Ep 164: Back To School 2026: The Best Bits About The Job!

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Hello everyone, back back to
another episode of Teaching

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Sleep and repeat.
My name is Dylan.

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And my name is Hey.
Hey, Eden.

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Why are we so hyped?
Because it's 2026.

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Guys, you've made it brand new
calendar year.

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You've gone past all the long,
dark, dredgy terms of Christmas

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past, which is in the past, I
must say, and we are feeling

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good.
I hope you're hyped.

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You might be listening to this
on your way to your first day

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day back teaching and we are
here to hype you up today.

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How much of an amazing job you
do, the best things about this

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time coming up, the best things
about teaching in general, and

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why you are making a difference.
Hayden, I am hyped.

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I.
Could not be more excited.

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And you've already said it.
I'm going to say it again.

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Those dark, horrible terms are
over.

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They're also still now.
Ignore the darkness now, but

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those long dark terms with a
very short break are over.

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The longest are gone.
We are.

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We are seeing daylight ever
increasing now and I always

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remember my sister getting
confused because she said to me

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aren't all days 24 hours?
Yeah, yeah, they are.

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Yeah.
How are the days getting longer

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then?
OK, OK, right.

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And that's where we walk away.
From the comp.

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Walk away.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

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That's when I thought maybe you
should be in my Year 5 science

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lesson about the planets.
And if you're listening, yeah,

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Dylan's ripping on you.
What you gonna do about it?

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Absolutely, but I don't.
She's probably not.

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No.
It's all good.

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Just Rishi, I think, and a few
thousand others of you lovely

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people out there and make sure
you give us a new year present.

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Why not review it, share it, do
what you will.

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But Hayden, I think we need to
just start off by saying it's

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like a fresh start, isn't it?
I feel like you get 2 New Years

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when you're a teacher.
You get the new year in

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September when it's kind of hit
the ground running, off you go.

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And then you get the new year
for everyone else in the whole

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of the world, obviously, and the
Chinese New Year.

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If you're saying client, maybe
more than two, yeah, let's just

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stick to.
Fiscal year April, come April,

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great time.
And it's the end of the

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financial year and spiritual in
the sky.

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Yeah, I mean if you.
If you if you work in a school,

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to be fair, the fiscal year
actually ends now as well.

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You have to get all your orders
last orders for.

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April, yeah, last orders.
For now.

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Is it?
It is.

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Oh, isn't it?
I thought that's a thing in

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schools.
Do you work in a school like

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this?
Whereas you just.

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You have to by Christmas.
Yeah.

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Go get all your pens in for next
year, for September.

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Because it before I after April,
we can't order anything.

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But we can't order anything now
before April.

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What?
No, just give me.

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I just need glue sticks when I
need them.

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Right now, please.
Can I just have them as well in

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June like?
But what I will say, I always

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found this new year to be way
more manageable and I look

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forward to it more of anything
because it feels like we're not

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starting from scratch.
No, when it's not brand new,

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we're not getting to know our
class, We're not, you know,

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building those routines where it
becomes so tiresome.

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It's not like even just down to
the fact it's like 1516 weeks in

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the first couple of times.
You're really, really long in

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January.
I always felt like despite what

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people might think, like you can
go into school today listening

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to this and you're actually your
kids are ready as well.

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Like people are raring to go and
that can include you where you

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know where you're at and you can
hit the ground running.

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It's a decent break and the some
holidays, it's obviously a

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really good break.
But like you said, you're not,

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you've now had your class for
two terms that that it's just

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like it's such a unique time of
year where you've done the

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groundwork and they're going to
come in, they're going to feel

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as relaxed as they ever feel.
They've actually had a decent

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break after the slog.
You know what they're like at

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the end of the term.
We don't like to think about

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their behaviour in the final two
weeks of the Christmas term.

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We don't want, we just ignore
that.

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We move on from that and then
they come in and they're all

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happy.
They're happy to see you.

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Yeah, hopefully as many as many
as you can in the class they're

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happy to see.
You.

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But I do think that it's often
overlooked how important the

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breaks are for the kids.
Yeah, like often we talk about

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as teachers and you get patrols
online and you get all these

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holidays and teach like, no, we
work, blah, blah, blah.

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But also we do get a chance to
switch off.

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Like, it is nice.
There's a lot of people who over

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the Christmas period when we
went out, would be serving us.

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And they're working.
They're working late until

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Christmas.
People work constantly for the

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year.
So it's nice that we get that,

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but my goodness me, we have to
remember these kids deserve this

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time of two.
But it is all about going into

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school this week with the
children and feeling like this

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is where you can really make the
difference.

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This is why I always found it
really exciting because it felt

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like we could get straight into
it.

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This is all about momentum now.
This is all about pushing

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through.
And I found that you can start

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to see the more accelerated
progress at this time of the

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year, which is really important.
You want the kids to learn stuff

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because you've put on, you've
put in the ground works.

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There's a reason you were
knackered over Christmas.

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Hopefully you've managed to
recharge and now you start

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reaping the rewards and it's I,
I find that so exciting as a

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teacher.
You know your kids, you've got

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all those gap analysis from from
all the Christmas assessments

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that you've done.
You can start hitting the

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ground.
But I always, I don't know about

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you, but I found this
consistently through my career

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and people, some people argued
against this and said, oh, I

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don't see this.
It's not a normal I get to see,

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but I'm sure it's real, which is
I always found that so much

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learning, so much stuff that
you've been teaching in the

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previous terms sunk in when the
kids were off.

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I always found that was a thing
like things that you'd be, you'd

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think, Oh my God, I'm taking
this again and again over the

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over the last term.
You think I've really got to say

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this again?
We've done this four Times Now.

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They come back after the two
weeks off and they remember it.

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Yeah.
Do you think there's something

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to be said about like you said,
you said the breaks are

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important for the kids.
Yeah, I think, I think to a

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degree, absolutely.
Like you've got to let stuff

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rest sometimes.
Like we always talk about

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knowing when to move on, like
because we talk about maths a

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lot and mastery.
And the whole idea is you don't

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move on until you get it.
Well, actually at some point you

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have to move on.
And there'll be some children

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who don't quite get something at
that point and that and you

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think to yourself, you have to
think yourself that's OK.

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And even if they don't
necessarily, you know, make

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progress magically on their own,
over time, just things start to

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fall in place a little bit more.
And when you think about how you

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teach kids and how many links
you try and make all the time,

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sometimes through learning and
teaching something else, cogs

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just start to wear in their head
a little minute.

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They start to make those links,
like maybe they didn't quite get

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place value when you did it to
the degree you went to.

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But then further down the line
when you do some problem

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solving, they integrate some
place value and actually

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something makes.
Sense now just clicks.

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I've been doing place value
actually this whole time in my,

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in my other units of work,
etcetera.

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Something does just click and
they do make that link

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themselves.
So I think there is absolutely

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something to be said and also
just through rest and thinking

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about something else.
It there is something to?

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Say that just lets it settled in
your mind.

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I'll be very interested,
interested in the psychology

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behind it.
But I absolutely agree with what

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you're saying because I do think
sometimes kids have a break and

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you think, oh God, I've got to
go back to basics and really

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teach them this.
But actually, a lot of the time.

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It's what you said, yeah.
It's more embedded.

