Guest: Spencer Cotter –Teacher Mentor
Spencer Cotter is an instructional coach and teacher mentor from Michigan. Tune in to this episode as the Kenton girls talk to Spencer about boundaries, energy input and output, and wellness in the teaching profession. Spencer shares her personal story, relatable examples, and simple techniques to help teachers make changes to avoid burnout and exhaustion. You won’t want to miss learning about the 3 Cs of boundaries, key aspects of Spencer’s morning routine, and how to curate your Instagram feed for healthy energy input.
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What are you watching?
I’m obsessed with Schitt’s Creek.
What are you reading?
Tribes by Seth Godin
What are your favourite travel destinations and which locations are on your bucket list?
Any island! We’ve been to Aruba, St. Martin and St. John and St. Thomas. I also love Arizona– Scottsdale and Sedona are two of my favourite places in the U.S. Santorini, Bora Bora and Tulum are on my bucket list.
Role in Education
Tell us about your current role in this profession.
I’m a former teacher. I taught 2nd, 5th and 6th grade. I was burnt out by my third year which seemed really fast. In my first year of teaching, we had an instructional coach in Arizona and I was amazed at that role. From day 1, that’s what I wanted to do, I just didn’t realize it would happen so fast. In my third year, a spot opened up (for an instructional coaching position). I was such an overachiever in years 1,2,3 and wanted to be the best; it was unhelpful for my health, but I had to do a really good job in the classroom to become a coach, so it turned out to be a blessing. I took a coaching role in 2015 and have been doing that ever since.
How did you become a teacher mentor?
It started with wanting to be a health coach, so I got my health coaching certificate from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. I really wanted to help teachers, but I didn’t want to help them with nutrition. I was really passionate about helping teachers with mindset, self-love and self-care. My mentor is a nurse mentor and created a huge community of nurses and I thought teachers need this. My mentor Kat coached me and helped me start supporting teachers with their wellness.
Boundaries, Energy & Self-Care
You’ve posted some great content about boundaries for educators, and we’d like to spend some time discussing this important topic. First of all, how do you define boundaries for educators? Why are boundaries so important?
Boundaries are my limits for what I will do and what I won’t do. Boundaries are so helpful. They change how we feel about ourselves and how we feel about the world. They create a sense of balance and harmony between work and personal life. They are tools to stay healthy mentally, emotionally and physically.
What boundaries do you suggest that educators set?
My biggest boundary is about time. Set boundaries with your time. I think there is a mentality that it’s okay for teachers to be available all the time and work 24/7. There is this narrative that teaching isn’t a 9-5 and you have to be totally selfless. If we don’t take it upon ourselves to say no to that, then we can easily fall into the trap of overworking and overextending ourselves.
How do we begin with boundaries?
I created an easy formula — the 3Cs: create, communicate and commit.
Create: create space to consider what shifts would be helpful, consider what’s going well and what’s not going well and imagine how life would be different or how life would feel if you implemented some changes
Communicate: communicate the boundaries to yourself and others
Commit: maintain the boundaries and hold strong to yourself
Why might educators be fearful or feel unable to set boundaries? What about situations when a superior or principal is making requests of you?
Boundaries can be super uncomfortable to begin with. There can be a lot of fear of what other people think or fear that someone will be upset with us. We have to work on that. Remember that you are not responsible for other people’s reactions and feelings.
We’ve also learned from your posts about energy input and output for teachers. Could you explain this idea to our listeners? How do you recommend educators find a balance between energy input and output?
Energy input and output is being mindful of what you consume every day. What you take in, you feel and then you give back out.
What kind of social media are you consuming? What kind of food are you eating? What kind of people are you friends with? What kind of conversations are you having with people at work?
Everything is energy and we are all connected, so whatever is going on around you seeps in. You need the tools to deal with that. That’s something I work on with teachers.
Think about what you’re taking in and putting out. What things do you do each day that take energy from you? What makes you feel good and refuels you?
We’re both really passionate about morning routines and we’re always refining and adding to our morning routines. Tell us about your morning routine and how it supports your wellness.
I love slow mornings. I love drinking warm lemon water in the morning with whatever book I’m reading and my journal. Sometimes I work out. Sometimes I have coffee.
In addition to the ideas we’ve already discussed–boundaries, energy input/output, morning routine–how else do you practice self-care and support your wellness?
I have mentors and I go to therapy once in a while. It is such an effective and high-leverage thing I can do for myself to continue working on my own self-awareness. Eating well. I believe our physical energy is affected by what we put in our body. We do not watch the news. I don’t get sucked in to scary theories and don’t follow negative social media accounts. I try to use social media in a positive way. I learned this past year, to use (social media) in a way that I can empower myself and learn from others and connect with others that have similar intentions. I try to surround myself with good people and good energy every day.
We’re really interested in your work as a teacher mentor. Tell us about how a teacher could work with you and what they’d experience as part of that process.
You can connect with me on Instagram @spencercotter. Right now, I have a 12 week mentorship program for 1:1 support. The purpose is to help teachers create a healthier and happier life through empowering coaching techniques. Visit my website for details: https://www.spencermegan.com/
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