Monday Morning Motivation (Episode 37)

The 20th installment in our series: How to Leave on Time and NEVER Take Papers Home Again … Today, we’re gonna look at why Monday mornings suck! Or do they?
Watch the YouTube video here >>> https://youtu.be/PgAQFTD2poQ

We can count on it. Sunday evening and Monday morning … our social media feed fill up with a dozen memes about how horrible Monday mornings are … but the truth is that for a while now, it’s been making us sad for teachers.

So we wanted to dive into why Mondays suck. I know I am one of those people that struggles with dreading the alarm clock. I’m tired and there is no chance to sleep in, responsibility buzzes and I gotta get going. Can’t be tardy. Gotta survive. But I want to do more than just survive.
We want to say that we love our fellow teachers, we know the feelings you have about Monday, we’ve been there, but we just can’t sit back and watch everybody so sad and complaining every week. We can all do something about our Mondays. So let’s get into it.

First off, this is about self-awareness. Do you actually want Mondays to NOT SUCK? Or do you just want to complain that they suck? Or do you know that your colleagues hate Mondays and you know you earn social kudos for tapping into how everyone else feels by complaining too?
Have you really thought about why you don’t like Mondays? Have you made a list of why you don’t like the start of each week? Do it now. That’s the first step to fixing something is actually seeing it. Put it down in front of you. What things are in your control? What things are out of your control? See what’s going to come at you, then prepare your attitude. We have control over our attitude.

And let’s be real here, there’s a lot to complain about the teaching profession today. Unions, no unions, low pay, admin that expect too much, testing testing testing, helicopter parents, kids’ shorter attention spans, single family struggles, lack of parent involvement, lower student respect, rampant after-school activities, the out-of-control entitlement attitude of students, the overall lack of respect for our profession. On and on and on. We could talk about those things, sure, but not complaining. We’re teachers. We’re better than complaining. We get crap done. We change the world every week … every day.

Every Monday, we have the opportunity to make an actual difference in the future of this world. You GET that. THAT IS EXCITING. You ARE that. Do you realize who you are? Do you remember why you became a teacher? We know the system has lots of things in your way of doing that, but you have a career where you actually get paid to change the future on Mondays. Not only the future, but you get to change each kid’s today. As much as you’re able and energized to do, you are the ones who are going to do it.
And we get to change each others’ Mondays. We already are. It really bums us out how much our attitude collaboration seems to be dragging us all down. What could Mondays feel like if we were all firing each other up and cheering each other on?!

Are we motivating each other to be stronger or are we encouraging each other to live into the criticisms of stereotypical burnt-out teachers?
So let’s get back to why Mondays suck. Maybe you’re dreading the worst class of students in your career? What if you’re on a staff that has a poisonous atmosphere? What if you’re not a morning person and hate the alarm clock?

Or is it cause you’re tired? Saturday and Sunday flew by and you’re wishing you could have another weekend. We’ve been there, for sure. Working on the weekends, working at nights, working over breaks, working over summer. No wonder we’re wanting another break to rest after our breaks … because we didn’t rest during our breaks. We need the rest. You might be burning your candle at both ends and it’s killing you.
I want to do more than just survive. I want to be around people that are more than surviving. I chuckle at some of the online complaining memes, they’re funny and I connect with them. I’m becoming more aware, though, that not all of them are just funny, they are actually tearing us down. They are making us worse instead of stronger. It reminds me of the saying, “You show me your friends, I’ll show you your future.”
You show me your memes, I’ll show you your future.
So how can our collective voice as teachers be empowering, not just for our students, but for each other?

So fellow teachers, we want to re-empower you with Monday. Each week you get a new opportunity of growing up humans who will change our world. Which means you get to go to bed Sunday night and wake up Monday morning and go to the best job in the world. Remember why you chose this calling and this calling chose you. You are awesome. You are the change. You are the ones who can encourage your fellow teachers. You can encourage your students. Your admin. Your custodians. Your parents. You are the change. So let’s stop the collective complaining and take charge of our Mondays again. We got this.