Teacher Self-Care and Life Balance: Personal Growth to Empower Educators & Avoid Burnout

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🎧 What can a documentary about a cycling hero and a top business book have to teach you about how to:

✅ Reframe mindset around standardized testing gaps

❤️ Better support students who are far below grade level?

A lot, as it turns out.

In this week's episode, I look at the key concepts from the game-changing book "The Gap and the Gain" 📚 

These key concepts can help you:

➡️ Better support students who are academically deficient, but working hard 

➡️ Help foster confidence and self-reliance in students

➡️ Learn the secret to not stressing over your never-ending "to-do "list

🏆 Get strategies to celebrate student progress and cultivate their intrinsic motivation

💡 Learn the power of a "5 Minute Pity Party" 

🔁 Change your self-talk and conversations to live more in the "gain" than "the gap."

If you've ever wanted to fuel your motivation, and that of your students by acknowledging forward momentum - don't miss this episode.

This uplifting episode will leave you feeling empowered.

Resources mentioned in this episode:
The Gap and the Gain: The High Achievers' Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success : Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

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Do you ever feel like your students are bored and disinterested during lessons? 😴 Are you frustrated with scripted curriculum that leaves no room for creativity? 😤 As teachers, we want our students to be engaged and empowered, not passive. That's where project-based learning (PBL) comes in! 💡

To dig into this student-centered teaching method, I interviewed Ryan Steuer, former engineer, turned middle school teacher turned PBL expert. Ryan is the host of the PBL Simplified podcast 🎙️, the driving force behind the best PBL resources out there, and has a mission that should set you on 🔥 

You do NOT want to miss the conversation! My favorite parts:

When Ryan breaks down some sample projects ranging from first graders to high schoolers. These ideas will set your teacher's soul on fire!

Ryan's advice on how to give students "voice and choice" without throwing them into overwhelm.

How project-based learning is GREAT for teachers and students - reinvigorate your teaching and avoid burnout by making learning relevant again! 🔥

And do not miss all the great resources that Ryan so generously shares.

CHECK OUT THESE AMAZING RESOURCES to get you started with Project Based Learning ⬇️

• Free PBL Simplified ebook - Get the basics at no cost
• PBL Simplified Book and Book Study
• YouTube video series - 52 videos explaining PBL fundamentals - also FREE
• PBL Movement online community - Online courses and support use code GRACE for 40% off

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

This week's episode is part four of our series The Ultimate Educators Handbook for Being Happier where I expand on some of the concepts in my book Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers.  THIS is the one you have been waiting for ...

🎧 Everything has been leading to this episode - where we will dive into the science AND the habits of how we can have a more positive teaching experience, right here, right now, in the circumstances that we have (not when we get our "dream class" or our "dream job"). 

Highlights of the episode include:


📻 Digging into the principle of resonance and learning that the channel we are "tuning into" really shapes our experience of life.

⁉️ The key question we need to ask ourselves to get us back on track when we're heading down a negative thought path

👀 The powerful strategy that can stop that negativity spiral in its tracks

📝 What the ideal "reflection sheet" for undesired behavior would look like

🧠 How your mental diet habits could be holding you back from the life you want more than your food diet 

and so much more!

This episode can help you connect the dots with all the other concepts we've been exploring in parts 1-3 of this series. I can't wait for you to listen 🎙️

The key 🔑, as always,  is repetition - train your brain by practicing daily joy habits. I'll even provide you with a FREE version of my Positive Mindset Habits Journal for Teachers that helps keep you on track in less than 5 minutes a day.

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

💛 Educator inspiration for the week ahead. This week's bonus episode is about those students who push your buttons the most. I pose the question: could Mother Teresa even handle this level of "spiritual practice"? 😌

Listen and PAY IT FORWARD by sharing with a colleague who might need to hear this today 🎧

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

This week's episode is part three of our series The Ultimate Educators Handbook for Being Happier where I expand on some of the concepts in my book Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers. 

🎧 Get ready teacher friends - this episode has some 🤩 magical joy practices you can start using TODAY to become a joy detective! 🕵️‍♀️

First up, understand the 🧠 science - how your brain is wired to keep you safe, not happy. Then, learn the strategies on how to override your natural tendency to be on alert for danger and drama, and seek out joy.

🌟 The real magic? 🌟 I'll teach you the 4 easy strategies to bring these habits into your classroom or your school office, where you spend so much of your day!

