Plan Time to Do Nothing
In all your planning, plan space without plans; plan time without agenda.
Sometimes the temptation to wash away last year’s regrets is strong. We overcome the feeling of not living up to our own ideals by planning a slew of new ideals for the next year. Somehow the act of imagining a better future eases any feeling of lack from the past one.
Yet what if this past year was fine?
- What if you accomplished exactly what you could and it was exactly enough?
- What if you looked back and took it in: we survived a pandemic AND we learned and grew?
Maybe last year is a blueprint for the future, not a memory of what not to do again.
What if you looked at last year and decided to do even less in the coming year?
What if you gave yourself permission to go at the pace of human beings, not schools?
In ALL your planning, plan time to do nothing.
Plan time for wondering and wandering.
Include space to be.
We’re driven by performance metrics. We measure ourselves against a spreadsheet of productivity and completed tasks. We forget that the deeper work of caring to learn can’t be quantified. Caring gets you all the way there.
Instead of planning tasks on calendars, ask this question:
What kind of plan promotes caring to learn?
This year, even as you plan, take human beings at a human pace into account. Get to know each of your kids as people, not students. Uncover lessons learned, rather than teaching objectives.
In all your planning, promote caring.
This post is originally from Instagram and @juliebravewriter is my account there so come follow along for more conversations like this one!
