Be good, not great.
You might be thinking… “Woah. Did I read that correctly?” Yes, yes you did.
For as long as I can remember I’ve had a type A personality in most facets of my life. When I do things, I commit. I don’t do things halfway. This belief, of course, carried over into my work life as well.
I made custom plans, materials, lessons, and resources for the majority of my caseload. I did everything 110%.
Then, after only about a year of being an SLP, I suddenly started to feel BURNED OUT.
I wasn’t feeling super fun or patient with my kiddos. I was tired.
I recently switched settings (into a school) and am starting fresh this new year. I am going to be GOOD, not great. I’m also going to be GOOD at other things too, instead of bad, like working out, taking care of myself, and keeping my house looking less tornado-like. I’m realizing that I can’t be great at everything, or even be great at a lot of things, but I think I can be GOOD at a lot of things.
Now at work, I scramble from 8-3 every day. I don’t relax, I don’t take breaks. But I’m efficient, fun, effective, and happy. At 3, I’m done. I do minimal work at home, mostly prep work that I can do while watching trashy TV. I think I’m a better therapist without the constant pressure to be great, or even “perfect”.
So here’s to a new year where I focus on being GOOD. Because GOOD should be enough.
{thanks for reading}
I completely agree! We are a field that attracts perfectionists and when we strive to keep up, we get burned out and lose confidence.
To illustrate this, one of my most popular blog posts is one on avoiding burnout (http://www.independentclinician.com/blog/6-ways-to-beat-speech-pathology-burnout-for-good) which is so sad to me!
When I saw the headline of your article, I smiled. Thank you for sending this message!
I read that article and LOVED it! Thanks for commenting! 🙂
I love this and wholeheartedly agree! It’s so hard to come to terms with the fact that good is good enough. I’m working on it too!
Love this! Refreshing and honest – and FUN!
I love this! I’m in my CF year and already feel burned out from taking work home every day and working on it until I fall asleep on the couch! Thank you so much for posting this and helping us realize that it’s OKAY not to get everything done when we want it…the important things will get done.
Yes! Agreed, the important things WILL get done. Good luck to you in your CF year! Such an amazing field 🙂
LOVE this post! Balance is the key to a long and happier life as a SLP!! Good luck in your “good” quest this year 🙂
Thanks for this post Shannon! It’s true that we can’t be great at everything. I found that when I don’t balance my work with my life, I miss out on my family and my kids. They grow up too fast to miss out. Thanks for the post for letting me know I’m not alone in being “good” at what I do.
Not alone at all!
I completely agree! This year, I’m doing things differently. I’ve started taking more time during the week for date night with my husband, leaving my laptop at school and even started a new business venture selling makeup because it’s fun to help people while doing something fun for me! I love the idea of having balance and know have even more reassurance that I made the right choice. Thank you!!
I’m working towards more balance in my life this year, and it has definitely made me realize I can’t be “great” in everything! A good reminder that “good” is perfectly all right. 🙂
Just…YES!