Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is the action star of our generation. His relentless approach to everything he does is impressive and inspiring. Whether he is promoting his next movie, TV show, or getting "jacked" in the gym he gives it 100%! He is constantly looking to improve. At the gym, I often pull up YouTube videos of "The Rock" working out. I know that sounds creepy, but I do it to get workout ideas, and often times motivation to keep going. Tonight, when I pulled up "The Rock's" video promoting his new Under Armour Veterans Day collection, I had a crazy thought. What if we as teachers approached our job every day like "The Rock"? What would it look like, and what kind of impact would it have on our students?
What if we as teachers approached our job every day like "The Rock"?
Well, to start, it would begin with teachers taking care of themselves first. We cannot give our best to students, if we are not at our best as teachers. This begins by taking care of our bodies and exercising. I know, I know, you don't have time to exercise, but I promise that you do. If you are at a High School, you have a weight room and exercise equipment at your school. If you aren't, there are a ton of gyms all across the nation that would love to have you, and if you don't want to spend the money, just do cardio around your neighbor or school. There is time to exercise, if you make time to exercise. It is not easy. There will be days you aren't going to want to roll out of bed and get to the gym, or hit the pavement for a morning jog, but it is what is best for you and your students. So, step one, take care of you.
We have to be relentless in our desire to be better educators.
Next, attack your teaching career like "The Rock" attacks his movie career. If you pay any attention to the box office, the guy is constantly making movies. As teachers, if we take the same approach, we should constantly be making new and engaging lessons, constantly be searching for new ed tech tools, and constantly looking to improve. We have to be relentless in our desire to be better educators. This idea ties into a previous post about preventing teacher burn out. We stay on fire as teachers by never settling for what we have. Instead, we have to always be looking for ways to improve. This means that it is time to get rid of those old PowerPoints from the early 2000s. Attack each and every day in your classroom with enthusiasm and passion for what you do!
Be the hardest worker in the room. At the beginning of college, I cleaned cars at a Saturn dealership. I remember the finance manager telling me to work smarter not harder. I often hear educators say the same thing. Work smarter not harder, but, in realty, there is no substitute for hard work. It is not going to be easy to wake up every morning and exercise. It is not going to be easy to create new and engaging lessons for your students, and it is not going to be easy to approach each and every day with enthusiasm and passion. Nevertheless, it is what is best for you and your students. Be the hardest worker in the room...or in this case your school. :)
Promote yourself and the amazing work of your students. This is my favorite part of Teaching Like "The Rock". He and his team may be the smartest group of marketers ever. Promoting his work brings eyeballs to what he is doing. The same applies to you. If you put in the work creating new lessons, approaching each day with enthusiasm and passion, and exercising, you are going to see a noticeable change in you, your classroom, and your students. Students will be engaged, creating amazing work, and inspired by you! Now, it is your turn to share it. Promote what you are doing to your administrator, your fellow teachers, and put it out there on social media. You will love the positive feedback, and other teachers will love to learn about what you are doing. Get out there. Promote all that you and your students are doing!
Making changes in your routine both at home and in the classroom will not happen overnight. It will take time. Not even "The Rock" was an overnight action hero. He had early moments making movies like the Tooth Fairy. If you are jumping into the mentality to Teach Like "The Rock" we all start at the Tooth Fairy level, and work to build ourselves up to Hobbs status (If you aren't familiar with "The Rock's" movies, Hobbs is the character from Fast and Furious, and now a new spin-off solo movie).
Share your Teach Like "The Rock" journey on Twitter using the hashtag #TeachLikeTheRock. Thank you as always for reading! If you don't already, please subscribe, and receive awesome content directly in your inbox. You can also follow me on Twitter @TeachandCoachGa. I look forward to hearing and seeing all you are doing to Teach Like "The Rock"!
Have a great day!
D. Barkes
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