Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
If you're an educator
, that's passionate, but you're
tired and you're burnt out andyou're wondering what to do next
, this is the show for you.
We're going to learn together,we're going to recharge together
and we're going to growtogether so you can be the best
you and serve your students andyour community to the best of
your ability.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
What's going on pod
Welcome back.
What's going on pod.
Welcome back to.
That Was Memphis.
Welcome back to the Teachers'Ed Podcast.
I'm your host, edward DeShazer.
Teachers' Ed Podcast is theplace where the best and
brightest in education come tobe inspired, to connect, to
learn and to grow.
Before we dive in, I want toremind you if you are enjoying
(00:43):
this show, if you've beenlistening for a while and you do
not, please take a second tosubscribe.
Please leave a review on ApplePodcasts and if you're watching
on YouTube, go ahead and hitthat little thumbs up button.
If you're listening on apodcast, you can't see it, but
I'm pointing down.
I think that's where it's goingto be at, but hit that thumbs
up button and subscribe to thechannel.
It helps more educators findthis podcast and join this
(01:05):
amazing community.
Today's episode is a little bitdifferent.
This is a relaunch.
We are starting fresh.
My day ones have been rockingwith me.
You know I haven't been doingepisodes in a bit, but we are
starting fresh with moreintention, more honesty and I
(01:26):
don't even say more honestybecause I try to keep it as real
as I can but a bigger missionBringing on more guests.
We're trying to really moveonto the YouTube platform.
I sound like a 70-year-old theYouTube platform because I don't
know and understand it so muchthat I say the YouTube and put
that in front of it.
But we're trying to be biggerthere because I want you to be
able to see the incredibleguests that we have on and not
(01:47):
just hear their voices.
But today's episode I'm sorryto let you down, it is just me
and I am going to spend my timetalking directly to you.
So if you are new here, welcometo the Teachers Ed podcast, and
if you've been with me sinceday one, thank you for rocking
with me.
Thank you for showing up hereweek after week.
(02:08):
I appreciate you more than youknow.
So for those that don't know me, why don't you reintroduce
myself or introduce myself?
My name is Edward DeSager, I ama school leader, I am a speaker,
I am a consultant, I am anauthor and I'm just an advocate
for education and I'm theexecutive director of a K-8
(02:31):
school in Milwaukee, wisconsin.
Shout out to GHTCA and my teamthere, and under my leadership,
we took that school from onestar to four star.
And I say we because we have aphenomenal team, our team, from
every single person that's apart of it, and there's people
that are not there anymore, thatwere very, very important to
our school, going from one starto four stars, so I can never
(02:53):
take credit for that.
I was just a person that wasleading the ship, as they were
doing all the hard work, soshout out to them.
But we did that, and we did notdo that by focusing solely on
test scores and data points.
We did it by focusing on thepeople.
The people are our greatestasset.
I've been in education for over20 years, starting year 21 here
(03:16):
shortly.
I've seen the good, I've seenthe bad and I've seen everything
in between.
I don't think there's anythingthat I have not seen in
education.
I've been in the classroomswhere lights flicker and
ceilings are leaking, and I'vebeen in schools where the tech
is top tier.
(03:37):
In both of those cases, thebiggest difference maker is
always the educator in the room.
I started this podcast duringCOVID because I know educators
needed to feel seen.
I know educators were tired.
I know they were like what'sgoing on, and I wanted to create
a space where teachers andprincipals and school staff
(03:57):
could feel seen, heard andsupported Because, let's be real
education is one of the hardestprofessions out there, and too
often we're expected to carrythe weight of the world with a
smile on our face and no time tobreathe.
This podcast is my way ofsaying that I see you, it's my
(04:20):
way of saying that you matterand it's my way of letting you
know that we got your back.
Let's talk about summer.
Summer was wild, you know, andreally one of the best ways
possible.
I had the honor of leadingleadership trainings in St Paul,
minnesota, and Austin, texas.
(04:43):
In Nashville, tennessee.
