Blogs It was 88 degrees today, and we still have snow on the ground. That is what spring can be like in the North! As we open our windows and watch the grass turn green, it is a good time to think about ways we can refresh and renew.
One way we can do this is with a spring purge. A purge can mean going through closets and getting rid of things, deleting apps and social media, and releasing unproductive mindsets and thought patterns like the thinking on purpose strategy from our new course 5273: Reimagining Your Teacher Mindset, perfect timing!
This new course focuses on the power of perception using Angela Watson’s new edition of her book Awakened, where we learn to transform our experiences at school by shifting our mindset. To “think on purpose,” we work to understand our thought patterns, and use the 4 simple steps: dismiss, distract, reject, replace to let go of unwanted thoughts. Talk about a spring renewal! The application below is just one of the activities educators will complete to emerge fluent in the self-talk of an awakened educator.
Four Strategies for Thinking on Purpose
Purposeful thinking sounds simple enough, yet we all know the ways our thought patterns can send us spiraling! In Chapter 3, course registrants learn about the four strategies: dismiss, distract, reject, and replace. The author explains,
“These are foundational strategies that work for every cognitive distortion and bias.”
— Angela Watson
With that endorsement in mind, for one day or longer, teachers are asked to monitor and track their thoughts on a notepad, on their phone, a Habit Tracker in Google, or anywhere they can jot down or voice record what they are thinking. After they have 4 or more thoughts, they will complete an exercise like the one you see below.
For each of the 4 thoughts teachers record, they are to apply a different one of the 4 strategies (dismiss, distract, reject, replace) that worked best for changing their thought pattern, as in the example below.
| Thought: (Add 4 thoughts) | Strategy: (Select a different strategy for each of the 4 thoughts dismiss, distract, reject, or replace) | How I applied the strategy: (Explain in one paragraph or more for each) |
| Example: “I really hate this job and I wish I could quit.” | Dismiss-I’m not in a good mental state for dealing with this now. I’m going to dismiss these thoughts for the moment and I’ll think about the subject again when the mood passes. | I used the dismiss strategy when I had the thought about my job. Instead of spending time thinking this negative thought, I dismissed it and continued to tell myself that the thought wasn’t serving me and that I had to let it go for now. The thought does not align with the kind of mindset I want to have or the role model I want to be. Dismissing is a tool I can use to move my negative thought pattern into something I don’t have to hold on to. As a result, I worked to focus on the positive things about my career. |
| 1. | Dismiss | |
| 2. | Distract | |
| 3. | Reject | |
| 4. | Replace |
Whatever “season” you’re navigating as an educator–from early career to expert–join us to pursue purposeful thinking that will refresh and renew your mindset and bring back the joy of teaching!
