Ten ways for keeping excitement and enthusiasm alive during a semester

 

excitement and enthusiasm

Enthusiasm is contagious. Be a carrier.~ Susan Rabin, American author

How do you keep the excitement and enthusiasm you feel as a teacher at the beginning of the semester as you begin to settle in for the long haul?

 

I was thinking about this as I was working in the garden.  I started out full of enthusiasm, feeling I had plenty of time to work on pulling out unwanted thorny vines and prickly brambles. I was prepared: I had my trusty leather gloves, a big sunhat, and my favorite straight-edged digging shovel to pry out the knobby rhizomes of the greenvine (aka Smilax rotundfolia) after loosening the soil. (I admit to getting great satisfaction out of eliminating those gigantic rootstalks constantly producing new vines that suffocate the plants I actually want to survive.)

You can imagine what happened next. I dug and dug. Soon my muscles began to tire, the sun beat down, and sweat was running down my face.  I took a short break and stopped for water. I was feeling a bit discouraged by how slowly things were going and how much more I had to do. I stopped instead of pushing through. If I had continued digging up all those woody roots, I would have been too exhausted the next day to be of use to anyone, including myself.

As I sat there looking at the front garden, I began to realize I had already done more than I realized. It wasn’t done, but I could celebrate how I far I’d come. I was motivated to continue the attack on the invaders by seeing the results of my hard work. I realized I wasn’t going to get it all done in one day, so I made a pact with myself to work on it for the next four weekends. Fortunately, I like being outside tending the garden, so that was also a great incentive to carry on for the long haul.

How does this garden story relate to teaching and retaining enthusiasm for teaching over the semester?

First, try these five steps for keeping your excitement and enthusiasm:

  1. Look at how far you’ve already come.
  2. Celebrate your accomplishments
  3. Take time to refresh yourself.
  4. Know when to stop.
  5. Recommit to the long haul.

Second, take a look at these five additional ideas:

Check your attitude. If you feel dragged down and unenthusiastic, your class will too.  You can act enthusiastic even if you don’t initially feel it. Emotions are contagious, for good or ill. Smile. You’re triggering positive emotions, along with those feel-good chemicals serotonin and dopamine, to go along with that smile.

Share your passion. Find something in the material that captures your interest. There was a reason you studied your particular subject. Reclaim that excitement and enthusiasm. Then If you can share it through a story about yourself and why you love what you teach, so much the better.

I know a political science professor that got hooked on research at the age of 16 when the answers given by voters during door-to-door canvassing were entirely at odds with what the telephone surveys were saying. I know a paleontologist that got hooked as a young kid when a local museum created a “dig” complete with bones that had to be unburied and cleaned off. I know an English professor that still remembers the first time she read a science fiction novel that made her question if the way things are, need to be the ways things can be. What’s your story?

Take a look at your values. If you believe that what you are teaching is important, you will be better able to commit to teaching. Is there something you want your students to take away from you at the end of the year? Relax and repeat the big message. I had an enthusiastic history teacher who said many times, “The Holy Roman Empire was neither holy nor Roman nor an empire.” It was a humorous and pithy way, to sum up, the idea of what came after the fall of the actual Roman Empire.  It also turned out to be a great quotidian reminder that grandiose names don’t necessarily translate into reality.

Let go of any opposing voices. Destructive messages will drag you down. We all have some, usually, along the lines of “Who do you think you are to…?” or “You aren’t good enough to….” Replace those unhelpful voices with another one that’s up for playful exploration. Willie Nelson once said, “Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.” And, I might add, a whole lot more fun.

Practice self-compassion. I say this again and again, but it’s still true. Be kind to yourself by practicing basic self-care: Rest and get enough sleep. Eat right. Exercise. Practice mindfulness and gratitude. Socialize with friends. This is what will give you the energy you need to do your work. It’s a lot easier to maintain enthusiasm when you feel good.

As you reignite your own commitment to the material you may kindle the imagination of a student for a lifetime.

If you feel you still need help schedule a free 20-minute session with Hillary to discuss your needs.

 

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