Work-life balance: It’s alright to be selfish

Achieving the right work-life balance shouldn’t be left to individuals, says Zak Willis. School leaders must act to help teachers understand that getting some ‘me time’ isn’t just a right, but a duty...

One thing that continues to amaze me is the energy reserves of teachers. I get blown away by those who arrive for performance management reviews laden with wonderful evidence, people who present a brilliant case and then, when you thought all was said and done, go on to produce another bucket-load of work. It is inspirational, and not a little humbling.

Then you walk past a PE lesson in the hall, or a classroom busy at art, and marvel at the energy levels, which are tangible. You know what I mean; my first headteacher used to talk about that “special tingle” you feel when you walk into something a little bit, well, special. And although I would never seek to rid teachers of these amazing habits, I am beginning to question, “Are they getting the balance right?”

Look at it this way. How many times have you seen teachers who normally bounce around like Tigger on Red Bull do the following: drag themselves, and three bags-for-life full of books to their car at 6:30 each evening; blow their perpetually runny nose; say in conversation by the photocopier, “Yes, I was going to do / see / visit that, but I had too much work to do”?

The awe these staff inspire in me is directly proportional to the heartbreak I feel watching them at work. How can great teachers (and all school staff for that matter) spend their working lives imparting joy, fun and excitement, but spend their private lives wrapped in a Slanket watching reruns of Corrie? I used to think they just needed to get the balance right, to work it out for themselves. Now I’m not so sure. 

I think leaders – including governors – have a role to play here, and I think we all need to start doing it sooner rather than later. A headteacher’s job descriptions shouldn’t just include the phrase “staff welfare”, it should include the words “staff happiness, and a culture that promotes such an ethos”. This should trickle down through the infrastructure. What are governor committees doing to make this happen? What about the SLT? What planned (and unplanned, for that matter) staffing events are in the diary? When are you next having lunch together?

Then it needs to get personal. I love seeing a staff member going into another classroom and saying to that teacher, “Will you please just go home?”. My deputy and I tease our KS2 teachers, who all go into one classroom at the end of the day and mark together. “Where’s marking club?” we ask, secretly loving it. Far from leaving the Friday pub trip as an afterthought, who’s planning it from Monday morning? When is your praise assembly for the adults?

It can’t all be down to the leaders; at some point the individuals need to restore balance for themselves – and one another. But the actions of leadership are crucial in this. First of all, the messages have to be clear: leaders, especially the head, need to know it is perfectly acceptable to put the day job on hold and concentrate on the life job. Go swimming, meet your mates for coffee or a pint, do whatever it is you do. Just do it, then bounce back the next day. Those books will still be there, but your energy and passion may not. Secondly, leaders have to model it – being the last car in the car park on a Friday night serves no good purpose. Far from it.

Why make this investment? Because that’s what it is. If you have energetic teachers with a spring in their step, the impact on children is obvious. These positive people will influence staff and other stakeholders. Their energy is infectious, irresistible. The benefits to our organisations and to learning cannot be overstated – who wouldn’t want to sail in that ship? Furthermore, and this is the big win, we might just reverse the tide of brilliant people leaving our beautiful profession. 

Let’s change the mindset. Let’s get to a stage where that runny nose no longer needs a year’s supply of Consortium tissues, the car park is empty at a decent hour and the conversation at the photocopier sound more like, “Yes, I went to see that, and now I feel great!” If the balance is right, then being selfish is not only our right, it’s our duty!

About the author

Zak Willis is headteacher at Badock’s Wood Primary School in Bristol. He blogs at badockshead.blogspot.co.uk