A white sign reading YOU GOT THIS sits on a wooden table next to a cell phone and a laptop resting on a flowered case.

Remember your WHY!

Educators – I am sure you’ve heard it many times before when you’ve shared your profession: “It takes a special person…” There is SO much truth in that statement – you ARE a special person.

During trying times, as a new year unfolds filled with new challenges and deadlines, take a deep breath and remember your WHY.

Remember why you started. What or who makes you get out of bed in the morning? What is your purpose? 

It is easy to feel burnt out or overwhelmed. But when you stop and remember why you do it, the burden can feel a little lighter. Especially if you see yourself getting closer and closer to your goals.  

A day may be tough, but then you get a message from a parent letting you know their child came home excited to share what they learned. Perhaps you feel like everything is going wrong, but then your student test scores prove otherwise. 

Do not be so hard on yourself! Think back at that eager college graduate longing for a classroom filled with eager children. You are there now. Claim back some of that energy. 

Take a moment to reflect each night and look back at your why. 

Do you know your why?


About the author

headshot of woman smiling with brown hair wearing a green lace blouse.

Marissa Will is the mother of two, Olivia (5) and Logan (3). Writing was her first passion: she’s a freelance writer and a Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication alumna. Will is currently educating the future leaders of tomorrow: She has spent the past eight years teaching third grade with a master’s degree in elementary education from Northern Arizona University-Yuma.

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