There's a lot of areas for improvement.
And I think we're seeing some improvement in conversations we're having now in theeducation world and in school systems as well.
But to say like, instead of just focusing on that, what can I do here in my...
classroom, in my home, in my person today to be the change, to make the change.
(18:51):
And maybe it's as simple as finding a way to find joy in the work that you once had andother people wondering how you're like that in this environment and spreading that.
Or like, how does that person get to leave?
You know.
contract hours in 30 minutes after and I'm still here for two hours like they might havesomething I want.
(19:16):
So systemic change really does start with the individual but it's not to discount thatthere are bigger issues for sure.
for sure.
And advocating is so important because it brings awareness.
And if you advocate enough, you bring consistency and frequency to the conversation.
And then people start to take it a bit more seriously because they hear the legitimacybehind it.
Now, what you're talking about too is establishing ownership of what you can control,right?
(19:40):
And recognizing that you are not just a victim in this situation, taking the ownership of,okay, this might suck.
What can I control?
What can I take ownership over?
What can I be accountable for?
And make it the best thing you can possibly make it.
Now, this whole conversation, it's so, I'm very passionate about it by the way, and it'sso relevant and it's so, it's so important.
(20:02):
you know, correct me if I'm wrong, the United States, they just declared, right, thatteacher burnout and teacher retention is actually a crisis now in the States.
It got moved up to crisis level.
Correct.
which is crazy status, right?
And that's huge.
they're saying, this is a problem, right?
(20:23):
It's a huge problem.
That means we face a lot of the air element, which is the adversity that comes our waywith it.
And I'm sure this is gonna go where I'm thinking it'll go, but I'll see if we take itthere.
Andrea, can you share some of the most common challenges you've seen teachers face as theydeal with burnout?
and how you guide them to overcome these obstacles.
(20:43):
Sure, definitely.
Yeah, there are many, many challenges.
One is that locus of external, like, don't have control, I'm a victim, and so why try?
Like, I'm just stuck.
You know?
And that's not a good feeling.
But when there are teachers who want to actually address it, you know, and who feel readyto address it, there comes a lot of guilt with burnout.
(21:07):
For example, I hear teachers say that they feel like they're a bad teacher for...
experiencing burnout or they're bad person.
Like it's my fault that I'm burned out because I haven't set healthy boundaries orbecause, you know, it's my fault that I'm burned out because I'm just not doing my best so
I'm still struggling and that's completely untrue.
But it's something that I hear from teachers.
(21:29):
They feel this guilt and then they don't want to address it at all.
Or yeah, they just think there's no way out of burnout so I'm just going to leave theprofession entirely because then it will be better.
which isn't necessarily the answer either, because you can burn out in any profession, ofcourse.
Or they hear, OK, well, I need a better work -life balance, but I don't see how that'sactually practically going to work.
(21:53):
I can barely keep up with all the students, all my responsibilities, being as good teacheras I need to be if I give less time to my work and a little bit more time outside of work
to myself.
You know this myth of if I just work harder, if I just work longer, I'll feel moreprepared and things will get better and my students will perform better.
So these are beliefs that might resonate with many teachers because I know that these aresome that I felt in the past.
(22:20):
And so I work with clients to challenge those beliefs because that's what they are.
A belief is just something that we believe but it's not fact.
And sometimes we tell ourselves things that are not true.
So we kind of figure out like a reality check.
You know, like, well, let's try this.
Let's test it out to see if it's true.
(22:41):
Like, if you actually went home one hour earlier than you normally do, let's try this fora week.
What difference did you notice?
Are your students struggling?
Are they not meeting the standards?
You know, are you feeling frantic?
Are you less prepared?
In general, no.
Usually it's like, I used my time wisely.
(23:02):
And I planned my instruction accordingly and we did some informal assessments and I camefeeling more refreshed because I had time for exercise or to cook a healthy meal or
whatever it is.
But sometimes it really takes experiencing that and testing something out to really feellike I can do that.
I can overcome this challenge of mind block and really make a difference.
(23:24):
it's about optimizing your time.
it's something as simple as when you have unassigned time or a prep or I'm not sure whatthey might call it anywhere else across the world.
Put your phone in a different room and work and see how much you get done.
Because I guarantee you, if you're on a prep right now, listening to this or on your wayto work, think about your last prep.
(23:45):
How many times did you check it?
And that's going to eat away at the minutes that you're putting to on task time.
That's eating away at the time that you could be leaving a little bit earlier after yourschool day or arriving a little bit later before that bell starts because you've done it
during the time you were given to do it, right?
You you think about teacher directed days and professional development days, puttingmeaning to those and actually actually doing the work as as intensely with the high
(24:11):
expectations for yourself for love for yourself so that you don't have to be staying anextra two hours when it's done.
to catch up on it because you spent two hours during your day having conversations, right?
Now, and that's where the guilt can come in.
And burnout can actually tiptoe the opposite end too with perfectionism and wanting to doeverything the exact right way to a T.
(24:35):
Well, I had Dr.
Jody Carrington on here and she says it best, you're not that great.
You're going to make mistakes.
You're going to screw up all of the time.
That's what makes you a human.
You will never reach perfectionism.
and you might plan the absolute perfect lesson and shit's gonna hit the fan and you can'tcontrol it, right?
(24:55):
So with that though, and those two spectrums of perfectionism to guilt, how do you helpteachers navigate these feelings and move toward that healthier mindset that allows for
that self -compassion and growth?
You know, it's so funny because there are probably many perfectionists out there that donot think they're perfectionists.
And these are usually the procrastinators because they have to wait until they can do itperfectly to do it or not do it at all.
(25:21):
So you might be a perfectionist without knowing it, but it really, yeah, exactly right.
You set yourself up for a failure because being perfect is not a human reality.
And
As teachers, I don't think any of us expect it from our students.
We're really good at practicing grace and help growth mindset and all that, but we're notgreat at doing it for ourselves.
And it gets really discouraging because we feel like we can never get ahead.
(25:44):
we actually really do work in a profession where our job really can never be done.
If you think about it, you don't clock out.
don't just, you know, like there's always something you can be doing.
And so we always have to be supervising.
The lesson could always be changed.
(26:05):
Our bulletin board could look cooler, you know, whatever it might be.
But we need to figure out, as perfectionists and as teachers, what is well done?
And I'm not saying, I mean, you have high standards for yourself, but
I don't know of any teacher that I've ever met or worked with who set the bar lower andstill did not set a high bar.
(26:27):
And never heard this is right, because we have our expectations so high that if we justlower a little bit, we're still getting our students right where they need to be, you
know, without harming them.
And then, like you said, we were really good at guilting ourselves.
We think we should be 100 % all the time doing all the same things, saying yes toeverything.
If we say no, we're a bad teacher.
(26:48):
And so I really work with my clients to challenge those questions and those thoughts andto really define like, what is realistic?
We keep going back to that.
What is realistic?
What can you realistically accomplish during a day, a week?
know, how do you give yourself grace?
(27:09):
What does that look like?
And
And a lot of the questioning that I do is informed by cognitive behavioral therapy.
Finding that irrational thought that we hold to be true and then questioning it andbringing it logically into reality.
Because yeah, we do set ourselves up for failure and beat ourselves up.
And how discouraging is it to go into a place where we never feel successful and we don'tallow ourselves to make the mistakes and give ourselves the grace.
(27:36):
And this goes a little bit back to your other point that I heard somewhere it said, thereis no reward, there's no award for being the last car in the parking lot.
Like there's not.
But so often we as teachers, we look around and like, they're always here.
They're so dedicated.
And that's the message we're sending our students as well.
(27:57):
As a yearbook advisor at two separate schools, whenever we come across the question oflike, who are we dedicating the yearbook to?
