Teachers: Should I stay or should I go blog?

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Teachers: Should you stay or should you go?

How to plan your next steps, whichever way you go

(Teachers Scroll to the Bottom for a FREE Journal)

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Written by Coach Tina

Last Updated: 07/11/2024

Choosing a teacher career change, or designing a more sustainable career?

As a former teacher turned resume writer and career coach, I often see teachers in agony over this question. This is not the same with people in other professions I work with, who seem to have a cleaner line between themselves and their careers. In fact, they might have difficulty understanding the teacher’s dilemma at all.

Teaching is very, very hard to leave, and requires a lot of reframing of beliefs, among other things. This is likely because the role of teacher easily overrides your identity- and the culture around this is so strong and reinforced on the daily. It could be because our clients are children, your heart and sense of care are activated to a deep level.

Maybe also because we became teachers due to our sense of service, optimism, and connection to the future.

So it really feels like giving up on something more than a job when you’re ready to go.

But the truth is, it is a job. A career. But not WHO you are.

You were someone else before you became a teacher.

Teaching likely improved your life and helped you progress in ways you’d never reverse.

Those pieces will stay with you and enhance your life moving forward; they will not be erased if you transition to another job. In fact, they are your strength to lean on.

And- your sense of service, optimism, and connection to the future have a place in the adult world. They need support, clarity, and encouragement just as much as the kids!

Below I answer a teacher’s question, and outline what I would do if I had taken a school year to prepare for a transition - either to a new school or a new field.

➡️ Question: “How can I overcome the anxiety around making the decision and find the courage to quit my job, despite the trauma I've experienced making it difficult to function daily?”

My Answer:

The big "should I stay or should I go?" question.

One thing is for sure- all parts of you know going back in the same situation and with the same way of being in that situation is not safe for you.

So if you were to continue, it would need new circumstances for you. The same position, but a different mindset, level of attachment, and dedication to a committed change. For example:

1. Replacing extra weekday and weekend prep and plan hours with hours spent planning and designing your next stage. These hours can include:

a. Getting support to work with a career coach (try your alma mater) to explore your possibilities and job options.

b. Gathering all evidence and metrics to beef up your portfolio and resume.

c. Organizing and saving all of your intellectual property and resources and preparing it for your move.

d. Setting a hard date for applying to new positions (Jan- Feb and Sept-Oct for noneducation, April- August for education).

e. Draft your resignation letter. (Click Here for example resignation letters)

f. Request and collect your references and recommendations.

G. Reflect on your accomplishments and strengths. Make a list, buy a journal just for this and cover it with your strengths. If you’re ready for a new career, make a section for transferable strengths. Then read them out loud every day. Memorize your top 5, and say them like you own them. This is good for rebuilding your confidence and also preparing for both your resume rewrite and your interviews.

2. Creating and designing a physical and mental health regime that is sustainable and you can lean on during your job search, transition, and next position/career.

Your body and mind are telling you they need a change of some sort, and this point in your journey is perfect to honor them.

(Click for a simple PDF worhsheet to creating healthy routines)

3. Gather and mobilize your support crew.

Make sure you have support in your corner now. Formalize this and nurture this. People not in education or former teachers in non-teaching jobs if you are switching careers are ideal for this group. Why? They are not versed in teacher culture, so you won’t hear “No one will hire you with an education degree,” or “You’re JUST a teacher.” This part that makes sense to you, does not make sense in other professions.

4. Bring a different mindset to your day-to-day at this same position. Reflect on:

a. Where can you untangle and detach?

b. How can you look at this like a job, not an identity?

(Click to read “What Happens when your career becomes your whole identity).

c. What enculturation pieces do you need to unlearn? which pieces of the culture keep you down the most?

d. How can you focus on the fundamentals of your responsibilities? (No more than 3 areas of focus here. My Clean Shelf Journal can help with this)

5. Really consider and investigate what a sustainable career for you would look like. And most importantly what you would look like in that career. Journal on:

a. What does healthy effort, attachment, and emotional management look like for you?

b. What will you stop doing? Start? Leave behind? Take forward?

c. In your life you have left, what truly matters to you?

Personally, I leaped without a net, and did little of this, except for the very last question 5C. My answer was family, learning, and health, and that was enough recalibration to drive me in a new direction. But if I had stayed for a year and know what I know now, This is exactly what I would do.

Last thoughts and encouragement

Ultimately, the decision to go or stay can only be answered by you, in your own terms, and in a way that reflects what’s best for you and your family. I would also like to point out that the idea of only two options “stay or go,” is a typical stress response of seeing only two opposing options. There could be a third or fourth option existing in the grey areas between the two that would serve you as well. I encourage you to experiment, reconnect to your true self, and explore opportunities, connections, and support beyond your current borders.

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Move With Courage Coaching offers Résumé Writing, LinkedIn Profile Writing, Career Coaching, and Life/Mindset Coaching, all through the lens of strengthening self-belief and courage. Want your résumé written professionally? Click HERE to get started. Interested in Career Coaching? Check out my new Offers HERE.