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Sometimes the superficial stuff
or things that you really have

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like extremely recently done,
you've barely touched it.

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You might have to revisit that,
but I do.

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I just always found, especially
Christmas break, Easter break

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and some holidays, the big ones,
yeah, kids come back.

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And it's to me, it was always
the analogy I had in my head

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when people would say, Oh, we
need to do, we need to teach, we

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need longer days.
We need to give kids more time

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to learn.
We need to do 8 till 4:30 now.

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That's that's how we're going to
improve education in the UKI

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always just think, no, that is
not it.

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Like it's too much.
Kids are overwhelmed.

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And, and my reasoning is always
when kids have time off, I feel

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like all the stuff I was
teaching them actually has time

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to embed.
And I'm not just piling new

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things on top.
They come back and they've

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remembered the things like,
let's do that more because just

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give them time to absorb the
unfathomable amounts of things

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we're actually teaching them in
this curriculum.

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Exactly.
And that's where you can get the

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winds from.
That's why you should feel good

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about going back to school right
now.

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Like you, teaching is a
thankless task.

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And we talk a lot about how
there are lots of drawbacks to

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it.
There are lots of negative

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aspects.
Now there can be parts where you

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know, people external to you may
be part of your leadership or

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your colleagues, etcetera, can
do things that may be negatively

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affect you.
But let's just be real for a

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second.
Like the idea of stepping back

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into the classroom and seeing
that progress your kids are

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making and seeing things click.
It is the, it is unbelievably

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good that feeling.
And that's something I hope

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every teacher driving into
school this morning is thinking,

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I, I can't wait to see my class
and just just see what this is

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where we're at now and have that
moment and just do this.

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If you're going to going to see
your class today, do this now

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and just think where are my
class right now after two times

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with me and the whole break and
compare it to where they were

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when they started with you in
September.

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And you'll see a huge jump.
And then think to yourself, I'm

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going to make that jump and more
in this next couple of times

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because I'm really focusing on
narrowing down what we're doing.

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It's exciting.
And you hit the ground running,

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like we said before, rather than
the September.

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So you've got the same amount of
time plus you know the kids

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really well.
One thing I want to talk about,

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and I just want to know if you
even feel like this, because I

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know we've had very different
feelings of going back to work

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and all that sort of stuff.
Because I always found I could

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simultaneously properly look
forward to seeing in the class,

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like you just said, like
thinking about the amazing

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things about teaching, like
being with the kids and all the

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joy that will bring me when
they've had a break and they

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come back in, they Start
learning new things and they're

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thankful and they actually want
to see you and get that one kid

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who's like has been waiting all
Christmas to tell you this

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certain thing.
All that stuff always exists in

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my mind.
But simultaneously, like people

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talk about the Sunday scary's,
right?

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Just the typical thing you get
at a weekend.

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I always find that was so, so
amplified in school holidays.

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Like I'd finally switch off.
And then you, I just struggled

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to switch back on, you know what
I mean?

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And it gave me like anxiety and
horrible feelings.

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So I'd be driving to work on
that first day thinking I feel

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00:09:07,840 --> 00:09:10,520
awful and I don't, I don't go
back to I'm not ready, I'm not

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00:09:10,520 --> 00:09:11,640
ready.
I can't go back to work whilst

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also still feeling always good
things.

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I just, I always felt guilty
because I know the good things

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were there.
But then I'd be thinking I don't

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want to go in, I don't want to
go back to work, I don't want to

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do this.
I don't know if you did you, I

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feel like you didn't struggle as
much, but I don't know, maybe

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you did.
Like I really struggled to

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switch basically between relax
mode and work mode.

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There'll be lots of people
listening now who are literally

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going back for the first time
who'll be thinking what you're

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thinking.
Yeah.

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And I personally, I, I never
really struggled that much with

241
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the thing that they call the
Sunday Scary's I, I never

242
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really, really struggled with
it.

243
00:09:39,800 --> 00:09:42,520
Like, I definitely felt it.
I definitely felt the fact of

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like simply I've managed to
switch off and I know I'm going

245
00:09:45,520 --> 00:09:47,520
back on the roller coaster
because I always like in

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00:09:47,520 --> 00:09:49,280
teaching to being like on a
roller coaster.

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There is no, you know, it's not
a nice journey, you know,

248
00:09:52,880 --> 00:09:55,680
chugging along at the same 20
miles an hour the whole time.

249
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And then every now and then
stepping off and going back on.

250
00:09:57,920 --> 00:10:00,520
It's not like that time time is
incredibly intense.

251
00:10:00,960 --> 00:10:04,320
And then you need to kind of,
you know, stake out your time

252
00:10:04,320 --> 00:10:05,920
outside of that to really switch
off.

253
00:10:06,200 --> 00:10:09,720
And I do feel like that jump is
huge, like going from time off

254
00:10:09,920 --> 00:10:11,720
to time on.
And that's where the Sunday

255
00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:13,320
scary is coming from in general,
he said the weekend.

256
00:10:13,400 --> 00:10:15,440
And because you maybe have a bit
of your own time at the weekend,

257
00:10:15,640 --> 00:10:17,240
you did a little bit of work,
but then you're enjoying

258
00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:19,320
yourself and your Sunday, but
you know that you're going to

259
00:10:19,320 --> 00:10:21,520
get back on the train when it
comes around tomorrow.

260
00:10:21,920 --> 00:10:23,920
And you're right, it does
amplify that in the holidays.

261
00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:29,080
But I just think you, you have
to live your life to a degree

262
00:10:29,080 --> 00:10:32,840
where if if you switching off
and doing things other than your

263
00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:36,040
job results in huge anxiety when
it comes to going back to doing

264
00:10:36,040 --> 00:10:39,240
your job, then there is like a
fundamental issue there like

265
00:10:39,240 --> 00:10:41,080
that that shouldn't be seen as
normal.

266
00:10:41,240 --> 00:10:43,040
And it's not necessarily a
problem with the people who are

267
00:10:43,040 --> 00:10:44,880
feeling it.
It's just a symptom of the

268
00:10:44,880 --> 00:10:47,800
system, which is just insane, in
my opinion, that, you know,

269
00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:50,480
there's so many people do get
that anxiety of like, I've got

270
00:10:50,480 --> 00:10:52,160
to go back and I'm really
worried about it.

271
00:10:52,760 --> 00:10:55,320
I think you, you have to try and
do something about it.

272
00:10:55,320 --> 00:10:57,320
That's all I'd say.
Like you have to try and think

273
00:10:57,320 --> 00:11:00,560
to yourself, it's OK, like, oh,
I might have forgotten what I

274
00:11:00,560 --> 00:11:01,840
do.
OK.

275
00:11:02,160 --> 00:11:04,240
Every other time you haven't.
OK.

276
00:11:04,280 --> 00:11:05,720
So you just just just go back?
And do it.

277
00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:06,720
Yeah, yeah.
Do you know what I mean?

278
00:11:06,760 --> 00:11:08,680
You had to try and anchor
yourself in the past that you

279
00:11:08,680 --> 00:11:10,120
literally have.
The more and more experienced

280
00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:12,440
you are, if you're still feeling
the Sunday scary, it's just

281
00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:13,480
think, well, you were fine
before.