With these quick and fun practices, you can flex your happy muscle and ramp up your joy, even on the days when stress in banging on your door, parents are demanding, and students are bouncier than a bunch of kids after a Halloween party!

The key 🔑 is repetition - train your brain by practicing daily joy habits. I'll even provide you with a FREE version of my Positive Mindset Habits Journal for Teachers that helps keep you on track in less than 5 minutes a day.

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

A mini-episode in the Lunch Box Love Notes series to motivate and encourage educators. This episode's theme is focusing less on students trying to find a way out and "game the system, and focusing more on those trying to find a "way in."

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

What is the secret to improved student outcomes AND improved happiness for you, the teacher, all had one superpower habit at their core? And that habit was as simple as being present and getting in a "flow" state?

This episode is part two in the series of The Ultimate Educator's Handbook for Happiness where I do a deep dive into some of the habits in my book Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers. And this episode is all about:

🧘‍♀️ How to give students what they really need from you - your presence
🏀 What great teaching has in common with being a great athlete
👀 What you may be unintentionally doing that is "death to flow"
💻 How the idea that multi-tasking saves you time & energy is 100% wrong (and science proves it)
➡️ The difference between a virtuous circle of productivity and calm in the classroom, and a vicious circle of frustration and poor behavior - and what you may be unintentionally doing that contributes to it

If you've ever wanted to feel more calm and less distracted in the classroom, this episode is for you!

Resources mentioned in this episode:
For a free PDF version of the Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers Journal visit: https://www.gracestevens.com/journal
For free mindfulness resources for your classroom visit: https://www.educalme.com

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

A mini-episode in the Lunch Box Love Notes series to motivate and encourage educators. This episode's theme is "never doubt your impact."

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

What of the Ultimate Educator's Handbook wasn't about classroom management strategies, curriculum planning, or even data-driven instruction? What if what educators MOST need to learn is to avoid teacher burnout and to be happier?

In this week's episode, Grace introduces her best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers and proposes the idea that the best thing you can invest in for student outcomes and yourself is to learn the skills and habits it takes to be happier.

This jam-packed episode overflows with neuroscience-backed tips to transform your outlook and uplift your teaching.

🧠 Learn how our “happiness set point” accounts for just 50% of our joy - the rest we can control through daily habits and mindset shifts.

📈 Understand the formula: Happiness = Set Point + Circumstances + Voluntary Activities. Our habits have an outsized 40% impact!

📖 Hear the origin story behind Grace’s bestselling teacher self-help book and how it led her to inner peace. Her insights will resonate if you feel disillusioned.

🛑 Break the cycle of burnout! Grace explains hedonic adaptation - how we overestimate how happy physical items and circumstances will make us long-term. Sustainable joy comes from within.

🗒️ Discover a free downloadable PDF habit tracker to build your 5-minute daily ritual. Small consistent steps create transformation.

🌅 Listen to a simple morning routine - visualize your ideal day and make it a reality through positive intentions.

Cut through the skepticism and jump into the science! This is the first of several episodes where Grace outlines how to integrate "happy habits" into your classroom and your life every day. Dive in and share with a friend!

 
RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

Grab the 6-week FREE Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers Journal ⬇️
https://www.gracestevens.com/journal

Take the Yale  10-week class:
https://www.drlauriesantos.com/science-well-being
Get the free curriculum for high schoolers:
https://www.drlauriesantos.com/teaching-happiness

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)

Send us Fan Mail

A mini-episode for overwhelmed teachers who feel guilty that some days they only have 50% of their energy to give to students. 
I promise you, it's enough 💛

➡️ To get your FREE 🎁 PDF Guide The Professional Teacher's Guide to Saying "No" visit: www.gracestevens.com/sayno

Want to truly thrive in teaching without sacrificing your personal life?   
Check out my signature on-demand self-study course, Balance Your Teacher Life.  Complete details here: www.gracestevens.com/balance

📘 My latest (and greatest!) book:
The Empowered Teacher Toolkit
Check out the best-selling Positive Mindset Habits for Teachers book here
Beat Teacher Burnout with Better Boundaries book here

My TPT Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/grace-stevens-happy-classrooms

Wanna get social?
https://www.tiktok.com/@gracestevensteacher
https://www.facebook.com/GraceStevensTeacher
https://www.Instagram.com/gracestevensteacher

Old school: Website : www.GraceStevens.com (courses, blog & freebies!)