I also had the honor of doingsome breakout sessions in Las
Vegas, more breakout sessions inNashville, and it was just such
an incredible group ofeducators that I had the
opportunity to connect with, notonly share my story, but I get
to hear their stories andconnect with them.
(05:03):
And every city was different,but the energy, the heart of the
people, it was all the same.
I met school leaders who werehungry to change their buildings
, teachers who were looking forstrategies to bring life back to
their classrooms and someentire teams just trying to
figure out how to make this yearbetter than the last.
(05:25):
And here's what I saw acrossthe board.
Number one we're not waiting ona system to save us Newsflash.
This system ain't going to saveus.
There's some challenges outthere.
There's money being frozen,there's leadership that is
wavering and it's tough fromstate to state.
But we are not waiting on asystem to save us.
(05:47):
We are not waiting for perfectconditions, but we are building
culture, we're buildingcommunity where we stand with
what we have, and it's powerfulwhen you operate where your feet
are at.
But I also saw that people aretired and this is during the
(06:08):
summertime not just like oh, I'mtired, but they are worn out,
not just physically butemotionally, mentally, and some
of us are just spiritually worndown.
There's a shift that'shappening.
Educators are no longerpretending like burnout is
normal, but we're saying we needto do this work differently.
(06:29):
And that just kind of leads meright into something that has
been a deeply personal journeyof mine, and that is my sobriety
.
I have now been sober for overtwo years two years and a little
over two months, to be exactfor over two years two years and
a little over two months, to beexact and, if I'm being honest,
(06:49):
it's difficult, but it's one ofthe most important journeys
that I've been on, because therewas a time when alcohol was my
way of numbing out.
You know I wasn't drinkingevery day.
I wasn't drinking a lot, to behonest, I wasn't, because I knew
there was times where I wasdoing all that and falling apart
, but it's how I escaped.
(07:11):
It's how I coped with stress.
It's how I coped with thepressure and the expectations of
being a school leader.
But the truth of the matter isyou can only run from yourself
for so long.
Getting sober forced me to sitwith stuff that I used to avoid.
(07:32):
It forced me to navigate thingsI didn't want to feel, but it
also gave me clarity.
It gave me strength.
It gave me to show up, gave mestrength.
It gave me to show up.
It gave me the ability to showup, not just for my school and
for my family, but for me and Ishare this because I know
(07:54):
there's someone listening thatcould be struggling too, and
maybe their struggle is notalcohol.
Maybe that struggle is withanxiety, maybe that struggle is
with depression, with stress, ormaybe that struggle is with
anxiety.
Maybe that struggle is withdepression, with stress, or
maybe that struggle is justfeeling like something is off
and you cannot quite put afinger on what that is.
But I want you to know that youare not alone, you are not weak,
(08:14):
and there is no shame in sayingthat.
I need help.
If you're watching on YouTube,my cat just jumped all over my
back, so this is why you got towatch on YouTube, because these
dudes just run the house.
They do what they want.
But let me say this reallyclear for the people that are in
the back we have to stop actinglike being overwhelmed is just
(08:38):
part of this job.
That is not normal.
That is not sustainable.
You being exhausted everysingle day does not make you a
hero.
It makes you human.
We keep saying do it for thekids, don't forget your why, but
what about doing it for you?
Fire in their students?
(09:01):
A drained principal can't leadwith vision.
If we really care about ourkids, we have to start caring
about ourselves too, and thatstarts with checking in not just
on the data, but on your ownwell-being.
That was something that I hadto do a deep check on.
So if you need rest, I need youto take it.
If you need support, I need youto ask for it.
(09:22):
You need support.
I need you to ask for it.
If you need to say no, I needyou to say it, because your
mental health matters so muchmore than that lesson plan.
It matters so much more thanthat state assessment.
It matters so much more thaneverything else that is going on
under that building.
But here we are.
(09:43):
It's August.
That means the back-to-schoolemails, the back-to-school sales
, open houses, new staff, newstudents, orientations and,
let's be honest, that means newstress.
I have talked to so manyeducators over the past few
weeks and almost all of them arecarrying some level of anxiety
(10:07):
right now, and I get it.
