TL;DR:
- Positive thinking has many benefits for your physical and mental health.
- Challenge yourself to always see the positive, even when it is difficult to do so.
The writing below is a letter I sent to my staff because not all things have to be about data in our schools. I care about our staff and I care about every single educator that works in our schools across the globe. I have so much respect for teachers and what they are doing through this pandemic. And I just hope my fellow administrators are taking care of their staff. Educators are true heroes!
I don’t consider myself a writer, but I write often and have done so for over 30 years. I have a ton of spiral notebooks of writings and a folder on my personal drive with just as many writings. Occasionally, I write for the Teach Better Team and post to the Teach Better Blog. I don’t post everything I write, but from time to time, I like to share my thoughts with the staff (and beyond) on something I’ve written that will also be posted.
As I usually do, I wrote a short piece on mental health this time around. I am constantly reading articles pertaining to mental health and I routinely check in with the Hope For The Day Foundation, which is an organization that empowers people to have conversations regarding mental health. I came across some research that I used to put together some thoughts. Here it goes…
I recently read that Cortisol, a stress hormone that takes a toll on the hippocampus, also impairs your immune system and has loads of other harmful effects.
One sure research-validated way of boosting your immune system is positive thinking. Think about it: being positive, thinking positive, and showing gratitude can have an impact (for the better) on your mental and physical health. That doesn’t seem too difficult to do and the benefits seem worth it.
It’s easy to be negative and our minds naturally default to the negative, but if maintaining physical and mental health is important, it is imperative that we change our mindset to be more positive. If you care about yourself and your well-being, you owe it to yourself to be positive. We know that we learn more, grow more, and thrive more in a positive environment. Don’t be afraid to be positive! One of the easiest ways to be positive is to show gratitude towards others. When you do this, it makes two people happy and has a trickle effect that is endless.
It's easy to be negative and our minds naturally default to the negative, but if maintaining physical and mental health is important, it is imperative that we change our mindset to be more positive. Click To TweetChallenge yourself to always see the positive in everything around you, even when it is difficult to do so.
When doing this, you’re not being weak, you are showing how strong you really are and how capable you are of overcoming obstacles. There is power in positivity! I hope we all harness the power of positivity and see how it can make a difference in who we are, what we do, and what we stand for. Our positivity has a lasting effect on others around us, and for educators, that means our positivity impacts the lives of our students. This is our goal as educators and our positivity will make the difference we are all seeking to make in our careers and lives.
Take care of yourself and spread positivity as much as you can.
Keep being awesome!
Brian
[scroll down to keep reading]
ABOUT BRIAN FAULKNER
Brian Faulkner is the principal at Heineman Middle School in Huntley School District 158. My focus has been simple from the very start of my career; give students what they need in order to be successful. I fully embrace teacher leadership and a shared leadership philosophy and look for creative ways our staff can collaborate, share, observe one another, and continuously improve their craft. Saying I love what I do is an understatement. I’m on a mission to make a difference in the lives of each member of our learning community. #team158