282
00:11:13,520 --> 00:11:15,400
Yeah, just try and ground
yourself in reality.

283
00:11:15,400 --> 00:11:17,760
And if you're still really
anxious about it, fake it until

284
00:11:17,760 --> 00:11:20,840
you make it like you have to
realise and back yourself a bit

285
00:11:20,840 --> 00:11:22,800
more.
Do it like I'm OK, I'm fine, I

286
00:11:22,800 --> 00:11:23,880
can do.
This, I think a lot of people

287
00:11:23,880 --> 00:11:26,720
feel overwhelmed.
It's not, it's not necessarily

288
00:11:26,720 --> 00:11:29,160
the catastrophizing aspect that
you're kind of doing there,

289
00:11:29,160 --> 00:11:32,120
which is like, Oh no, what if I
forgot on how to stand in front

290
00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:33,640
of a class?
It's like, because we all, not

291
00:11:33,640 --> 00:11:34,880
all, but some people do that
thing.

292
00:11:35,240 --> 00:11:37,800
But other people, I think just
get really overwhelmed with,

293
00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:40,320
like, they start thinking about
the insane amount of tasks

294
00:11:40,320 --> 00:11:42,400
they're going to do because like
you said, it's like going down

295
00:11:42,400 --> 00:11:46,120
to 0, back to 100 again.
And you've been at 0 for like a

296
00:11:46,120 --> 00:11:47,760
week now and you've actually
managed to zone out.

297
00:11:48,400 --> 00:11:49,680
So I never found out.
I got it at the weekends.

298
00:11:49,880 --> 00:11:52,080
Weekends are still, I was in
term time mode all the time.

299
00:11:52,080 --> 00:11:53,760
Yeah.
He never quite stepped off the

300
00:11:53,760 --> 00:11:54,920
train.
Yeah, exactly that.

301
00:11:54,920 --> 00:11:57,680
But school holidays I did and
and interestingly, I'll go back

302
00:11:57,680 --> 00:12:00,120
to my point in a second, but
interestingly I'm even finding

303
00:12:00,120 --> 00:12:02,080
now that we're out of the
classroom, we've just had, we've

304
00:12:02,080 --> 00:12:04,320
basically just had two weeks off
as well with our families and

305
00:12:04,360 --> 00:12:06,120
both our partners teach.
So it just made sense to have

306
00:12:06,120 --> 00:12:08,440
that time with them.
And I'm still kind of getting

307
00:12:08,440 --> 00:12:10,000
it.
And I'm not even going back into

308
00:12:10,000 --> 00:12:12,640
school, but like, I'm still
going to go back into work, the

309
00:12:12,640 --> 00:12:14,480
work that we're doing.
And I'm like, oh, that's

310
00:12:14,480 --> 00:12:16,440
interesting because I'm still
experiencing that.

311
00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:19,880
And I wonder how much of it is
just why the personal trait and,

312
00:12:19,880 --> 00:12:22,320
and I'd have it in any career,
in any job, and how much of it

313
00:12:22,320 --> 00:12:24,040
is heightened by teaching.
I think it's heightened.

314
00:12:24,320 --> 00:12:26,000
Yeah, it's, it's, it's got to be
heightened.

315
00:12:26,280 --> 00:12:29,240
We're we're not silly enough and
self absorbed enough.

316
00:12:29,240 --> 00:12:31,400
And a lot of people think maybe
teachers are to think that.

317
00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:34,240
Oh well, it's us, the teaching
professional, the only ones who

318
00:12:34,480 --> 00:12:36,640
could stay in those workers for
this longest.

319
00:12:36,800 --> 00:12:38,560
And then I feel like, like I'm
going back and I'm just such,

320
00:12:38,560 --> 00:12:40,440
oh, pity, pity as me.
I've got to go to work.

321
00:12:40,640 --> 00:12:43,360
It's quite normal.
It's not something that's like

322
00:12:43,520 --> 00:12:46,000
stand alone to teaching.
But I do think you're right that

323
00:12:46,000 --> 00:12:47,880
teaching exaggerated and you
just have to notice.

324
00:12:47,880 --> 00:12:49,560
You have to know that and
understand that.

325
00:12:49,880 --> 00:12:52,240
And I think the more you realise
why you feel that way, I've

326
00:12:52,240 --> 00:12:55,000
always found one if I've ever
felt anxious or worried or or

327
00:12:55,000 --> 00:12:58,360
even scared or just negative
emotions that we might say if I

328
00:12:58,400 --> 00:13:01,880
ever felt that way, I've always
felt that like just saying, oh,

329
00:13:01,880 --> 00:13:06,120
don't think that is unhelpful.
But what has helped me is I

330
00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:09,640
might still feel that way after,
but it's definitely eased if I

331
00:13:09,640 --> 00:13:12,400
understand why.
So if it comes to the Sunday

332
00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:14,480
scary, like you said, and I'm
thinking I've just had two weeks

333
00:13:14,480 --> 00:13:17,400
off, I'm dreading going back.
I'm calling this a Sunday scary.

334
00:13:17,400 --> 00:13:19,680
What it really is is just that
I've been enjoying myself being

335
00:13:19,680 --> 00:13:21,600
off.
I know I'm going to go back to

336
00:13:21,600 --> 00:13:24,200
potentially being burnt out and
knackered all the time and

337
00:13:24,200 --> 00:13:27,280
having no time for myself.
Yeah, understand that and see

338
00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:29,000
and think.
And what, what small things can

339
00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:30,240
I change to make it a bit
better?

340
00:13:30,560 --> 00:13:32,680
You can't not go back.
It's your job, right?

341
00:13:32,840 --> 00:13:34,800
But what you can do is think,
OK, why do I feel this way?

342
00:13:34,800 --> 00:13:37,520
What did I get in the last week
or two that I'm not anxious

343
00:13:37,520 --> 00:13:39,360
about is going to be
disappearing in the next in the

344
00:13:39,360 --> 00:13:42,440
next term?
What is it about my job that

345
00:13:42,800 --> 00:13:44,560
feeds this?
And I'm actually not looking

346
00:13:44,560 --> 00:13:46,360
forward to because I can
guarantee it's not seeing your

347
00:13:46,360 --> 00:13:48,200
class.
I can guarantee it's not that

348
00:13:48,200 --> 00:13:50,400
it, you know, having a
conversation with someone who's

349
00:13:50,400 --> 00:13:53,200
had a really nice Christmas and
seeing what they did, it's not a

350
00:13:53,200 --> 00:13:55,400
lot of your job.
So if you start to think, oh,

351
00:13:55,440 --> 00:13:57,560
it's not that I'm quite looking
forward to that actually.

352
00:13:57,720 --> 00:13:59,680
Oh, what am I looking forward to
going back and doing?

353
00:13:59,720 --> 00:14:02,280
What am I going to be able to do
in this term that I couldn't do

354
00:14:02,280 --> 00:14:03,600
in this two weeks off?
Yeah, yeah.

355
00:14:03,680 --> 00:14:07,560
OK, maybe it's not seeing family
and and over indulging and and

356
00:14:07,560 --> 00:14:09,520
not having to think about
paperwork or anything cool.

