✋Hello, my name is Stephany and I am a Type A Teacher.
Chances are if you clicked on this post, you are one of the many Type A educators working towards the betterment of students somewhere, somehow. Welcome to the club!
I’m an 8th-year educator in K-12 public schools and have struggled with merging my Type A personality with career sustainability in the ever-changing and growing world of education.
Don’t get me wrong, Type A personalities can (and often do) rock a classroom, and can navigate complicated grade-level and school culture like no one’s business. But sometimes we just make our lives way more complicated than they need to be. Let’s dissect this further.
Principals LOVE hiring Type A Teachers! Here’s why:
- We have incredible ambition and are motivated individuals
- We can’t stand when a system is inefficient and and take the initiative to fix the problem
- We are organized A.F.
- We are reliable and fabulous at multi-tasking
- We are planners and leaders which means we are typically grade level leaders or content leaders (or both!)
See what I mean? Type A Teachers provide so much to their classroom and school communities. The challenge? These dynamic qualities can also be the downfall of our mental and physical well being.
While Type A Teachers are “Achievers” and constantly pushing for more for our students, we also can find ourselves drowning in the following categories:
- Over-competitiveness (what do you mean my kids’ scores are now second place in the district?)
- High Stress (physically tense and unable to relax…Netflix and Chill? Yeah right!)
- Lack of patience; edginess (finding yourself snapping at students, coworkers, your own family, and even yourself…)
Have you found yourself guilty of these symptoms? I have, and continue to struggle with them. Although I’ve learned a few tips and tricks to slide around my Type A-ness, the biggest takeaway I’ve come up with is to think, “WWTBD?” You know the phrase… “What Would Type Bs Do?” We all have our “Type B” BFF Teacher(s) at school and, although the clutter on their desk might make a Type A Teacher cringe, they have some key elements about teaching figured out that we typically struggle with. We should turn to them to enlighten us with their strengths just like we would do for them!
Let’s examine the Type B Teacher personality a bit more in-depth. Type B Teachers…
- Typically know their strengths and abilities and set realistic and steady goals to get a task accomplished
- Are more accepting of failure and as a result are more reflective in their practice
- Are more even-tempered in stressful situations
- Enjoy the the process because they are present in their situation (not thinking of all the topics on their to-do list they want to tackle)
- Typically live more stress-free and balanced lives
- Are usually more innovative because they have less stress blocking that mental energy!
Don’t all those qualities sound nice? Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting we Type A Teachers abandon all of our ways… you will still have to pry all my web-based productivity tools from my cold, dead hands. However, there are Type B Teachers that are achieving incredible results and leading active change in their communities all while living more balanced lives! We both have a lot to learn from one another!
Ready, Set, Action!
Although there are many ways in which Type Bs make their lives more balanced, I adopted a self-checking tool in my fifth year of teaching that helped me begin thinking more along this mindset.
And here it is…“Is this worth making an ‘A’?”
Prior to this realization, I would complete every. single. task with 100% of my energy and focus… from cute Pinterest-inspired classroom decor, to perfectly crafted anchor charts, and even cute student checklists. Sounds great, but with all of the mental energy given to such menial tasks, I found myself less focused on providing a patient and positive environment for my students in my classroom, which is exactly where my energy is most needed.
The first step to working this mantra into action was figuring out what I felt comfortable with getting a “B” in.
Personally, I learned I’m okay with getting a “B” in things like classroom decorations, filling out school-required paperwork that I know won’t impact student learning, and preparing student materials that students can help prepare themselves (I teach science so this was a big one for me). For my own sanity, I NEED to get an “A” in tidiness, materials organization, and student systems.
Every teacher’s ideas of what should be deemed an “A-tasks” or a “B-tasks” will be unique to them, but figuring out what they are will help everyone save time and have the mental capacity to focus on what they do best — teach.
I’ve crafted a tool that helps me figure out what tasks, initiatives, and projects are worth my energy. It’s not perfect, but I hope it helps some of you Type A Teachers figure out where to start finding your balance.
*This tool is not 100% foolproof! It’s sometimes easy to reason that all tasks somehow improve student learning; try to be discerning for your sake, and for your students’ sake. Also, passion projects don’t work in this tool! If you were asked to coach basketball and that’s something that brings you joy, just do it!
Lets face it: ALL teachers are incredible and we ALL need to work on finding balance to commit to a lasting and impactful career for our students. Help us continue the conversation, comment to share other tips on how you keep you Type A tendencies in check!
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Stephany Soto has been an educator in K-12 schools for 8 years and currently teaches middle school science in East Palo Alto, CA. Stephany also co-founded TeachOn, a network and resource hub that strives to support educators in personal well-being and professional growth. In her free time, Stephany enjoys vegetable gardening, reading, fitness classes, and cuddling with her pups.