Every single time the students on their own come up with, so and so, this teacher, they'realways here.
I've driven by the school at midnight and I've seen them.
And we have to have this very hopefully healthy discussion of, well, let's hold on.
(28:20):
How are we measuring success or dedication?
Because we're being examples to our students as well.
And we need to ask ourselves that question.
How are we measuring ourselves and our success?
Is it by being the last car in the parking lot?
By putting in the hours, comparing to each other, comparing to this perfectionistic ideathat we can never achieve?
(28:40):
What is it?
And then be very concrete.
What is good enough?
What can you be satisfied with that's in your control?
Yeah.
you know, some of the best leaders that I know with intention, you know, they have tons ofwork where they could stay at a building until six o 'clock at night doing their admin
work.
They choose to leave a lot earlier to set an example that it's okay to leave.
(29:05):
And you know, they go home and they work at home on their computer and they still get itdone.
But they're setting that physical example for the teachers at least that it is okay foryou to leave right now.
That's huge!
leaving, I'm gonna model leaving and it's huge.
Now Andrea, I have to ask because you did start yourself as a teacher and then the turningpoint to where you are now, is this your own personal experience of going through burnout
(29:27):
and running from profession to take this on?
That's a great question and I'm really valid because I dealt with burnout at variousstages in my career and for different points at each time, but it's not actually why I
made this transition to coaching.
That actually came at a point where my job was cut and I was on maternity leave.
You know, my husband and I were deciding what my return to work might look like and it wasmore of a financial decision of we can't.
(29:55):
your teaching salary barely covers child care.
You know, is it really worth it?
And at that point it didn't align with the values.
You for the time I'd be spending away, but I definitely was still, I had too much to givethat I want to continue in.
And so this is my way to continue to be in education and serve and support our teachers.
Yeah, I wasn't ready to leave teaching, but I have experienced burnout.
(30:17):
And very cyclically, you know, throughout the year, I would experience this, but at onepoint I started to experience physical symptoms of burnout.
And different people experience it different ways, but it can feel, you know, you'recatching every virus that comes along.
Some experience it as migraine headaches.
Others might experience it as, you know, like gastrointestinal upset.
(30:38):
For me, I had unexplained weight loss, and I didn't have enough to lose anyway.
but it was not explained by any medical tests.
They were checking me for everything.
And it wasn't until I realized that it was because of my physical burnout and stress thatwas causing it that I was like, this is a big problem.
This is scary.
People are starting to ask if I'm sick, that I really had to make a change and really workto overcome burnout.
(31:06):
So it wasn't a cycle.
It wasn't taking a toll on my physical health.
that actually too coincided with meeting my husband and noticing that there needed to be ashift in my core values and that all kind of came to a head which was really a blessing
because it made me slow down and make me say like, I can physically see the signs of this,this is scary, I need to take some time to really work on my health and my mental health
(31:31):
and the burnout but that major life change, meeting my husband, getting married, did
forced me to look at my core values again, which is very helpful to look at thoseperfectionist tendencies as I was trying to set healthy boundaries and trying to figure
out what that looked like and what I was okay with.
And I really muddled through on my own for a while, which led me to designing thissignature program, so it's much easier for teachers.
(31:55):
It's difficult to do on your own, but it's nice to have a very simple step -by -step.
guide and accountability so you really know what you should be looking at and how you canmake those changes.
Yeah, I relate to that so much.
know, one of my big wake up calls for me was a few years ago, you know, I was teaching andit had nothing to do with what was going on in my teaching role.
(32:18):
I loved what I was doing, but I was pulled in so many directions outside of the teachingworld that one day I woke up and it was 1030 in the morning and I had 50 missed calls for
my principal saying, where are you?
Right.
And so my reaction to telling me I burnt out.
was I just, my body chose to not wake up, right?
(32:39):
And next thing I knew, and from that day on, I started looking after a lot, myself a lotmore.
I started to care more about, know, what I really need to establish some non -negotiablesand say no to things because my time and my energy are being spent in so many other places
that my body is saying, you need to shut down for a bit, right?
And so it's huge.
(33:00):
Speaking to what we're both speaking about right now, this brings about the idea ofchange, which is the water element, and it's bringing in that fluid transition to taking
action.
So Andrea, how do you help overwhelmed teachers make practical changes in their dailyroutines and mindset to reduce stress and promote wellness?
That's a great question because as overwhelmed, out teachers, don't give us one more thingto do.
(33:22):
Don't tell me to change.
I am surviving.
And we tell us that the lie that this is working for me right now.
Don't mess with it when it's clearly not.
But it just seems like too much to make any sort of change because we're at the end of ourour fuse, you know.
And so I think it's really important to recognize and validate the overwhelm and whereit's coming from.
(33:44):
I really appreciate what you shared.
wasn't necessarily even at school.
As teachers, a lot of times it does come from maybe our work environment, but I thinksometimes even we forget that we do have a life outside of school.
I had a teacher say, like, I'm really overwhelmed because I'm a caregiver for an agingparent.
That's really hard.
Or like my own teenager is struggling with their mental health issues and that's reallydifficult for me, you know.
(34:10):
So there's a lot of things outside of the school environment too that causes burnout.
So just validating it and be like, it's understandable why you're in this place and it'snot wrong.
It is okay, but it doesn't have to stay this way.
And then it's really, I find it most important and most impactful on an individual basisfor them to figure out like what is...
(34:34):
one small thing that you can do to reach the change that you want to make.
Because we might say something like, I know I'm burned out because I'm not taking goodcare of my physical health.
I'm not making time for it.
So I'm eating poorly.
I'm not doing healthy movement.
I'm not staying hydrated, but that's a lot So it's like okay.
Well, yeah, you do want to look at your physical health overall goal But what is one smallchange you can make this week?
(34:59):
Just one what feels doable what feels realistic and it might be something as small as
I am committed to packing two healthy snacks a day instead of going to the vendingmachine.
And on your Sunday, you portion out your healthy snacks in your bag so you're not grabbingthe sweet treat or something that's making you feel really gross and bogged down by the
(35:22):
end of the day.
It might be something as simple as, I'm gonna be intentional about drinking water because
Going to the bathroom is a necessity, not a privilege.
And as teachers, we treat it as such a privilege.
Yes.
So like, okay, so we can brainstorm like, well, this teacher can give you a bathroom breakat this time, know, those types of things.
(35:43):
But starting small and setting something realistic, because we're not going to hit thisoverall chinko overnight, but we want to.
And then again, it's perfectionism.
We don't reach it.
We just stop trying.
Another important part of that is habit stacking.
And I don't know if you or your listeners are familiar with habit stacking, but it'sbasically taking a new habit and pairing it with something that you already do.
(36:06):
So for example, during your prep period, you know, if you are already going to make copiesin the copy room, you know, maybe stack a new habit onto that.
You know, while your copies are copying, who knows?
what the workroom situation is, but if you want more healthy movement, you're in the copyroom.
(36:29):
Maybe you're doing squats or something, you know, get your blood flowing or maybe it'slike, okay, I need more relaxation in my day and it's hard to get.
In the copy room, how can you have it stack?
Put in your headphones, listen to something calming.
You know, like that is your time and that kind of creates a little physical boundary too.
Or you know yourself, you will stop and chat with three teachers down the hall during yourbreak.
(36:52):
You know, so just finding a habit that you already have developed and then stackingsomething that you want to change with it.
It just is a good reminder.
So the day that this episode comes out, I can already picture it.
We're going to have teachers doing their squats in their coffee rooms and everyone's goingto be wondering what the heck's going on.
Alchemist, you have permission to say, know, Andrea Perry told me that I can do, I can dosquats in here.
(37:14):
So don't judge me while I'm here doing it.
