How can teachers achieve a work life balance?

Can teachers have a work-life balance? With the demands put on them, it can sometimes seem unlikely. That’s why we’ve collected these teacher work-life balance tips.

A work-life balance is all about balancing work and home life. That much is obvious. But it’s much harder to do in reality. Sometimes, it’s just easier to prioritise busy work over the stuff we know is truly important to our health and happiness.

That can be especially true for teachers. If you’re facing the start of a new school year, juggling demanding workloads, or heading into exam season, it can sometimes seem almost impossible to achieve a work-life balance. Why do teachers work long hours? Sometimes, just to feel like they’re keeping up with the demands of their role.

How many hours teachers work can rise and fall with those demands. But to prevent burnout, and to encourage wellness, you have to try and look at your priorities. Outside of work, think about what’s most important to you. Your health, family and passions should all make up part of your everyday schedule.

Teacher work-life balance at a glance

For many teachers this can be a difficult task. To help, Hays Education’s Stephanie Croxford, herself a former teacher, has compiled a list of top tips to help teachers on their way to achieving a work-life balance.

1. Prioritise

You need to decide what is most important to you. Then, decide how to organise time to fit those things in. This is not just about prioritising work; family, interests and social life are just as important. Decide what you value more, spending a day with your friends and/or family, or preparing an all-singing, all-dancing lesson.

2. Time out

When you’ve got time off, you don’t need to work. This may be a Friday night and Saturday daytime, but whenever this may be, it’s your time to do anything but work. This will give you something to work towards each week and make you a more rested, enthusiastic teacher.

3. Time limits

It is very easy to get carried away with work. Ever spent hours at the kitchen table planning, preparing, marking and assessing until you start nodding off in your chair? To prevent this happening, set strict time limits to any out-of-hours work and stick to them. By prioritising work and sticking to time limits, you will allow yourself more free time.

4. Share

Break the taboo of prioritising life over work by discussing your own efforts to balance the two. Be seen leaving on time, talk about your downtime and ask colleagues about theirs. Let them know that it’s healthy to prioritise their own time outside of work.

5. Use the 20:80 rule

Use the hours in the day wisely. Consider when the most productive 20% of your day is – typically, you can produce 80% of your best work in this period. By figuring out when this time is, you will be able to maximise the time you spend at work.

What you need to remember about a teacher work-life balance

The key to a healthy teacher work-life balance is to set priorities, set boundaries, and understand yourself. This can help you create a life that is fulfilling to your work and home lives.

If you’re feeling overworked or run-down, we offer 10 wellbeing training courses. They’re part of our free Wellbeing First training package, helping you at no extra cost to your school. Take a look today to see how else you can help.