357
00:14:09,680 --> 00:14:13,680
But what I do get is interaction
with my class, making progress,

358
00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:16,400
feeling like I'm applying myself
to something, getting something

359
00:14:16,400 --> 00:14:18,840
out of it holistically in terms
of helping out other people.

360
00:14:18,920 --> 00:14:21,320
Yeah, that's something that I
don't get in time.

361
00:14:21,320 --> 00:14:23,200
Time.
And me understanding that could

362
00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:26,040
make me at least think, like you
said, OK, it's not ideal.

363
00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:28,600
I know I'm going to be
knackered, but I do get XYZ.

364
00:14:28,880 --> 00:14:31,520
I'm feeling gratitude for that.
I'm feeling happy about that,

365
00:14:31,520 --> 00:14:33,840
and I'm looking forward to it.
It just eased it.

366
00:14:33,840 --> 00:14:35,760
It didn't get rid of it.
Yeah, but it eased it.

367
00:14:35,760 --> 00:14:37,000
And I think that's all we can
do.

368
00:14:37,160 --> 00:14:39,120
There's not a magic thing people
will tell you online.

369
00:14:39,320 --> 00:14:41,640
Just do this.
Just follow my plan.

370
00:14:41,640 --> 00:14:44,120
Then just download my PDF and
you won't get the teacher

371
00:14:44,120 --> 00:14:45,600
burnout anymore.
Not true.

372
00:14:45,600 --> 00:14:47,440
You will get teacher burnout
because the system's broken.

373
00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:49,560
Yeah.
And you can focus on like

374
00:14:49,560 --> 00:14:50,880
positive, making things
positive.

375
00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:52,400
Yeah, like you said, you could
acknowledge that these things

376
00:14:52,400 --> 00:14:53,960
exist and it's just part of the
job.

377
00:14:53,960 --> 00:14:56,040
It's going to happen.
But you can still like redirect

378
00:14:56,040 --> 00:14:59,120
your mind to certain positive
aspects like you, you, you know,

379
00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:02,040
one like the rule of 1 is one
thing I've seen online, which is

380
00:15:02,040 --> 00:15:04,920
like just set one goal at a
time.

381
00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:08,120
It's particularly important in
teaching because it's such an

382
00:15:08,120 --> 00:15:11,800
easy job to have seventeen goals
at once to to be working on or

383
00:15:11,800 --> 00:15:15,480
20 or 50, genuinely like crazy
amounts of things that you're

384
00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:17,240
working towards at once.
And that overwhelming feeling

385
00:15:17,240 --> 00:15:19,680
can often for me anyway,
contributed to those to those

386
00:15:19,720 --> 00:15:21,240
Sunday scary feelings that we're
calling it.

387
00:15:21,880 --> 00:15:25,200
And the rule of 1 was really
useful because it was like, OK,

388
00:15:25,200 --> 00:15:27,880
just pick one thing that you can
do, even if it, even if it's

389
00:15:27,880 --> 00:15:29,480
just on day one, like that's
your thing.

390
00:15:29,480 --> 00:15:32,280
On day one, I'm going to help
myself by anchoring these

391
00:15:32,280 --> 00:15:33,920
positive things.
And I'm going to do this this

392
00:15:33,920 --> 00:15:36,560
thing.
So in day one, I'm going to, I'm

393
00:15:36,560 --> 00:15:40,080
not going to reaffirm all 11
school rules and boundaries that

394
00:15:40,080 --> 00:15:41,840
we have in the classroom.
I'm just going to work on one.

395
00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:44,280
And I'm going to reflect on my
previous two terms to think

396
00:15:44,280 --> 00:15:46,760
about which one rule I'm going
to reaffirm on day one.

397
00:15:46,760 --> 00:15:49,200
And that's, that's my goal.
And if I can do that one thing,

398
00:15:49,680 --> 00:15:50,960
I've achieved what I want to
achieve.

399
00:15:50,960 --> 00:15:53,000
I feel positive.
And alongside that, I think

400
00:15:53,000 --> 00:15:54,920
that's it's good to have
something like to do with your

401
00:15:54,920 --> 00:15:56,720
job, right?
Which is like about riff and

402
00:15:56,720 --> 00:15:58,480
boundaries and it helps your
German helps children.

403
00:15:58,720 --> 00:16:01,320
I also think you should have
something where you just think

404
00:16:01,320 --> 00:16:03,120
to yourself, right?
I'm about to start my day.

405
00:16:03,440 --> 00:16:06,720
At the end of the day, I'm going
to look back and make sure that

406
00:16:06,720 --> 00:16:09,480
I can reflect on a conversation
I had with a colleague, a

407
00:16:09,480 --> 00:16:12,080
conversation I had with a child
that was purely catching up with

408
00:16:12,080 --> 00:16:13,240
them and just a nice thing to
do.

409
00:16:13,560 --> 00:16:16,560
And being more present in those
situations where instead of

410
00:16:16,600 --> 00:16:18,920
having 15 things in your mind at
once and not being able to be in

411
00:16:18,920 --> 00:16:21,440
the moment of just talking to
someone in your class, you

412
00:16:21,440 --> 00:16:23,880
think, no, I've set myself as
this is something I'm going to

413
00:16:23,880 --> 00:16:25,400
try and do today.
I'm just going to have a

414
00:16:25,400 --> 00:16:27,360
conversation with you just about
this thing.

415
00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:29,440
And at the end of the day, I can
reflect on it and go, that was

416
00:16:29,440 --> 00:16:30,160
nice.
Yeah.

417
00:16:30,160 --> 00:16:32,320
I had a lovely conversation with
the little Jimmy.

418
00:16:32,320 --> 00:16:34,400
And I knew over Christmas he was
going to visit family.

419
00:16:34,560 --> 00:16:36,480
He told me all about it.
That was lovely.

420
00:16:36,560 --> 00:16:38,040
End.
There was no, there's no

421
00:16:38,040 --> 00:16:39,960
external goal.
There was no, I managed to get

422
00:16:39,960 --> 00:16:42,000
my gap analysis done.
There was no, I managed to, you

423
00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:44,400
know, get something for a form
for him or do this or that.

424
00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:46,960
No, no, it was simply about
actually as from a human

425
00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:48,840
connection.
I'm going to talk to this

426
00:16:48,840 --> 00:16:52,960
person, whoever it might be, and
just get out of it that which I

427
00:16:52,960 --> 00:16:54,920
could not have got from my time
off.

428
00:16:54,960 --> 00:16:57,120
Yeah.
And it's just about the pros and

429
00:16:57,120 --> 00:16:59,520
cons.
And we are a big advocate here

430
00:16:59,520 --> 00:17:02,000
talking about problems and
trying to solve them and coming

431
00:17:02,000 --> 00:17:05,040
up with solutions and, and not
being afraid to say, I hate this

432
00:17:05,040 --> 00:17:07,160
thing, but not being able to say
what people are thinking.

433
00:17:07,160 --> 00:17:09,200
That's, that's what we've built
a lot of our audience on.

434
00:17:09,520 --> 00:17:13,200
But you also have to understand
that as a rounded human being,

435
00:17:13,319 --> 00:17:15,160
you can't live your life in that
bitter way.

436
00:17:15,520 --> 00:17:18,319
You can, you can acknowledge and
understand faults and problems

437
00:17:18,760 --> 00:17:21,560
and know you're not going to fix
them all immediately and still

438
00:17:21,560 --> 00:17:25,240
give a big chunk, most of your
mind space to the good parts.