And with that though, that those are some simple strategies that people can just take tomake small incremental changes that that over time, like we said, they stack up almost
like your habit stacking and to make a bigger impact.
And with that,
This brings about the need to make these decisions.
You have to consciously and intentionally decide to do these things, and they're notrisks.
(37:37):
These are just decisions at this point.
So what advice do you give teachers who are hesitant to take those necessary steps to makedecisions and prioritize their own wellbeing?
Yeah, well.
I think again it goes back to we tell ourselves the lie that it's working for us as it is.
So is it riskier to try something different or is it riskier to stay at the status quothat you're doing right now and just survival?
(38:01):
And put it that way, I think it might feel a little less risky to make a change.
But also I'm a big advocate of testing things out in small bits.
You know, the whole idea I mentioned earlier of like,
Well, test out leaving an hour early.
Does the world fall apart?
Test out maybe not taking work home two evenings a week.
(38:27):
Are you really that behind?
Or are you planning more strategically to not create as much work?
Because what feels really risky and scary is the unknown.
But if we test something small out and not saying, this is a big change I'm makingforever,
But just test something out and be like, that was safe.
That actually felt okay.
Like, desensitizes us to what feels like a big risk.
(38:49):
And during these times, we're filling ourselves.
We're feeling better.
We might feel more relaxed.
We have more unplugged time from work, the classroom, thinking about it, because hopefullywe'll fill that time with something positive.
So that will help encourage, I think, that risk taking.
Mm -hmm.
next thing you know, your comfort level is a lot bigger.
(39:10):
Now, coming back to that idea of perfectionism, how do you encourage teachers to take therisk of letting go of perfectionism in favor of, you know, maybe something more balanced
and joyful?
Yeah, yeah.
Well, this one has been such an area of growth for me because I am, I am just, it's in mybones to be a perfectionist.
(39:33):
And I have such a hard time letting go of that because I very much believe like I amcapable of reaching these high pinnacles of perfection.
And it's just so silly to say it out loud, but really breaking down that mindset block,you know, like said.
with your other podcast guest, you're human.
(39:53):
Humans make mistakes.
Sometimes it helps for us to say that out loud, like I am human.
It is okay that I make mistakes.
It is expected that I make mistakes.
That is okay.
Just like we would tell our students, it's not about the mistake you made.
It's how you grow from that mistake and put our value there.
(40:16):
So I think that's big.
then also really just again deciding what is going to be realistically achievable whereyou can feel like this was a job well done.
Not perfect, but this is a job well done.
So we're still holding ourselves to a high professional standard, but not an unrealisticstandard.
(40:39):
And in other areas of our life too, right?
You know, I've done this amount of exercise.
I've chosen these healthy meal choices or I have committed and I have kept this time formy social well -being or my spiritual well -being and that is enough.
(41:01):
It doesn't have to be like everyone else's.
And it's important to know that, you know, if you're in a school setting, particularlyyour employer does not have a non -negotiable of what time you leave and it's, Andrea left
at 4 .59.
We're letting her go tomorrow.
That's not the case in a school division, right?
I mean, if you leave when the kids are there, that might be a case, right?
(41:23):
That's their non -negotiable as you're there.
But if you're staying two, three hours after you're supposed to, leaving that hour early,no one above you is going to care.
Yes.
probably going to say good for you for looking after yourself.
Get out of here.
I tell people all the time in my building, go home.
Go home.
Yes.
And, yes.
like, you're not here when everyone else is in the morning, but I'm coming at my contractat time.
(41:48):
They're like, I looked for you two hours after school.
You weren't here.
That was, you know, and I'm just sitting here and going, well, my contract says, you know.
Yeah.
all those places.
You know, I don't slam him because he's done a lot of really great things.
And I talk about him in my book coming out specifically his SpaceX, but they do sometimesset those expectations.
(42:10):
Like, you know, you hear the stories about you're expected to work this many hours, dothis many things, only do this and only do that.
Right.
And in the setting of education, it's just not true.
And that goes for your lessons.
You're going to have lessons that suck.
And again, your principle is
not gonna come down the hall and say, give me your keys.
They're gonna say, well, what do you need?
(42:31):
What did you learn from it?
What can we do to support you?
And how can we try it again?
Right?
Because it's the beauty of what you're doing in educating kids, you educate yourself to inwhat works best for them.
And it's recognizing that.
we're at 45 minutes in here, Andrea, I have to ask if we were to take this conversation,take what you stand for, what are you hoping people action in their lives tomorrow from
(42:53):
your message?
Yeah, that's a great question.
It's kind of overwhelming sometimes to know where to actually start.
And I would really like to just direct people back to that resource that I'm going to besharing with you all, hopefully in the show notes as well.
It just starts with your core values.
It kind of just gives you an inventory.
Where am I at right now?
What are my core values?
(43:13):
Is this where my burnout is coming from?
Is something in misalignment?
And we can't really make a map if we don't know where we're going.
So that's just a really good first step that will take, I don't know, a few minutes,depending on how much time you wanna to look at it.
But it'll help you really figure out just where you're at right now, how things might bemisaligned, and then from there, action steps can be made to how to bring your life more
(43:39):
in alignment.
Yeah, I think that would be the big one.
absolutely, Alchemists this will be linked in the description.
And this is a great time to actually talk about my Earth workshop that's out there or myEarth Microcourse.
So this is all about finding your values as well.
And this is a special offer to anybody listening.
Right now it's a $100 course, 50 % off for $50.
If you listen to this episode and email.
(44:02):
Email me and saying, hey, I listened to Andrea Perry's episode.
You just talked about this.
I'd love that discount.
I'll give you another 25 bucks off.
So now it only costs you $25 to take a micro course on finding your core values.
You get a 30 minute guided presentation from me along with 10 downloadable PDFs on how todiscover and implement and operationalize your core values.
Leverage us, leverage the work of Andrea, leverage my work, discover who you are and whereyou need to go with it.
(44:28):
Now, Andrea, I do have to ask what is your future look like?
Yeah, my future looks interesting right now because when this episode airs, we'll beadjusting to life as a family of four.
So we've got our, thank you.
We have our baby arriving in December.
So life is going to look a little bit different at that point, but I'm still continuing toserve teachers here from my home office.
(44:54):
And just again.
during this season of life, growing our family.
This is what I'm able to contribute to the world of education.
And I just, so excited to continue educating and supporting our teachers during this time.
As I stay home with my little ones for now, who knows what else the future holds afterthat.
I feel like this is the year of babies.
(45:16):
Everyone I'm talking to is having one and it's September 4th at the date that we'rerecording this.
And we have our second one to become a family of four coming on September 10th here.
And so.
Congratulations!
Yeah, second girl coming.
And at the time when people are listening to this, second girl is now alive and I'mheavily outnumbered three to one.
That being said, it is that world, right?
(45:37):
Yeah, yeah, there you go.
But great to hear, yeah.
well then, okay, there you go.
So yeah, that does it.
Yeah, thank you.
But you know, I love to hear, regardless of where you're going, the passion stays.
with wanting to support people to help them find joy in the things that they're doing.
And with that is a very powerful message.
(45:58):
So how can our listeners get in touch with you to discover more and unpack this?
Definitely.
There's a couple ways that you can all contact me.
You are definitely welcome to visit my website.
It's www .thrivewithandreaperry .com and I know there's going to be a link to that aswell.
And through that website you can send me an email or can email me directly.
(46:19):
It's my first name, Andrea at thrivewithandreaperry .com.
You can also use the website to schedule a free consultation.
I love chatting with teachers and just seeing where you're at and see if...
It could be a good fit to support you through this.
So lots of ways.
Hope I get to talk to many of you.
love that.
