Feeling rubbish about workload

[ASauvingnonADay]

And just not being able to get everything done. Should I just accept that you just can't do everything? I'm prioritising, but there are always things that don't get done and I spend my weekend just feeling shit about it, feeling like I'm letting the kids down. I have the option to delegate more (and probably should be) but that is onto other staff who are probably also stressed. Does anyone else feel like this 😔

[DitheringDiva]

This is the way teaching is, unfortunately. You can work 24/7 and not get everything done.

You need to prioritise - I know this is yet more work, but perhaps keep a diary of everything you do for a week, then highlight ones that absolutely MUST be done, e.g. lesson planning - although even with this, check how much time you're spending on it and set a time limit. Same with reports. Then look at jobs, that you don't really need to do - often these are things that come down from SLT, that SEEM urgent because you've been told to do it by someone senior, but in reality, does it really need doing? Often it doesn't and it's quietly forgotten.
And definitely Delegate! Pick out all the jobs from your list that can be delegated. Often, there are teachers who want to be delegated to, to gain experience, develop skills and get a promotion off it. Is there someone like this who you could turn into your "right-hand man/woman".

In my experience, I tend to spend far too much time planning, because I enjoy it - I can spend hours planing lessons and doing resources. I'm currently part-time, so do spend hours on it, but I know if I go full-time, I will need to cut that back massively. Do you have a tendency to spend too much time on one particular thing that you enjoy, then end up running out of time to do all the other stuff?

[DitheringDiva]

Just to answer your last question - I've very definitely felt like you in the past, and I ended up taking a career break for a while, but I was also being bullied by my immediate boss, which didn't help.

Do you have a supportive boss you could talk to? That would definitely have helped me at the time. Another option is to move schools? My current school is very laid back and I could easily work full-time there, but other schools just seem to generate pointless work from nowhere.

[ASauvingnonADay]

Boss is really supportive and love the school. Just cant hack the guilty feeling. I've got pastoral responsibilities, so if stuff doesn't get done it really impacts on the kids.

[Teatimebear]

There is always a lot of work, of course, but it also dramatically varies by school. Some schools work hard to reduce workload and look after staff well-being, others don't.

It's a question I ask in interviews now - "What do you do to manage teacher workload?" Very revealing.