439
00:17:25,400 --> 00:17:27,440
Because otherwise you will
constantly be miserable,

440
00:17:27,440 --> 00:17:29,720
constantly thinking something's
wrong, constantly fighting

441
00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:31,840
against the machine.
That's when it goes down the

442
00:17:31,840 --> 00:17:34,560
road of resentful, bitter to the
profession.

443
00:17:34,880 --> 00:17:36,880
And it's not good.
Not even just for you, but for

444
00:17:36,880 --> 00:17:37,520
anyone.
I agree.

445
00:17:37,520 --> 00:17:39,160
And you know what, I think we
got close to that.

446
00:17:39,400 --> 00:17:42,200
We did in our career.
We, we very much did that and we

447
00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:45,360
had to really like snap
ourselves back from just being

448
00:17:45,360 --> 00:17:46,960
moany, moany only looking at the
bad things.

449
00:17:46,960 --> 00:17:49,320
Do you think the podcast helped
or hindered that?

450
00:17:49,320 --> 00:17:51,080
I think it.
I think which?

451
00:17:51,240 --> 00:17:55,520
Do you think the podcast helped
us get over it or hindered us

452
00:17:55,520 --> 00:17:57,040
and made us more example?
I think both.

453
00:17:57,080 --> 00:17:58,520
I think genuine, like a roller
coaster.

454
00:17:58,520 --> 00:18:00,760
I think I think the first like
year and a half of the podcast

455
00:18:00,760 --> 00:18:02,120
made it worse for us.
You think?

456
00:18:02,120 --> 00:18:04,160
I think it hindered it.
I think, 'cause we were, yeah,

457
00:18:04,160 --> 00:18:05,360
maybe not a year and a half, I
don't know.

458
00:18:05,360 --> 00:18:08,000
But a big chunk of time.
I think with the podcast, we

459
00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:11,280
were really channelling our
energy into speaking about the

460
00:18:11,280 --> 00:18:12,600
things that we feel like should
be spoken about.

461
00:18:12,600 --> 00:18:14,680
And it was obviously negative
things and things that we think

462
00:18:14,680 --> 00:18:16,120
needs to be improved.
And we were very much like,

463
00:18:16,120 --> 00:18:17,480
yeah, here's our solutions as
well.

464
00:18:17,760 --> 00:18:20,880
But ultimately we were still
channelling all of the negatives

465
00:18:20,880 --> 00:18:23,120
about teaching.
And we still do it to an extent,

466
00:18:23,120 --> 00:18:25,440
but more tactfully now because
we think that this is an

467
00:18:25,440 --> 00:18:26,720
interesting conversation to
have.

468
00:18:26,880 --> 00:18:29,520
And here are some solutions that
we're positive about, like, but

469
00:18:29,520 --> 00:18:32,840
I certainly think for a good
period of time and maybe who

470
00:18:32,840 --> 00:18:36,080
knows, that might have even
been, you know, a part of a,

471
00:18:36,080 --> 00:18:38,360
part of a factor in why we quit
when we did.

472
00:18:38,360 --> 00:18:39,320
Yeah.
Do you know what I mean?

473
00:18:39,320 --> 00:18:41,520
Because maybe without the
podcast we would have, we would

474
00:18:41,520 --> 00:18:43,320
have just just had a little bit
more in US and we thought, oh,

475
00:18:43,320 --> 00:18:44,680
we'll do another year.
I don't know, do you know what I

476
00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:45,800
mean?
I don't know, like it's

477
00:18:45,800 --> 00:18:48,720
interesting to think, but I do
think we recognised it and we're

478
00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:51,440
like, God, this is so, oh, you
feel so negative.

479
00:18:51,440 --> 00:18:52,560
This is not what teaching is
about.

480
00:18:52,560 --> 00:18:54,960
There's so many good things
about teaching.

481
00:18:54,960 --> 00:18:56,880
And even though it sounds ironic
that I've stepped out of the

482
00:18:56,880 --> 00:18:59,640
classroom, it doesn't mean I
can't look at my 10 year career

483
00:18:59,640 --> 00:19:03,640
and and like, think positively
about 90% of my time.

484
00:19:03,880 --> 00:19:05,480
Yeah, I think you're right to an
extent.

485
00:19:05,480 --> 00:19:09,040
I also think that the way social
media works and, you know,

486
00:19:09,520 --> 00:19:12,120
getting clicks and eyes on
things in general is you do tend

487
00:19:12,120 --> 00:19:14,000
to focus on that because it does
get more traction.

488
00:19:14,360 --> 00:19:18,400
And I do think that people's
like, you know, a generic view

489
00:19:18,400 --> 00:19:20,440
of what we were doing was
sometimes we would get people

490
00:19:20,440 --> 00:19:22,000
saying, oh, it's negative, why
are you so negative?

491
00:19:22,000 --> 00:19:24,080
And I'd be like, we're not.
But then actually from their

492
00:19:24,080 --> 00:19:26,280
point of view, the things
they're seeing, they might have

493
00:19:26,280 --> 00:19:28,400
seen 5 or 6 things in a row
where we're like, this is just

494
00:19:28,400 --> 00:19:30,840
the worst thing in the world or
being hyperbole, going over the

495
00:19:30,840 --> 00:19:33,560
top web.
And yeah, I do think that we

496
00:19:33,560 --> 00:19:36,120
always maintained in ourselves,
if you listen, if you actually

497
00:19:36,120 --> 00:19:38,760
listen to what we've always
said, we've never ever, ever

498
00:19:38,760 --> 00:19:41,160
just moaned and moaned and been
bitter and resembling there.

499
00:19:41,560 --> 00:19:44,600
It's always been moan talk about
problems.

500
00:19:45,200 --> 00:19:47,840
What should we do instead?
Why is it a problem going going

501
00:19:47,840 --> 00:19:50,160
into like what makes it a
problem rather than just saying

502
00:19:50,160 --> 00:19:51,760
it's an issue?
And I've always enjoyed those

503
00:19:51,760 --> 00:19:53,160
conversations.
That's why I've got a lot of

504
00:19:53,160 --> 00:19:55,400
people listen to what we say
because they want that long form

505
00:19:55,400 --> 00:19:57,600
explanation.
But I think absolutely, I did

506
00:19:57,600 --> 00:20:01,520
both it it kind of opened us up
to, oh, wow, yeah, there is

507
00:20:01,520 --> 00:20:03,560
quite a lot to talk about which
is really broken about this.

508
00:20:03,560 --> 00:20:05,480
And oh, I do really understand
this now.

509
00:20:05,480 --> 00:20:08,120
And actually, Oh yeah, I am at
the point where I don't think I

510
00:20:08,120 --> 00:20:11,360
personally can change this.
So maybe we should stop teaching

511
00:20:11,360 --> 00:20:13,800
and you go down that route.
But yeah, you're right, I do

512
00:20:13,800 --> 00:20:17,080
think also the podcast helped me
to really think about.

513
00:20:17,280 --> 00:20:18,960
So what am I going to do after
though?

514
00:20:19,600 --> 00:20:21,280
What am I going to?
I'm going to acknowledge these

515
00:20:21,280 --> 00:20:22,320
problems, but what am I going to
do?