Alchemists, whether you're in the realm of education, realm of leadership, or justlistening for fun, hopefully you've learned that there are ways to bring joy into
(46:43):
everything that you do and discover why you do things.
Andrea, thank you so much for taking the time to join me on the Elemental Educatorpodcast.
Thank you, it's been a pleasure.
don't give us one more thing to do.
(00:01):
Don't tell me to change.
I am surviving.
And we tell us that the lie that this is working for me right now.
Don't mess with it when it's clearly not.
(00:28):
Hi Alchemists and welcome back to another episode of Elemental Educator.
I'm your host Tyler and if you're joining us for the first time, thank you so very muchfor tuning in and welcome to a place where we redefine leadership and challenge the status
quo.
Be sure to like, follow and subscribe to Elemental Educator on Apple, Spotify, YouTube orwherever you get your podcast from and check out our website, ElementalEducator .com.
(00:48):
Get ready to let the alchemy of education ignite your passion for learning.
Today we're joined by Andrea Perry who is an experienced K -12 classroom teacher.
She holds a Master's of Education in Curriculum and Instruction and is also certified as aLife, Health and Wellness Coach.
Her passion is supporting stressed teachers to overcome burnout, increase their overallhealth and wellbeing, and rekindle their passion and joy.
(01:09):
Andrea, welcome to the Elemental Educator Podcast.
It is a pleasure to have you here today.
Thank you, it's a pleasure to be here.
Absolutely.
I want to just jump right in and learn how did you get to where you are now, Andrea?
Yeah, so I actually was a K through 12 teacher for 12 years.
I taught everything from Spanish language to five -year -olds all the way up to Spanish inhigh school.
(01:33):
Also taught a lot of English at the secondary level.
But when I was a maternity leave, actually, my school post -COVID had a lot of financialissues, had some budget cuts, and my teaching position was cut.
but I wasn't quite ready to be done with education, teaching, supporting teachers yet.
(01:56):
And so it just kind of coincided with being a mom and realizing that going back into theclassroom with the cost of childcare wasn't something that would fit for us.
And as I was brainstorming, like, can I continue in education?
How can I keep supporting teachers that I have this passion for?
It just lined up perfectly with getting a coaching certification.
got certified as a life coach, and it just didn't seem to cover enough of what I wanted tohelp teachers with in this crisis that we have right now, not just in the United States,
(02:24):
but in different parts of the world of burnout.
So I continued on with my health and wellness coaching certification, and I've just foundthat that, along with my teaching experience, has been the perfect combination to support
teachers in this season of my life and continue being part of the world of education.
and through teachers supporting students.
(02:46):
So before you got into that K to 12 teaching experience, what led you to wanting to jumpinto the realm of teaching?
Yeah, good question.
So unlike many teachers who say like they felt this calling from an early age, I didn't somuch.
enjoyed school.
was kind of thinking, I'm gonna be something medical, maybe a veterinarian.
(03:08):
But it was actually career tests that I took that was really showing that I had a strongaptitude for language, for writing, and...
teaching service to others.
So, well, let's give this a try.
And it was when I got to college and I took my first education class, the very first yearwe needed to be in classrooms doing clinical, basically, know, experience in the
(03:30):
classroom.
And I just fell in love with teaching and with kids.
from there, it was just a no -brainer for me.
It's interesting because everybody, when I asked that question, what led you intoeducation, it's always one of two ends.
It's always, you know, I grew up playing teacher as a kid or not at all, wasn't on mymind.
There's no gray area, whereas I hummed and hawed over it and then decided to try it out.
(03:51):
So it's always nice to hear those stories.
Similar to me, I wasn't thinking of becoming a teacher growing up either.
And here we are in the education world.
It's segue so nice to what you're doing now because it's rooted in the same type ofvalues.
And we'll unpack that here because Earth represents those core values and really rootingyourself in those beliefs.
So Andrea, how do you help teachers reconnect with their core values?
(04:15):
Yeah, great question.
Because we don't often think about our values.
We figure at this point of our life as adults, they're set.
We know what we value.
And so we just kind of operate on autopilot.
But our values actually do change over time and in each season of life.
And burnout usually comes when we're living our life out of alignment with those values.
(04:37):
So this is like one of the first things I focus on with clients.
just creating space, first of all, for clients to question, like, what are my values inthis season of life?
Have they changed since I started teaching 10 years ago, five years ago?
And then I also provide some tools to help them start evaluating what their values areright now in this season of their life.
(05:02):
And it's a resource that I love to share to all the listeners as well.
It's a downloadable, very quick.
two page workbook, kind of helping you of figure out like what are my core values?
Because sometimes we say core values, well what's even in that?
So it has a really nice list where you can kind of rate them and figure out what are yourcore values right now?
(05:23):
So then they can start aligning their life in the areas that they see are misaligned.
And that will help start the shift towards overcoming burnout and finding maybe theirpassion again or being reminded of it.
So what core values are you rooted in right now?
Right now it's a great question.
My core values have definitely changed since I started teaching and a lot of that hasrevolved around family.
(05:46):
So I taught in private school many many years and there was a very easy blurring of linesof work -life balance there, especially as a young single teacher.
But as I've moved on in my profession and grown in my life, met and married my husband andnow we have
a little baby girl, you know, my values as a young single teacher who could just pour allof my time, my heart, my soul, you know, into my students, take the extra coaching, go,
(06:16):
you know, weekend trips, sponsors, you know, all that kind of stuff.
Those values that were so important to me at the beginning have shifted to, okay, I have ahusband, I have a little girl at home, these are my values, this is very important too.
and I want to make sure they're prioritized as a high value.
And those weren't part of my life in the early season of it.
(06:37):
So just seeing a shift, it doesn't mean that I value less, you know, the importance of mystudents and the work that I do in the classroom, but there's a shift in mindset of, I
need to make sure that there is space made for those core values because if I'm spendingtoo much time at work or bringing work home and it's cutting into my...
core value of relationship with family, I'm gonna feel pretty burnt out pretty quickly.
(07:03):
So that's kind of been a huge one for me and has shifted my current core values.
So I look at the value of family a little differently here, and I wanna pick your brain onit.
Not that I don't value my family, I should say that, but my core value is love.
Because when I think of it, I have to remove, to find out what my core value truly is, Ihave to strip everything that is external in my life away.
(07:28):
If I removed my family, I remove going to the gym.
I remove all of the externals.
What do I stand for?
And one thing is love, love for myself, love to my family, and that's why they've becomean emphasis and a priority.
Love for my kids, that's why I love teaching, right?
So could you share maybe the difference between why you're stating family over the corevalue of love?
(07:49):
Yeah, definitely.
Good question because you're absolutely right.
It does stem from love and if we broke it down like that I would say mine.
I share that with you as well.
I think it's difficult for many of us to go from the very concrete of family to the morevague idea of emotions like I value love because then we need to break that down further.
(08:10):
Like, okay, well what does that look like in action?
And so it's just a way to kind of make those emotions and those core values like you weretalking about, like love, more tangible.
Because you will definitely see that thread between all of your values.
You know, love of yourself, which should be like, yeah, yeah, for sure.
(08:34):
You know, love of showing yourself love, you know, by making healthy choices.
But that might show up as someone saying, I prioritize my health.
where they always see that underlying layer of, this is actually self -love.
And this is love to others by taking care of myself or whatever it might be.
But you're absolutely right.
You'll find a common thread.
(08:55):
Yeah, thanks for taking it there with me.
And with that, what you've done by saying family and what you do with people you work withis you simplify the process into tangible things that they can instantly relate to, right?
We just talked about love being that big broad category.
So as someone who helps teachers create sustainable careers, what core principles do youemphasize to ensure that they can maintain that, you know, healthy work -life balance and
(09:19):
a professional demand that is just excruciatingly exhausting?
