Being an administrator can be tough, but there are plenty of ways for principals to keep a sense of balance.

So says Tom Martellone, a writer for ConnectedPrincipals.com. In his post, Martellone offers principals ways to keep that balance during the school year.

“Since the start of November, my assistant principal and leadership partner has been out on leave, which has left me to oversee a school of 500 students and 120 staff members without him,” Martellone said. “While I’ve kept up with everything, I have also been busier than I’ve been in a very long time. This period of time has given me the opportunity to identify some things I feel help a school administrator keep a sense of balance.”

One of his tips is “no E-mail on your smartphone.”

“This is my 15th year as an administrator,” he said. “In a previous position, I had my E-mail come to my smartphone so I could keep track of them. In retrospect, I should have either deleted the application or not used it. I was continually looking at my phone, it rang or buzzed all the time, and there was never an opportunity to “disconnect” from my work life. I currently have the E-mail app on my phone for school email, however, I rarely use it. I’ve resolved myself to the fact that if school or district staff really need to contact me, they have my number and will call me. If someone has E-mailed you about something, most often, it can wait.”

Another tip he offers is to keep hobbies and personal interests.

“For the past 30 years, I’ve been working on researching my family history. It’s addictive, I have to say, and sometimes, it is hard to put away,” he said. “That being said, it can also be hard to pick up when I have tons of school work to do. Sometimes, I will purposely work on the genealogy research even when I know I have some other things to do. I know that if I don’t make time to take a break, it could be months before I would get to it again. The time I reallocate to working on it may only be 30 minutes to an hour, but it is enough time to keep me grounded in something I have a great interest in and that I enjoy. Make sure that you take time to do those things you enjoy, and again, do not feel guilty that you’ve diverted what you consider to be work time to something you really like.”

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Article by Kassondra Granata, Education World Contributor