Building Resilience

The Importance of Having a "Thick Skin" as a Teacher

• The author had a mentor teacher in Helsinki who suggested that they were too accommodating with parents.
• The mentor teacher suggested that the author should communicate that they are the expert at school and the parents are the expert at home.
• The mentor teacher encouraged the author to have a thicker skin and be more resilient in the face of challenges.
• Having a tough skin is different from being obstinate; it means being confident in your expertise as a teacher.
• Resilient teachers are able to bounce back quickly from mistakes and deal with conflicts effectively.
• The Finnish word "sisu" means "guts" or "bravery in the face of adversity" and is reflected in the mentor teacher's advice to be a professional.
• The author developed more sisu while teaching in Helsinki, which helped them handle sharp feedback and make useful changes to their work.
• Having a tough skin means taking a deep breath before responding to upset parents, not getting crushed by lack of recognition, and not taking student curses personally.
• Journaling about professional challenges before going to bed can alleviate stress and help put sources of anxiety into perspective.
• The author emphasizes the importance of developing resilience as a teacher to protect the joy of teaching.
• Resilient teachers are able to keep their classrooms joyful and maintain confidence in their expertise.
• Developing resilience as a teacher is an important but often overlooked aspect of education.