Yeah, it's tough because it's a journey.
It's ongoing.
We never quite reach that destination as we continue to change as humans and ourenvironments around us change.
But I would just definitely say, number one, know your core values well.
Like when you know yourself well is when you're going to feel confident in doing all ofthe other things.
(09:43):
For example, the next one would be setting healthy boundaries.
what that looks like no one can dictate to you like only you can know right
You say that so much nicer than me, by the way.
I call it establishing your non -negotiables.
But you know what, it's the same idea, right?
Because you are, you really are, you're deciding what is worth your yes.
(10:06):
And I like to put it that way too, because we think setting boundaries is always saying noto something.
But so often as teachers, we have a really hard time saying no to things, especially whenit revolves around our students.
And so when you think about, okay, I know my core values,
So I need to make sure that I set boundaries that say yes to my core values.
(10:27):
So if you're saying no to sponsoring that extra club, what are you actually saying yes to?
Are you saying yes to family time, your physical health, your mental health, and theseason of life, whatever it might be?
And sometimes that makes it easier for those of us who struggle saying the no, kind offlipping it to the more positive, like, I'm actually saying yes to something else.
(10:47):
Absolutely.
And with that, just giving yourself grace.
I think this is hard for many of us.
We are so good at.
Guilting ourselves when we do set a boundary, because we worry that.
It's going to hurt this person or we won't be able to serve our students as well, or thistime might take away from this.
(11:08):
So just practicing a lot of grace with ourselves and in that getting support.
Because it's one thing to be your own mind telling yourself it's okay, you don't need tofeel guilty, this is good, but having that positive support, whether from a colleague or a
supportive administrator, a partner, whatever that might be, that can be a support for youas you're trying to stay true to those core principles and help you kind of stay
(11:36):
accountable to yourself.
Absolutely.
And saying no is hard.
And the kind of work around that I always tell people to start with is just say not rightnow.
Right?
Not right now.
You might believe in what you want to do.
That club might sound really cool.
Taking on that extra curricular might be something that you love doing.
Don't say no.
Say not right now.
(11:56):
Not right now because you might come back to it later because like you said, your valuescan shift, your time can shift, your experiences can shift.
Next thing you know, you might find yourself wanting to say yes.
Right?
say no, you can sometimes close that door that you wanna keep a little bit open.
Yeah, absolutely.
I agree with that.
And I always, I help my clients kind of go through a script if they're very havingdifficulty with saying no, like how to say no, kind of leave that door open and just be
(12:22):
really gracious about, thank you for thinking of me, because it's wonderful actually to bethought of, like you would be great in this position, you would do really well at this,
and it makes it even harder for us to say no when we can recognize, like thank you forthinking of me, I appreciate that you thought of me for this role.
Like you said, not right now.
You can maybe revisit it.
Yeah.
(12:43):
Absolutely.
acknowledging that, you know, I understand me saying no is not what you want to hear,right?
They want to hear yes, they want to hear that.
And sometimes it's warranted to say no.
But with that, in your experience, how do you guide teachers to rediscover, you know,we're just talking about saying no, that burnout digging into those core values.
How do they rediscover their joy and fulfillment both inside and outside the classroom?
(13:05):
Yeah, that's a big one.
So it's something that through my experience I've navigated in a messy sort of wayfiguring that out on my own.
So now I've actually created a signature program that helps support teachers in reallytangible steps, practical.
Because as teachers, we don't want to waste time on theory.
We just like, give me something to do right now that's going to make an immediate changefor the positive in my classroom, right?
(13:28):
Like don't make me sit through this long thing that's all theoretical.
I want to know, give me a tool right now that I can use.
So we go like week by week through very specific steps.
can take, and we just start with like identifying the root cause of burnout, because it'sdifferent for every person, right?
And it's usually a combination of a few factors.
But my experience with burnout might be completely different from somebody else who has adifferent life situation.
(13:51):
And then we do talk about core values and
strategies for how to be successful making change.
Because that's a huge thing that I work on as a coach, just as humans, right?
Making change is difficult.
And making change when we're already exhausted and overwhelmed and burned out is tough.
(14:12):
So strategies that make implementing changes stick to make them easy, to make themachievable.
And we work through a lot of mindset blocks.
Because boy, we as teachers have a lot, well as humans, we have a lot of things that wetell ourselves that are not necessarily true that keeps us stuck in this cycle of burnout
(14:38):
from misplaced beliefs about how something works or about our own value, different thingslike that.
So we work through mindset blocks.
That's a huge part of the process.
because if we still believe the same things that are not true, we can't move forward.
So I want to ask here, and I'm going to kind of challenge the status quo around burnouthere.
(15:00):
Now, we talk about burnout and wanting to work with the individual teacher on this is howyou can overcome your burnout.
But I actually look at burnout as more of a system problem.
burnout and a lack of retention of staff, that's usually related to and not just ineducation sectors, but in all organizations and sectors.
You don't have collective efficacy, you don't have alignment and
(15:21):
their personal values there are not aligned with the values of your company or at leastthe values that you're pushing out and actioning.
So could you compare the difference between you know internal burnout versus what I wouldcall external burnout which is more from the system?
Yeah, 100 % because you're right.
There's a lot of stuff out there that contributes to burnout and focusing here oneducation.
(15:44):
I know that there have been places that I have been where it was not setting teachers upfor success in this area.
know, being asked a lot, not feeling you can say no, lots of guilt, you know, talk down ofyou need to do this.
So I definitely understand that external burnout and how that can be really unhealthy, forsure, for sure.
(16:08):
mm -hmm.
And this is really important, right?
In those situations, we tell kids all the time, if something's not working, advocate foryourself and talk about it and stand up for yourself.
And yet here we are in situations saying, if you don't like how things are going, findsomething good to cling onto and it'll make you feel great.
Advocate for yourself.
(16:28):
Have that conversation with your leadership team.
Let them know that there's discomfort because you're not going to grow if you're nothaving that difficult conversation.
Correct, 100%.
And I definitely don't advocate for someone staying within a toxic work environment.
I have been there, and I did not realize I was there because I was a very young teacherand it took a change to a different school environment that really showed me that.
(16:54):
you know, if we think about relationships, we're not saying stay in an abusiverelationship.
We're not saying stay in a toxic environment where you're mistreated.
So yeah, I'm glad you brought that up.
I'm gonna be really clear because there are systemic issues, but then there's very toxicwork environments that can definitely lead to burnout.
then it's okay to advocate for yourself to make a change if you need to.
(17:16):
Unfortunately, I think sometimes we make a change out of the profession.
Instead of this school environment isn't healthy and...
I've tried advocating and change isn't happening.
So I do need to move locations, but maybe not professions, you know?
And so you said, yeah, it's not just like, find your happy place and just cling onto thatand just wrap everything else in a shiny little bubble because that just invalidates our
(17:39):
experience so much.
But I will say that I follow another coach and I think I'll talk about her a little bitlater on too, Jen Rafferty, and she also supports teachers really well.
And she says,
systemic change begins with the individual.
Because really, sometimes I think it's very easy for us as educators to sit in a room withother educators and complain about all the system things that we may not be able to
(18:06):
change.
Yes, we can advocate for ourselves, you know, and we should be advocating for ourselves,starting healthy conversations, being the change.
But what we really have control over, and I think where some of the burnout
comes from, from feeling like we're out of control, is saying the whole problem is outhere and I'm a victim of it.
And instead of saying, this system, there's a lot to work on.
(18:30):
There's a lot of areas for improvement.
And I think we're seeing some improvement in conversations we're having now in theeducation world and in school systems as well.
But to say like, instead of just focusing on that, what can I do here in my...
classroom, in my home, in my person today to be the change, to make the change.