516
00:20:22,320 --> 00:20:23,440
Well, I'm at least going to talk
about it.

517
00:20:23,440 --> 00:20:25,440
I'm just going to dissect it.
I'm just going to go into

518
00:20:25,440 --> 00:20:27,400
options of things we can do.
I'm at least going to go and

519
00:20:27,400 --> 00:20:28,920
listen to someone else talk
about it as well.

520
00:20:29,240 --> 00:20:32,200
And I think it widened.
The horizon so still reflects on

521
00:20:32,200 --> 00:20:33,600
the positives.
Like you said, it's not like we

522
00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:35,440
ignored them, like they didn't
exist anymore.

523
00:20:35,440 --> 00:20:37,000
We still talk about them.
We've had plenty of episodes

524
00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:39,640
that are purely positive and
just talk about the amazing

525
00:20:39,640 --> 00:20:41,800
things about teaching.
Or hints and tips for people.

526
00:20:41,880 --> 00:20:43,480
Yeah.
And I'm like, when we're putting

527
00:20:43,480 --> 00:20:45,800
those together, I'm like, oh, I
do a lot of these.

528
00:20:45,800 --> 00:20:48,560
Or maybe I should do this
because I know it's a good idea.

529
00:20:48,560 --> 00:20:50,520
So I'm going to treat myself the
same way I treat other people.

530
00:20:50,520 --> 00:20:52,480
I'm going to give this advice
out and I'm going to try and

531
00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:54,600
practise what I preach.
And I think we improve massively

532
00:20:54,600 --> 00:20:56,440
in that as well.
So I think the podcast really

533
00:20:56,440 --> 00:20:58,640
helped with both, to be fair.
But if you're listening to this,

534
00:20:58,640 --> 00:21:03,640
my point here is that you've got
a bloody good job, genuinely.

535
00:21:03,960 --> 00:21:05,760
And again, I can understand why
some of them.

536
00:21:05,760 --> 00:21:07,920
Why don't you do it then?
I did for 10 years.

537
00:21:08,360 --> 00:21:10,960
I don't have to have done
something for my whole career to

538
00:21:10,960 --> 00:21:12,880
them think it's pointless if I
stop at some point.

539
00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:17,000
It's a bloody good job in terms
of what you get to do and, and

540
00:21:17,000 --> 00:21:19,800
the influence you get to have
over over the next generation.

541
00:21:19,800 --> 00:21:23,000
And the people you often get to
work with are amazing people and

542
00:21:23,000 --> 00:21:24,240
you get to make a real
difference.

543
00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:26,880
And I tell you now there are a
lot of jobs that don't quite

544
00:21:26,880 --> 00:21:29,640
have that.
And, and it is something we've

545
00:21:29,640 --> 00:21:32,800
kind of, I think, stepped away
from a mist in this period where

546
00:21:32,800 --> 00:21:36,680
we're building something else.
It is something to really, just

547
00:21:37,160 --> 00:21:38,960
because you've been in it your
whole time, you can take it for

548
00:21:38,960 --> 00:21:41,120
granted.
But talk to anyone who's done it

549
00:21:41,120 --> 00:21:43,520
and stepped out, they'll be
like, I missed that, though, I

550
00:21:43,520 --> 00:21:45,280
missed that part.
I miss being with the kids.

551
00:21:45,640 --> 00:21:47,360
I miss that.
Part I miss walking in in

552
00:21:47,360 --> 00:21:50,160
January, genuinely, to bring it
back to right now, I miss

553
00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:54,120
walking in in January and having
those real interactions with the

554
00:21:54,120 --> 00:21:55,040
kids.
And you know what?

555
00:21:55,320 --> 00:21:57,760
You don't always have the best
class in the world that you get

556
00:21:57,840 --> 00:21:59,720
like you're always going to have
classes that you get on better

557
00:21:59,720 --> 00:22:01,480
with than other classes.
In some classes, you might even

558
00:22:01,480 --> 00:22:04,040
be in unfortunate position where
you think is that tough work?

559
00:22:04,040 --> 00:22:07,160
This is tough, but I guarantee
there's still at least one

560
00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:10,320
person in that class that is
dying to see you.

561
00:22:10,640 --> 00:22:13,040
And you will also enjoy that
interaction with them.

562
00:22:13,040 --> 00:22:14,920
And it just makes it all so
special.

563
00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:17,160
And like you said, you take it
for granted.

564
00:22:17,160 --> 00:22:19,480
Now I don't have that.
I really miss it.

565
00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:21,240
Like, I miss being able to walk
in and just have those

566
00:22:21,240 --> 00:22:23,040
conversations because I
genuinely loved it.

567
00:22:23,040 --> 00:22:26,000
And children are so pure.
That's like especially after

568
00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:28,000
Christmas, you know?
But one thing, you know, it's

569
00:22:28,000 --> 00:22:29,200
worth saying as well, we have
to.

570
00:22:29,680 --> 00:22:32,200
I always found that I had to
really take into consideration

571
00:22:32,520 --> 00:22:33,920
the family lives are very
different.

572
00:22:34,160 --> 00:22:35,560
Yeah.
I don't know about you, but like

573
00:22:35,800 --> 00:22:36,960
I.
Like coming back off.

574
00:22:37,080 --> 00:22:40,720
Yeah, so I, I was very, very
mindful when I came back of not

575
00:22:40,720 --> 00:22:43,320
just being like everyone have a.
Really cool Christmas.

576
00:22:43,320 --> 00:22:44,320
Come on.
What's your favourite?

577
00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:45,840
For everyone, write down your
favourite present.

578
00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:48,280
I'd never, ever do stuff like
that because you just don't

579
00:22:48,280 --> 00:22:48,720
know.
Do you?

580
00:22:48,720 --> 00:22:50,120
Like, not every kid.
Do you know what?

581
00:22:50,120 --> 00:22:53,080
For some kids, the best bit
about Christmas was coming back

582
00:22:53,080 --> 00:22:54,800
to school and seeing you.
Yeah, genuinely like that.

583
00:22:54,800 --> 00:22:57,080
People.
It sounds so cliche, but it is

584
00:22:57,080 --> 00:22:58,400
real.
Maybe that doesn't happen in

585
00:22:58,400 --> 00:23:00,480
your class this year.
It might have happened though in

586
00:23:00,480 --> 00:23:02,800
previous years, and it might
even happen with multiple

587
00:23:02,800 --> 00:23:05,000
children in your class.
That is the kind of thing I used

588
00:23:05,000 --> 00:23:09,080
to hear and be like, oh shit.
Well, of course actually do you

589
00:23:09,080 --> 00:23:09,600
know what?
Yeah.

590
00:23:09,600 --> 00:23:13,360
Once you start working in the
school, you realise school is

591
00:23:13,360 --> 00:23:15,080
the place some children want to
be.

592
00:23:15,840 --> 00:23:17,680
Not, you know, you.
You've made such a safe

593
00:23:17,680 --> 00:23:19,560
environment for them.
Like not just you, but your

594
00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:22,640
whole, you know, your school
community has made this like,

595
00:23:22,640 --> 00:23:24,880
beacon for this child to be
like, oh, this is where I go to,

596
00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:27,720
to learn stuff and I feel safe.
And I've got parents, not

597
00:23:27,720 --> 00:23:30,080
parents, sorry, adults around me
who care about me.