You're trying to savor thatlast cookout of the summer, but
in the same breath, you're alsomaking these mental checklists,
you're making those seatingcharts and you're planning that
supply order in your head.
But let me say this directlyright to you Breathe, take a
(10:27):
deep breath.
You are going to be okay.
You've done hard things beforeand you're going to do this too.
You don't have to start theschool year perfect.
You just have to start withintention and you have to give
grace, not just for yourstudents, but I need you to give
(10:49):
grace to yourself.
August is a wild month foreducators.
There's people that are back inschool already.
You're trying to be present insummer mode, but your brain is
already back in the classroom,back in your office, back in the
school building.
You know you're at brunchthinking about bulletin boards.
You know you're laying in bedvisualizing how to introduce
(11:10):
those procedures.
Like that anxiety is real and Iwant you to know that feeling
that anxiety is normal.
But I want you to remember thisyou don't have to come out of
the gate sprinting, being andgetting well being that's not
being rest.
Getting rest can still beproductive.
(11:33):
Taking time for yourself isn'tlazy, it's wise.
You're not behind.
You're preparing and guess what?
Your energy matters more thanthat seating chart that's going
to be on the wall.
How you show up feeling on dayone is more important than where
every pencil bin is labeled orhaving all the names on the
(11:56):
little plates for the kids whenthey walk on their desk.
So slow down, breathe deep andgive yourself permission to
start softly.
I want to take a second and justkind of lean into school
culture.
I know we'll talk about that ina few episodes.
(12:16):
I talk with other people.
I have a toolkit the buildingbridge is.
That is a toolkit for educatorswho are building school culture
.
That was all the workshops Iworked on, just getting us being
intentional, but I know thatschool culture has really become
this buzzword, but let me breakit down as plain and simple as
I can for you.
(12:36):
Culture is how people feel whenthey come to work.
Culture is the tone in themorning announcements.
It is how staff meetings feel.
It is whether people feel safeto speak up.
It is whether mistakes are metwith support or met with shame.
Culture is not just pizza onFridays.
(13:00):
It's not just that casual dressdown jean day.
Culture is built every singleday in the way that we treat
people.
If you are a leader, your jobis to create a culture where
people don't just survive butthey thrive, and if you're a
teacher, you are shapingclassroom culture that is going
(13:21):
to stick with your students foryears.
Culture is everything, and ifwe want better outcomes in our
school, we have to start withculture, and I'll go more into
this in future episodes.
But as I get ready to wrap upthis relaunch episode, I want to
speak directly to everyeducator that is listening.
(13:44):
You are doing sacred work and Iknow it doesn't always feel
like that when you're covering aclass for the third time in a
week, or when you're diggingthrough a box of broken
headphones, or when you'regetting cussed out by a student.
But you are planting seedsevery single day.
You are helping students shapehow they see themselves.
(14:08):
You are helping how they movein the world.
You are helping how they buildconfidence.
You're helping how they buildcompassion, you're helping how
they build character, and that'spowerful.
So, as this school year begins,I want you to remember that you
are more than your role.
You are more than that teacher.
You're not just that teacher.
(14:28):
You're more than that principal.
You're not just that principal.
You are a whole human being andyou deserve joy.
You deserve support and, mostimportantly, you deserve peace.
I want us to make this year themost intentional one yet, and
if anything in this episodespoke to you, do me a favor,
share with a colleague.
(14:49):
Shoot them the link post onyour story.
Let's keep building theteacher's ed community of
educators who want to lead withheart, who want to grow with
purpose.
So, thank you.
Thank you as you get ready tohead back to school.
Some of you are listening tothis and you're like we're
already back in school.
Thank you from the bottom of myheart.
Please, as I wrap this up, makesure you subscribe, make sure
(15:12):
you leave a review, connect withme on Instagram at Edward
DeShazer.
If you also need any of myresources, please, you can head.
Learn more.
You can learn more about me.
You can head towwwedwarddeshazerorg.
This is the Teacher's EdPodcast.
Thanks for riding with me.
Thanks for joining, welcomeback and let's make this the
(15:34):
best year yet.
Talk to you soon.