(18:51):
And maybe it's as simple as finding a way to find joy in the work that you once had andother people wondering how you're like that in this environment and spreading that.
Or like, how does that person get to leave?
You know.
contract hours in 30 minutes after and I'm still here for two hours like they might havesomething I want.
(19:16):
So systemic change really does start with the individual but it's not to discount thatthere are bigger issues for sure.
for sure.
And advocating is so important because it brings awareness.
And if you advocate enough, you bring consistency and frequency to the conversation.
And then people start to take it a bit more seriously because they hear the legitimacybehind it.
Now, what you're talking about too is establishing ownership of what you can control,right?
(19:40):
And recognizing that you are not just a victim in this situation, taking the ownership of,okay, this might suck.
What can I control?
What can I take ownership over?
What can I be accountable for?
And make it the best thing you can possibly make it.
Now, this whole conversation, it's so, I'm very passionate about it by the way, and it'sso relevant and it's so, it's so important.
(20:02):
you know, correct me if I'm wrong, the United States, they just declared, right, thatteacher burnout and teacher retention is actually a crisis now in the States.
It got moved up to crisis level.
Correct.
which is crazy status, right?
And that's huge.
they're saying, this is a problem, right?
(20:23):
It's a huge problem.
That means we face a lot of the air element, which is the adversity that comes our waywith it.
And I'm sure this is gonna go where I'm thinking it'll go, but I'll see if we take itthere.
Andrea, can you share some of the most common challenges you've seen teachers face as theydeal with burnout?
and how you guide them to overcome these obstacles.
(20:43):
Sure, definitely.
Yeah, there are many, many challenges.
One is that locus of external, like, don't have control, I'm a victim, and so why try?
Like, I'm just stuck.
You know?
And that's not a good feeling.
But when there are teachers who want to actually address it, you know, and who feel readyto address it, there comes a lot of guilt with burnout.
(21:07):
For example, I hear teachers say that they feel like they're a bad teacher for...
experiencing burnout or they're bad person.
Like it's my fault that I'm burned out because I haven't set healthy boundaries orbecause, you know, it's my fault that I'm burned out because I'm just not doing my best so
I'm still struggling and that's completely untrue.
But it's something that I hear from teachers.
(21:29):
They feel this guilt and then they don't want to address it at all.
Or yeah, they just think there's no way out of burnout so I'm just going to leave theprofession entirely because then it will be better.
which isn't necessarily the answer either, because you can burn out in any profession, ofcourse.
Or they hear, OK, well, I need a better work -life balance, but I don't see how that'sactually practically going to work.
(21:53):
I can barely keep up with all the students, all my responsibilities, being as good teacheras I need to be if I give less time to my work and a little bit more time outside of work
to myself.
You know this myth of if I just work harder, if I just work longer, I'll feel moreprepared and things will get better and my students will perform better.
So these are beliefs that might resonate with many teachers because I know that these aresome that I felt in the past.
(22:20):
And so I work with clients to challenge those beliefs because that's what they are.
A belief is just something that we believe but it's not fact.
And sometimes we tell ourselves things that are not true.
So we kind of figure out like a reality check.
You know, like, well, let's try this.
Let's test it out to see if it's true.
(22:41):
Like, if you actually went home one hour earlier than you normally do, let's try this fora week.
What difference did you notice?
Are your students struggling?
Are they not meeting the standards?
You know, are you feeling frantic?
Are you less prepared?
In general, no.
Usually it's like, I used my time wisely.
(23:02):
And I planned my instruction accordingly and we did some informal assessments and I camefeeling more refreshed because I had time for exercise or to cook a healthy meal or
whatever it is.
But sometimes it really takes experiencing that and testing something out to really feellike I can do that.
I can overcome this challenge of mind block and really make a difference.
(23:24):
it's about optimizing your time.
it's something as simple as when you have unassigned time or a prep or I'm not sure whatthey might call it anywhere else across the world.
Put your phone in a different room and work and see how much you get done.
Because I guarantee you, if you're on a prep right now, listening to this or on your wayto work, think about your last prep.
(23:45):
How many times did you check it?
And that's going to eat away at the minutes that you're putting to on task time.
That's eating away at the time that you could be leaving a little bit earlier after yourschool day or arriving a little bit later before that bell starts because you've done it
during the time you were given to do it, right?
You you think about teacher directed days and professional development days, puttingmeaning to those and actually actually doing the work as as intensely with the high
(24:11):
expectations for yourself for love for yourself so that you don't have to be staying anextra two hours when it's done.
to catch up on it because you spent two hours during your day having conversations, right?
Now, and that's where the guilt can come in.
And burnout can actually tiptoe the opposite end too with perfectionism and wanting to doeverything the exact right way to a T.
(24:35):
Well, I had Dr.
Jody Carrington on here and she says it best, you're not that great.
You're going to make mistakes.
You're going to screw up all of the time.
That's what makes you a human.
You will never reach perfectionism.
and you might plan the absolute perfect lesson and shit's gonna hit the fan and you can'tcontrol it, right?
(24:55):
So with that though, and those two spectrums of perfectionism to guilt, how do you helpteachers navigate these feelings and move toward that healthier mindset that allows for
that self -compassion and growth?
You know, it's so funny because there are probably many perfectionists out there that donot think they're perfectionists.
And these are usually the procrastinators because they have to wait until they can do itperfectly to do it or not do it at all.
(25:21):
So you might be a perfectionist without knowing it, but it really, yeah, exactly right.
You set yourself up for a failure because being perfect is not a human reality.
And
As teachers, I don't think any of us expect it from our students.
We're really good at practicing grace and help growth mindset and all that, but we're notgreat at doing it for ourselves.
And it gets really discouraging because we feel like we can never get ahead.
(25:44):
we actually really do work in a profession where our job really can never be done.
If you think about it, you don't clock out.
don't just, you know, like there's always something you can be doing.
And so we always have to be supervising.
The lesson could always be changed.
(26:05):
Our bulletin board could look cooler, you know, whatever it might be.
But we need to figure out, as perfectionists and as teachers, what is well done?
And I'm not saying, I mean, you have high standards for yourself, but
I don't know of any teacher that I've ever met or worked with who set the bar lower andstill did not set a high bar.
(26:27):
And never heard this is right, because we have our expectations so high that if we justlower a little bit, we're still getting our students right where they need to be, you
know, without harming them.
And then, like you said, we were really good at guilting ourselves.
We think we should be 100 % all the time doing all the same things, saying yes toeverything.
If we say no, we're a bad teacher.
(26:48):
And so I really work with my clients to challenge those questions and those thoughts andto really define like, what is realistic?
We keep going back to that.
What is realistic?
What can you realistically accomplish during a day, a week?
know, how do you give yourself grace?
(27:09):
What does that look like?
And
And a lot of the questioning that I do is informed by cognitive behavioral therapy.
Finding that irrational thought that we hold to be true and then questioning it andbringing it logically into reality.
Because yeah, we do set ourselves up for failure and beat ourselves up.
And how discouraging is it to go into a place where we never feel successful and we don'tallow ourselves to make the mistakes and give ourselves the grace.
(27:36):
And this goes a little bit back to your other point that I heard somewhere it said, thereis no reward, there's no award for being the last car in the parking lot.
Like there's not.
But so often we as teachers, we look around and like, they're always here.
They're so dedicated.
And that's the message we're sending our students as well.
(27:57):
As a yearbook advisor at two separate schools, whenever we come across the question oflike, who are we dedicating the yearbook to?
Every single time the students on their own come up with, so and so, this teacher, they'realways here.
I've driven by the school at midnight and I've seen them.
And we have to have this very hopefully healthy discussion of, well, let's hold on.
(28:20):
How are we measuring success or dedication?