598
00:23:30,520 --> 00:23:32,320
You're one of those people for
those kids.

599
00:23:32,640 --> 00:23:35,440
It's, it's so important that
kids have this like you're,

600
00:23:35,480 --> 00:23:39,400
you're, you are providing such
an important thing for like the

601
00:23:39,400 --> 00:23:41,760
next generation, specifically
those who need it the most,

602
00:23:42,120 --> 00:23:44,080
regardless to academics and
things like that.

603
00:23:44,360 --> 00:23:46,160
You know, so when you're going
back and you're in the car now

604
00:23:46,160 --> 00:23:48,720
thinking, oh, yeah, I'm going to
go in, I'm going to really, that

605
00:23:48,720 --> 00:23:50,680
inference is bloody low in my
class this year.

606
00:23:50,680 --> 00:23:53,200
And, and I'm going to make sure
that my retrieval is going to

607
00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:54,880
improve.
And, and when it comes to maths

608
00:23:54,880 --> 00:23:59,240
or it's all so important.
It is also important, but

609
00:23:59,240 --> 00:24:03,640
really, like, I got my, you
know, feeling that I was

610
00:24:03,640 --> 00:24:06,440
providing something for someone
when it came to those children

611
00:24:06,440 --> 00:24:10,640
who needed a safety net, who
needed that blanket around them

612
00:24:10,640 --> 00:24:12,800
to be like, you are OK right
now.

613
00:24:12,800 --> 00:24:15,080
I think that's why I struggled
so much when the COVID lockdown

614
00:24:15,080 --> 00:24:19,280
happened, because I remember
thinking this, OK, I can

615
00:24:19,280 --> 00:24:22,120
understand why everything's
going on, but there are quite a

616
00:24:22,120 --> 00:24:26,560
lot of kids who will just get
nothing for the next three

617
00:24:26,560 --> 00:24:29,840
months and will be neglected
more.

618
00:24:30,440 --> 00:24:32,760
And I think, you know, we've
talked about a million times,

619
00:24:32,760 --> 00:24:35,280
I'm not saying it's the school's
responsibility because obviously

620
00:24:35,280 --> 00:24:37,320
it comes down to the family,
etcetera, but it still doesn't

621
00:24:37,320 --> 00:24:39,600
mean you don't have that inside.
You want to provide it for the

622
00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:41,680
kids.
No, I completely agree.

623
00:24:42,040 --> 00:24:43,920
Knowing, knowing that you're
that safe space for those kids.

624
00:24:43,960 --> 00:24:45,040
Haven't that taken away?
Yeah.

625
00:24:45,040 --> 00:24:47,080
And just think, Yeah, yeah.
Just reflect on that.

626
00:24:47,080 --> 00:24:48,520
I think being positive is really
important.

627
00:24:48,800 --> 00:24:50,520
Again, if you're driving into
school right now, we're assuming

628
00:24:50,520 --> 00:24:51,960
everyone's in the car.
If you're not, then what you're

629
00:24:51,960 --> 00:24:53,040
doing, get in the car, drive to
school.

630
00:24:53,040 --> 00:24:55,160
Please listen I'm.
On the bus.

631
00:24:55,880 --> 00:24:58,040
Yeah, I'm on a train.
That's the same thing.

632
00:24:58,040 --> 00:24:59,200
Same.
Thing on a roller coaster, just

633
00:24:59,200 --> 00:25:00,840
like teaching.
Yeah, yeah.

634
00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:02,800
But yeah, just try and be
positive, try and flip your

635
00:25:02,800 --> 00:25:04,600
mind.
I often did that as a little

636
00:25:04,600 --> 00:25:08,200
just a mindset thing when I was
feeling that those anxiety or

637
00:25:08,200 --> 00:25:09,720
whatever it was, that
overwhelming feeling, I'd just

638
00:25:09,720 --> 00:25:13,360
be like, OK, but what kid am I
going to interact with and what

639
00:25:13,360 --> 00:25:15,800
nice thing can I say to them?
Who can I make feel really good

640
00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:17,400
today?
Like I loved those moments of

641
00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:19,600
like, how can I make someone's
day better?

642
00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:21,040
It doesn't have to just be the
children either.

643
00:25:21,360 --> 00:25:23,720
You know, there's a lot, we talk
about toxicity in schools a lot

644
00:25:23,720 --> 00:25:26,920
and we're often always talking
about staff and the staff

645
00:25:26,920 --> 00:25:29,760
culture.
Go in and regardless of what

646
00:25:29,760 --> 00:25:34,000
your school's existing culture
is, just be a positive vibe and

647
00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:36,280
go in, be nice, be friendly to
everybody.

648
00:25:36,560 --> 00:25:38,480
Don't put anyone down to the
first day back.

649
00:25:38,480 --> 00:25:40,280
Don't be saying, oh, we've done
this work, you've got this done.

650
00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:42,520
Just be positive.
You know, just make it make a

651
00:25:42,520 --> 00:25:44,200
nice place to work.
Then people actually want to be

652
00:25:44,200 --> 00:25:45,880
there.
It uplifts the whole school, the

653
00:25:45,880 --> 00:25:48,200
whole environment, all the kids,
all the all the staff.

654
00:25:48,200 --> 00:25:50,640
It's just great.
Did you find when you went back

655
00:25:51,120 --> 00:25:54,520
that because we've talked before
about how teaching is like an

656
00:25:54,520 --> 00:25:59,000
act, I almost felt like you
talked about Sunday Scary's

657
00:25:59,000 --> 00:26:00,760
earlier.
I've been thinking about like

658
00:26:00,880 --> 00:26:05,320
how I got over it and stuff.
I felt like teaching was my out

659
00:26:06,080 --> 00:26:09,200
of feeling about other things
negatively.

660
00:26:09,560 --> 00:26:11,360
Like we talked about something
scary specifically about I'm,

661
00:26:11,440 --> 00:26:12,640
I'm worried about going back to
school.

662
00:26:12,640 --> 00:26:14,520
Yeah.
But I found a lot like if you

663
00:26:14,520 --> 00:26:16,560
think about other parts of your
life or maybe you're distracted

664
00:26:16,560 --> 00:26:19,440
or you fall in that with someone
who's close with you or you,

665
00:26:19,440 --> 00:26:21,320
you're you're just worried about
you've been reading the news a

666
00:26:21,320 --> 00:26:23,040
lot and you're like, oh God,
I've been doomed scrolling like

667
00:26:23,040 --> 00:26:25,480
I just feel rubbish about
something or I feel a bit

668
00:26:25,480 --> 00:26:28,760
rundown or whatever it might be.
I found that as soon as I

669
00:26:28,760 --> 00:26:32,640
stepped into the classroom, I, I
was and well, more, more so when

670
00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:36,760
the kids stepped in, let's say I
felt like I was Mr. Price, like

671
00:26:36,760 --> 00:26:39,000
it didn't matter.
I could put on that show and it

672
00:26:39,000 --> 00:26:42,320
gave me that out and that
ability to actually actually not

673
00:26:42,320 --> 00:26:44,360
think about anything.
And because it was so busy and

674
00:26:44,360 --> 00:26:46,200
time consuming and like, it was
your life.

