When I Grow up, I want to be a Werewolf!

“Burnout” Term developed by Herbert Freudenberger. Maslach defines burnout as exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy. Connected with a reduced sense of personal accomplishment.

The Cycle Compulsion to Prove Oneself Working Harder Neglecting One’s Own Needs Displacement of Conflicts Revision of Values Denial of Emerging Problems Withdrawal Obvious Behavior Changes Depression Burnout

Warning Signs You’re exhausted all the time. Your day is filled with overwhelming or mind-numbingly dull tasks. You feel unappreciated/underappreciated. Anger at “higher ups.” Self-criticism with putting up with unreasonable demands. Lack of personal autonomy.

The Solution: Reconnect. With purpose.

“If we want to grow as teachers -- we must do something alien to academic culture: we must talk to each other about our inner lives -- risky stuff in a profession that fears the personal and seeks safety in the technical, the distant, the abstract.” ― Parker J. Palmer

Werewolves

Witches

“Our deepest calling is to grow into our own authentic self-hood, whether or not it conforms to some image of who we ought to be. As we do so, we will not only find the joy that every human being seeks--we will also find our path of authentic service in the world.” ― Parker J. Palmer

Who Inspires Us

“ Like a wild animal, the soul is tough, resilient, resourceful, savvy, and self-sufficient: it knows how to survive in hard places. I learned about these qualities during my bouts with depression. In that deadly darkness, the faculties I had always depended on collapsed. My intellect was useless; my emotions were dead; my will was impotent; my ego was shattered. But from time to time, deep in the thickets of my inner wilderness, I could sense the presence of something that knew how to stay alive even when the rest of me wanted to die. That something was my tough and tenacious soul.” ― Parker J. Palmer

What Nurtures US

Barriers We Face— And How We Overcome Them?

“Good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher.” ― Parker J. Palmer