An Obsession or Love for the Job: My Journey

My first two years as an administrator I was obsessed with my job. I wanted to learn everything so that I could move upward in the organization. My quest for knowledge meant that I volunteered or agreed to do everything! I was on every committee, went to every sports game (weekends included), I went to every board meeting, I even joined our parent/professional organization. I arrived to work before 6 a.m. and was leaving after 9 p.m. (with a 90 minute round-trip drive). This obsession made my "To Do List" for everyday something that I could not escape. At night trying to relax, meant thinking about what was happening tomorrow. I was so focused on tomorrow, that I did not experience or fully engage with today. I was exhausted emotionally as well as physically. I was the first one arriving to school and the last to leave. I was sprinting through a race and am not sure that I was 100% available for anything. I know I did not listen to all conversations with a completely open-mind and I know that I did not reflect. When people asked me if I loved my job, I always responded with yes, but now I know that I was obsessed. I am now in my fourth year as an administrator, in a completely different district, in a completely different type of administration, and I can say that I love my job! I think I work just as hard as I did in my earlier years, but now I am moving at a healthy pace. I am taking breaths before I react, I am listening to people with an open-mind, and I am reflecting each day, even multiple times a day. I am taking time to do things that I enjoy (Twitter chats, EdCamps, reading educational books) or am learning to enjoy (writing a blog). Doing these activities are helping me to grow in ways that I could never imagine. Instead of searching to learn "Everything" about an organization, I am learning how to be a better leader. This shift in thought, has helped me to fall back in love with my job and truly enjoy each day. I have heard many times that you need to, "Take time for yourself" or have something to do for "Fun." For me it was deeper then that. I needed to shift my thinking. I needed to realize that I was moving at a pace that did not allow for me to enjoy what I was doing. By slowing down, I see that I have time to do the things I love. These things that I do for fun, no longer interfere with my "To Do List" for tomorrow.