To be an effective teacher in this day and age, you’ve got to be mentally tough.
You’ve got to be able to say no.
You’ve got to be able to follow your classroom management plan as written and maintain a calm disposition.
If you’ve struggled with these areas in the past, and are looking for ways to strengthen your resolve, we’ve got you covered.
What follows are six disciplines anyone can do that are proven to help.
1. Sit in silence.
If you’ve become addicted to your phone, the internet, or social media—and thus have weakened impulse control—this first one is surprisingly difficult.
You can meditate if you wish or just be with your thoughts. But the act of doing nothing will help revert you to a calmer, more patient, and disciplined state of mind.
For a greater challenge, do it with your phone within reach.
2. Turn off your phone.
Taking regular breaks from your phone will put you back in touch with your natural rhythms. As long as you know where your loved ones are, then just shut it down.
Go do something productive. Make something with your hands. Go for a walk in nature or work in your yard.
Slow your body and your mind will follow. If you’re swayed by the pull of your phone, then you’ll likely be more easily swayed by your students.
3. Read more.
Some people report that they can’t concentrate enough to read anymore, at least not nearly as long as they were once able.
But reading strengthens the mind. It trains focus and reduces stress. The key is to do it every day and for longer periods of time until you’re able to read for at least 30 minutes nonstop.
Anything that instills discipline will make you tougher in the classroom and more able to stand your ground.
4. Exercise.
Turn off the music and podcasts. Don’t watch television. Just focus on your breath or let your mind wander.
You may also want to challenge yourself by doing exercises that take mental strength, like planks, squat holds, and yoga poses.
Time yourself for each and push the envelop every workout.
5. Take cold showers.
This one hurts. It also takes some time getting used to. You may want to start with slowly cooling the water at the end of your showers.
In time, you’ll be able to jump right in at the coldest setting. Cold exposure has many physical benefits, but it also takes lots of mental strength and courage.
According to research, the pain of cold showers triggers chemicals in the brain that counteract the discomfort, leaving you calmer and happier for hours afterward.
6. Fast.
Waiting until you’re hungry before eating also has many physical benefits, but it also clears the mind and sharpens thinking.
The mental strength comes from delaying gratification, which has been shown to correlate with success.
I recommend eating twice per day. No snacking. Preferably with a 16-hour window of no eating.
Note: Please check with your doctor before doing numbers 4-6.
Try Just One
What’s great about these disciplines is that the benefits go beyond strengthening your ability to be a consistent leader for your students.
They’re also associated with better well-being and fulfillment.
They flood the body with healthy endorphins and counteract the negative effects of stress and binging on screens and unhealthy food.
Start with just one idea above and stick with it for at least two weeks. It may take that long to overcome your resistance.
Once you do, however, once you get comfortable, it’s a sign you’ve gotten mentally tougher.
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Thank you for these suggestions! I’m going to try one at a time, starting with the sitting in silence. Every time I have to use this strategy in class I struggle more than the kids! It is the longest minute of my life when I have to be silent as a teacher and yet I know it is a mighty strategy/ skill to have. Never thought to practice it! Thanks for all you do!!
With the exception of cold showers, I practice each of these techniques and can attest to the emotional and cognitive benefits. Thank you for this reminder that great instruction begins with self-care and self-discipline. It is as easy to forget these habits as it is to include them in one’s daily routine.
I used to do all of these, but have lost consistency.
Thanks for the great reminder.
Thanks for the nice reminder.
We’re rarely bored while doing nothing, so it’s a nice reminder to at least get away from electronic devices.
#3 is going to be tough – I don’t think I can do all of my exercises without a podcast, but maybe I’ll try starting the first 5 or 10 minutes first without, and then raise it from there.
I loved reading this. Thank you.
Thank you for these great ideas! This article is a keeper. I’m sure I will refer to these health ideas throughout the school. I needed to hear these suggestions before I start my whirlwind school year.
I am already applying some of them and they work! Thank you for sharing. It’s nice to see that I am heading in a good direction 🙂
Thanks for this great article! I do some of these things however I am going to try them all! Thank you for letting us know the mental and physical benefits.
These are great strategies, but fasting is one that will not help me. Food keeps me going when teaching, if I don’t eat, then I feel tired and can’t concentrate, which is much needed when teaching all day everyday.
You could try eating food that doesn’t break down so fast and therefor your appetite is satiated for longer lengths. At least that works for me :>).
I eat with a 20 hour window usually and it has done wonders for my health – but you can’t eat lots of junk food as well or you’ll be in trouble!
Thanks for the timely reminder.
And yes. Yoga and sitting silently works. Both are good for grounding.
I might try add the cold showers. 😊
Love your articles. 🙏🏻
Always worth a read and valuable.
Many of these techniques have been around for as long as mankind has been in existence. Sometimes the shortest way to progress is via regress.
Hi Michael,
A question about the 16 hour fast.
I’m not sure how eating with a sixteen hour window is practical. If we need 7 or 8 hours sleep a night for good health surely this means the two meals would be breakfast as soon as we wake in the morning and the second meal would be taken just before we go to bed. Won’t that be detrimental to health?
Hi Gary,
You eat within an eight-hour window – 11am to 7pm – for example. You fast the other hours.
I’m adult onset type 1 diabetic and this eating pattern makes a huge, positive difference in my health.
Thanks, Mike.
Thank you for these reminders! I can improve in each of these areas. This came at just the right time for me. I’ve been recently pondering ways to become more mentally awake.
Thank you for the tips to stay tougher Michael Linsin!
It’s so interesting to me that you mentioned eating only twice per day. I recently started weightlifting, so I’m trying to force myself to eat more, but before that, I really found that eating twice a day helped me get to sleep earlier, think clearer, and move faster. So it’s been hard for me to eat more since I’m burning more calories. I’m going to try eating bigger meals twice per day. Thanks!
I can’t even express how exercising has changed my teaching world and just who I am as a person. For the first time, I’m finding it easier to see teaching as a job rather than my identity, and I think that the mental strength that comes with exercising has really contributed to that! Great article.