Because we're being examples to our students as well.
And we need to ask ourselves that question.
How are we measuring ourselves and our success?
Is it by being the last car in the parking lot?
By putting in the hours, comparing to each other, comparing to this perfectionistic ideathat we can never achieve?
(28:40):
What is it?
And then be very concrete.
What is good enough?
What can you be satisfied with that's in your control?
Yeah.
you know, some of the best leaders that I know with intention, you know, they have tons ofwork where they could stay at a building until six o 'clock at night doing their admin
work.
They choose to leave a lot earlier to set an example that it's okay to leave.
(29:05):
And you know, they go home and they work at home on their computer and they still get itdone.
But they're setting that physical example for the teachers at least that it is okay foryou to leave right now.
That's huge!
leaving, I'm gonna model leaving and it's huge.
Now Andrea, I have to ask because you did start yourself as a teacher and then the turningpoint to where you are now, is this your own personal experience of going through burnout
(29:27):
and running from profession to take this on?
That's a great question and I'm really valid because I dealt with burnout at variousstages in my career and for different points at each time, but it's not actually why I
made this transition to coaching.
That actually came at a point where my job was cut and I was on maternity leave.
You know, my husband and I were deciding what my return to work might look like and it wasmore of a financial decision of we can't.
(29:55):
your teaching salary barely covers child care.
You know, is it really worth it?
And at that point it didn't align with the values.
You for the time I'd be spending away, but I definitely was still, I had too much to givethat I want to continue in.
And so this is my way to continue to be in education and serve and support our teachers.
Yeah, I wasn't ready to leave teaching, but I have experienced burnout.
(30:17):
And very cyclically, you know, throughout the year, I would experience this, but at onepoint I started to experience physical symptoms of burnout.
And different people experience it different ways, but it can feel, you know, you'recatching every virus that comes along.
Some experience it as migraine headaches.
Others might experience it as, you know, like gastrointestinal upset.
(30:38):
For me, I had unexplained weight loss, and I didn't have enough to lose anyway.
but it was not explained by any medical tests.
They were checking me for everything.
And it wasn't until I realized that it was because of my physical burnout and stress thatwas causing it that I was like, this is a big problem.
This is scary.
People are starting to ask if I'm sick, that I really had to make a change and really workto overcome burnout.
(31:06):
So it wasn't a cycle.
It wasn't taking a toll on my physical health.
that actually too coincided with meeting my husband and noticing that there needed to be ashift in my core values and that all kind of came to a head which was really a blessing
because it made me slow down and make me say like, I can physically see the signs of this,this is scary, I need to take some time to really work on my health and my mental health
(31:31):
and the burnout but that major life change, meeting my husband, getting married, did
forced me to look at my core values again, which is very helpful to look at thoseperfectionist tendencies as I was trying to set healthy boundaries and trying to figure
out what that looked like and what I was okay with.
And I really muddled through on my own for a while, which led me to designing thissignature program, so it's much easier for teachers.
(31:55):
It's difficult to do on your own, but it's nice to have a very simple step -by -step.
guide and accountability so you really know what you should be looking at and how you canmake those changes.
Yeah, I relate to that so much.
know, one of my big wake up calls for me was a few years ago, you know, I was teaching andit had nothing to do with what was going on in my teaching role.
(32:18):
I loved what I was doing, but I was pulled in so many directions outside of the teachingworld that one day I woke up and it was 1030 in the morning and I had 50 missed calls for
my principal saying, where are you?
Right.
And so my reaction to telling me I burnt out.
was I just, my body chose to not wake up, right?
(32:39):
And next thing I knew, and from that day on, I started looking after a lot, myself a lotmore.
I started to care more about, know, what I really need to establish some non -negotiablesand say no to things because my time and my energy are being spent in so many other places
that my body is saying, you need to shut down for a bit, right?
And so it's huge.
(33:00):
Speaking to what we're both speaking about right now, this brings about the idea ofchange, which is the water element, and it's bringing in that fluid transition to taking
action.
So Andrea, how do you help overwhelmed teachers make practical changes in their dailyroutines and mindset to reduce stress and promote wellness?
That's a great question because as overwhelmed, out teachers, don't give us one more thingto do.
(33:22):
Don't tell me to change.
I am surviving.
And we tell us that the lie that this is working for me right now.
Don't mess with it when it's clearly not.
But it just seems like too much to make any sort of change because we're at the end of ourour fuse, you know.
And so I think it's really important to recognize and validate the overwhelm and whereit's coming from.
(33:44):
I really appreciate what you shared.
wasn't necessarily even at school.
As teachers, a lot of times it does come from maybe our work environment, but I thinksometimes even we forget that we do have a life outside of school.
I had a teacher say, like, I'm really overwhelmed because I'm a caregiver for an agingparent.
That's really hard.
Or like my own teenager is struggling with their mental health issues and that's reallydifficult for me, you know.
(34:10):
So there's a lot of things outside of the school environment too that causes burnout.
So just validating it and be like, it's understandable why you're in this place and it'snot wrong.
It is okay, but it doesn't have to stay this way.
And then it's really, I find it most important and most impactful on an individual basisfor them to figure out like what is...
(34:34):
one small thing that you can do to reach the change that you want to make.
Because we might say something like, I know I'm burned out because I'm not taking goodcare of my physical health.
I'm not making time for it.
So I'm eating poorly.
I'm not doing healthy movement.
I'm not staying hydrated, but that's a lot So it's like okay.
Well, yeah, you do want to look at your physical health overall goal But what is one smallchange you can make this week?
(34:59):
Just one what feels doable what feels realistic and it might be something as small as
I am committed to packing two healthy snacks a day instead of going to the vendingmachine.
And on your Sunday, you portion out your healthy snacks in your bag so you're not grabbingthe sweet treat or something that's making you feel really gross and bogged down by the
(35:22):
end of the day.
It might be something as simple as, I'm gonna be intentional about drinking water because
Going to the bathroom is a necessity, not a privilege.
And as teachers, we treat it as such a privilege.
Yes.
So like, okay, so we can brainstorm like, well, this teacher can give you a bathroom breakat this time, know, those types of things.
(35:43):
But starting small and setting something realistic, because we're not going to hit thisoverall chinko overnight, but we want to.
And then again, it's perfectionism.
We don't reach it.
We just stop trying.
Another important part of that is habit stacking.
And I don't know if you or your listeners are familiar with habit stacking, but it'sbasically taking a new habit and pairing it with something that you already do.
(36:06):
So for example, during your prep period, you know, if you are already going to make copiesin the copy room, you know, maybe stack a new habit onto that.
You know, while your copies are copying, who knows?
what the workroom situation is, but if you want more healthy movement, you're in the copyroom.
(36:29):
Maybe you're doing squats or something, you know, get your blood flowing or maybe it'slike, okay, I need more relaxation in my day and it's hard to get.
In the copy room, how can you have it stack?
Put in your headphones, listen to something calming.
You know, like that is your time and that kind of creates a little physical boundary too.
Or you know yourself, you will stop and chat with three teachers down the hall during yourbreak.
(36:52):
You know, so just finding a habit that you already have developed and then stackingsomething that you want to change with it.
It just is a good reminder.
So the day that this episode comes out, I can already picture it.
We're going to have teachers doing their squats in their coffee rooms and everyone's goingto be wondering what the heck's going on.
Alchemist, you have permission to say, know, Andrea Perry told me that I can do, I can dosquats in here.
(37:14):
So don't judge me while I'm here doing it.
And with that though, that those are some simple strategies that people can just take tomake small incremental changes that that over time, like we said, they stack up almost
like your habit stacking and to make a bigger impact.
And with that,
This brings about the need to make these decisions.
You have to consciously and intentionally decide to do these things, and they're notrisks.