675
00:26:46,200 --> 00:26:47,520
And I felt like I was in a flow
state.

676
00:26:47,520 --> 00:26:49,480
I know what you mean.
It would be like 4:00 before you

677
00:26:49,480 --> 00:26:51,200
think about it.
And then, OK, maybe other things

678
00:26:51,200 --> 00:26:53,000
might creep back in if you're
feeling crap about something.

679
00:26:53,200 --> 00:26:56,200
But I wanted to be in school
because it gave me that.

680
00:26:56,400 --> 00:27:00,200
Not only that purpose, but that
ability to become this persona,

681
00:27:00,200 --> 00:27:02,680
become this a person who's a
professional and good at what

682
00:27:02,680 --> 00:27:06,600
they do and putting on a show
for the kids and my own personal

683
00:27:06,600 --> 00:27:08,160
life was completely irrelevant
now.

684
00:27:08,320 --> 00:27:11,200
I was the teacher.
It is literally escapism.

685
00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:13,680
Yeah, it really is.
I I couldn't agree more because

686
00:27:13,680 --> 00:27:16,560
I think back to my career that
there's obviously been some

687
00:27:16,560 --> 00:27:20,040
tough times in my personal life
in that 10 years, when you lost

688
00:27:20,040 --> 00:27:22,680
your hair, that's my hair.
You know, when you used that,

689
00:27:22,680 --> 00:27:24,080
they're shaving it off.
You didn't really.

690
00:27:24,080 --> 00:27:26,960
My sister did, but they
obviously were tough times, you

691
00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:30,040
know, and but it all does go out
the window when you're

692
00:27:30,040 --> 00:27:32,360
completely, completely zoned
into teaching.

693
00:27:32,360 --> 00:27:36,080
You've got 30 kids in front of
you and you're that's smiling

694
00:27:36,080 --> 00:27:39,560
3233 times.
You know, average is 26, isn't

695
00:27:39,680 --> 00:27:40,960
it?
Yeah, average is crazy.

696
00:27:41,360 --> 00:27:43,720
But you're right though, it is a
form of escapism.

697
00:27:43,720 --> 00:27:45,960
It's like watching a good TV
series or something like that.

698
00:27:45,960 --> 00:27:47,560
Just a lot, you know, More
burnout involved.

699
00:27:48,080 --> 00:27:49,840
Yeah, yeah, of course.
But that's that's what I loved

700
00:27:49,840 --> 00:27:51,160
about it.
Like genuinely like you could

701
00:27:51,160 --> 00:27:52,480
give and take stuff.
You mean different schools.

702
00:27:52,480 --> 00:27:56,200
But we're talking now about
like, OK, it's January or I'm

703
00:27:56,400 --> 00:27:59,320
going back, what can I do?
You can do what you're good at.

704
00:27:59,680 --> 00:28:03,320
You can have this impact on
these children immeasurably that

705
00:28:03,320 --> 00:28:05,240
they'll remember you more than
you remember them.

706
00:28:05,240 --> 00:28:07,400
That will just be, you're going
to teach thousands of kids in

707
00:28:07,400 --> 00:28:09,600
your career, but I bet you're a
member, a teacher that made a

708
00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:10,760
difference to you in primary
school.

709
00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:13,640
You're going to have that impact
on the kids and you're bloody

710
00:28:13,640 --> 00:28:16,080
good at it.
Like I felt like everything I

711
00:28:16,080 --> 00:28:19,080
did, I was a master of it by the
end, I knew what to do.

712
00:28:19,080 --> 00:28:20,680
I could start on with doing this
because of that.

713
00:28:20,680 --> 00:28:22,240
And I had the trust of my team
as well.

714
00:28:22,240 --> 00:28:25,480
And you just crack on and do it.
And it felt really good.

715
00:28:25,680 --> 00:28:27,880
And that's what I want people
going into school today to feel.

716
00:28:27,960 --> 00:28:32,360
It was like empowered to be that
person, like to just do what

717
00:28:32,360 --> 00:28:33,280
you're good at.
Good.

718
00:28:33,320 --> 00:28:34,960
I like it.
I like this enthusiasm, Dylan, I

719
00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:37,800
hope this episode is making you
feel enthused and positive.

720
00:28:37,800 --> 00:28:40,800
And you know, you can you can
simultaneously have those

721
00:28:40,800 --> 00:28:42,040
feelings.
Just remember that you can still

722
00:28:42,040 --> 00:28:43,240
feel a bit like, oh, I'm
dreading this.

723
00:28:43,240 --> 00:28:45,520
I'm dreading that.
And also look forward to the

724
00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:48,360
good things and just really try
and focus on those positives and

725
00:28:48,360 --> 00:28:50,600
the, you know, the things you're
going to love, which is

726
00:28:50,600 --> 00:28:52,640
basically being in that class in
front of those kids.

727
00:28:52,640 --> 00:28:54,240
You're going to go through this
term regardless.

728
00:28:54,840 --> 00:28:56,320
You're going to experience the
good and the bad things

729
00:28:56,320 --> 00:28:58,120
regardless.
Why are you spending your time

730
00:28:58,120 --> 00:28:59,400
thinking only about the bad
things?

731
00:29:00,040 --> 00:29:02,840
At least compartmentalise it a
bit and be grateful for the

732
00:29:02,840 --> 00:29:04,560
great things that are going to
happen because there's going to

733
00:29:04,560 --> 00:29:05,920
be loads of it.
It's an amazing job.

734
00:29:06,120 --> 00:29:09,160
And if you do feel good, you can
subscribe, you can like, you can

735
00:29:09,160 --> 00:29:11,280
follow, you can share, you can
rate, you can do all the good

736
00:29:11,280 --> 00:29:12,280
things.
It really.

737
00:29:12,480 --> 00:29:13,840
Helps you always give me a
certain look.

738
00:29:13,840 --> 00:29:15,480
There's like a look in your
eyes, a glint in your eyes.

739
00:29:15,480 --> 00:29:19,240
And I know the reviews the real.
Reason we do this podcast is for

740
00:29:19,440 --> 00:29:21,680
reviews on views various sites
for.

741
00:29:21,680 --> 00:29:24,720
Streaming all that matters.
Definitely, absolutely.

742
00:29:24,720 --> 00:29:26,680
It's the only thing I care
about.

743
00:29:26,680 --> 00:29:29,120
Guys have an amazing first week
back.

744
00:29:29,120 --> 00:29:31,320
We'll see on Wednesday where
we're going to do our Q&A.

745
00:29:31,360 --> 00:29:32,560
Hayden, anything to say before
we go?

746
00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:33,720
Well, we.
Should probably explain that

747
00:29:33,920 --> 00:29:35,480
there's AQ and A on Wednesday
next week.

748
00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:37,680
It's going back to normal.
I reckon they probably know

749
00:29:37,680 --> 00:29:39,720
after getting through this whole
episode on Monday that wasn't AQ

750
00:29:39,720 --> 00:29:40,880
and A do you?
Think they've worked out by now?

751
00:29:40,880 --> 00:29:41,640
Maybe.
Fair enough.

752
00:29:41,720 --> 00:29:42,240
Yeah.
Bye.