(37:37):
These are just decisions at this point.
So what advice do you give teachers who are hesitant to take those necessary steps to makedecisions and prioritize their own wellbeing?
Yeah, well.
I think again it goes back to we tell ourselves the lie that it's working for us as it is.
So is it riskier to try something different or is it riskier to stay at the status quothat you're doing right now and just survival?
(38:01):
And put it that way, I think it might feel a little less risky to make a change.
But also I'm a big advocate of testing things out in small bits.
You know, the whole idea I mentioned earlier of like,
Well, test out leaving an hour early.
Does the world fall apart?
Test out maybe not taking work home two evenings a week.
(38:27):
Are you really that behind?
Or are you planning more strategically to not create as much work?
Because what feels really risky and scary is the unknown.
But if we test something small out and not saying, this is a big change I'm makingforever,
But just test something out and be like, that was safe.
That actually felt okay.
Like, desensitizes us to what feels like a big risk.
(38:49):
And during these times, we're filling ourselves.
We're feeling better.
We might feel more relaxed.
We have more unplugged time from work, the classroom, thinking about it, because hopefullywe'll fill that time with something positive.
So that will help encourage, I think, that risk taking.
Mm -hmm.
next thing you know, your comfort level is a lot bigger.
(39:10):
Now, coming back to that idea of perfectionism, how do you encourage teachers to take therisk of letting go of perfectionism in favor of, you know, maybe something more balanced
and joyful?
Yeah, yeah.
Well, this one has been such an area of growth for me because I am, I am just, it's in mybones to be a perfectionist.
(39:33):
And I have such a hard time letting go of that because I very much believe like I amcapable of reaching these high pinnacles of perfection.
And it's just so silly to say it out loud, but really breaking down that mindset block,you know, like said.
with your other podcast guest, you're human.
(39:53):
Humans make mistakes.
Sometimes it helps for us to say that out loud, like I am human.
It is okay that I make mistakes.
It is expected that I make mistakes.
That is okay.
Just like we would tell our students, it's not about the mistake you made.
It's how you grow from that mistake and put our value there.
(40:16):
So I think that's big.
then also really just again deciding what is going to be realistically achievable whereyou can feel like this was a job well done.
Not perfect, but this is a job well done.
So we're still holding ourselves to a high professional standard, but not an unrealisticstandard.
(40:39):
And in other areas of our life too, right?
You know, I've done this amount of exercise.
I've chosen these healthy meal choices or I have committed and I have kept this time formy social well -being or my spiritual well -being and that is enough.
(41:01):
It doesn't have to be like everyone else's.
And it's important to know that, you know, if you're in a school setting, particularlyyour employer does not have a non -negotiable of what time you leave and it's, Andrea left
at 4 .59.
We're letting her go tomorrow.
That's not the case in a school division, right?
I mean, if you leave when the kids are there, that might be a case, right?
(41:23):
That's their non -negotiable as you're there.
But if you're staying two, three hours after you're supposed to, leaving that hour early,no one above you is going to care.
Yes.
probably going to say good for you for looking after yourself.
Get out of here.
I tell people all the time in my building, go home.
Go home.
Yes.
And, yes.
like, you're not here when everyone else is in the morning, but I'm coming at my contractat time.
(41:48):
They're like, I looked for you two hours after school.
You weren't here.
That was, you know, and I'm just sitting here and going, well, my contract says, you know.
Yeah.
all those places.
You know, I don't slam him because he's done a lot of really great things.
And I talk about him in my book coming out specifically his SpaceX, but they do sometimesset those expectations.
(42:10):
Like, you know, you hear the stories about you're expected to work this many hours, dothis many things, only do this and only do that.
Right.
And in the setting of education, it's just not true.
And that goes for your lessons.
You're going to have lessons that suck.
And again, your principle is
not gonna come down the hall and say, give me your keys.
They're gonna say, well, what do you need?
(42:31):
What did you learn from it?
What can we do to support you?
And how can we try it again?
Right?
Because it's the beauty of what you're doing in educating kids, you educate yourself to inwhat works best for them.
And it's recognizing that.
we're at 45 minutes in here, Andrea, I have to ask if we were to take this conversation,take what you stand for, what are you hoping people action in their lives tomorrow from
(42:53):
your message?
Yeah, that's a great question.
It's kind of overwhelming sometimes to know where to actually start.
And I would really like to just direct people back to that resource that I'm going to besharing with you all, hopefully in the show notes as well.
It just starts with your core values.
It kind of just gives you an inventory.
Where am I at right now?
What are my core values?
(43:13):
Is this where my burnout is coming from?
Is something in misalignment?
And we can't really make a map if we don't know where we're going.
So that's just a really good first step that will take, I don't know, a few minutes,depending on how much time you wanna to look at it.
But it'll help you really figure out just where you're at right now, how things might bemisaligned, and then from there, action steps can be made to how to bring your life more
(43:39):
in alignment.
Yeah, I think that would be the big one.
absolutely, Alchemists this will be linked in the description.
And this is a great time to actually talk about my Earth workshop that's out there or myEarth Microcourse.
So this is all about finding your values as well.
And this is a special offer to anybody listening.
Right now it's a $100 course, 50 % off for $50.
If you listen to this episode and email.
(44:02):
Email me and saying, hey, I listened to Andrea Perry's episode.
You just talked about this.
I'd love that discount.
I'll give you another 25 bucks off.
So now it only costs you $25 to take a micro course on finding your core values.
You get a 30 minute guided presentation from me along with 10 downloadable PDFs on how todiscover and implement and operationalize your core values.
Leverage us, leverage the work of Andrea, leverage my work, discover who you are and whereyou need to go with it.
(44:28):
Now, Andrea, I do have to ask what is your future look like?
Yeah, my future looks interesting right now because when this episode airs, we'll beadjusting to life as a family of four.
So we've got our, thank you.
We have our baby arriving in December.
So life is going to look a little bit different at that point, but I'm still continuing toserve teachers here from my home office.
(44:54):
And just again.
during this season of life, growing our family.
This is what I'm able to contribute to the world of education.
And I just, so excited to continue educating and supporting our teachers during this time.
As I stay home with my little ones for now, who knows what else the future holds afterthat.
I feel like this is the year of babies.
(45:16):
Everyone I'm talking to is having one and it's September 4th at the date that we'rerecording this.
And we have our second one to become a family of four coming on September 10th here.
And so.
Congratulations!
Yeah, second girl coming.
And at the time when people are listening to this, second girl is now alive and I'mheavily outnumbered three to one.
That being said, it is that world, right?
(45:37):
Yeah, yeah, there you go.
But great to hear, yeah.
well then, okay, there you go.
So yeah, that does it.
Yeah, thank you.
But you know, I love to hear, regardless of where you're going, the passion stays.
with wanting to support people to help them find joy in the things that they're doing.
And with that is a very powerful message.
(45:58):
So how can our listeners get in touch with you to discover more and unpack this?
Definitely.
There's a couple ways that you can all contact me.
You are definitely welcome to visit my website.
It's www .thrivewithandreaperry .com and I know there's going to be a link to that aswell.
And through that website you can send me an email or can email me directly.
(46:19):
It's my first name, Andrea at thrivewithandreaperry .com.
You can also use the website to schedule a free consultation.
I love chatting with teachers and just seeing where you're at and see if...
It could be a good fit to support you through this.
So lots of ways.
Hope I get to talk to many of you.
love that.
Alchemists, whether you're in the realm of education, realm of leadership, or justlistening for fun, hopefully you've learned that there are ways to bring joy into
(46:43):
everything that you do and discover why you do things.
Andrea, thank you so much for taking the time to join me on the Elemental Educatorpodcast.
Thank you, it's been a pleasure.
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