We recently connected with Amber Harper and have shared our conversation below.

Amber, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about serving the underserved.

Within the education sector, a highly underserved community often goes unnoticed: burned-out teachers who grapple with the immense pressure and demands of their profession. These educators are under-appreciated, overworked, and burdened with challenges that significantly impact their well-being and effectiveness in the classroom. This issue matters because teachers play a pivotal role in shaping the future, and their burnout can lead to a decline in educational quality and student outcomes.

I can deeply empathize with this struggle, having personally experienced burnout and isolation during my own teaching career. It became evident that there was a lack of support and understanding from both colleagues and institutions. This realization drove me to create a coaching service tailored specifically for burned-out teachers. Through my program, I empower educators to navigate their burnout, rejuvenate their passion for teaching, and lead more fulfilling lives both inside and outside the classroom.

One poignant story that underscores the importance of this work involves a teacher who had reached a breaking point due to overwhelming workloads and the emotional toll of feeling undervalued. This teacher had considered leaving the profession altogether, fearing that they could no longer make a positive impact. However, after engaging in my coaching program, they found renewed purpose, learned effective stress management techniques, and regained their confidence. Witnessing this transformation not only validated the need for my service but also reinforced the profound impact it can have on both teachers and the students they serve.

In essence, my brand acts as a guiding light for educators lost in the darkness of burnout. By addressing their unique challenges and providing them with the tools to overcome them, I am not only supporting teachers’ well-being but also contributing to the improvement of education as a whole. Every revitalized teacher who enters the classroom brings a renewed enthusiasm that ripples through the lives of their students, creating a more positive and impactful learning environment.”

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I used to be the teacher crying in her car before school, feeling underappreciated and overworked. I used to constantly wonder… “Should I quit teaching?”

Thirteen years later, with lots of highs and lows in between, my passion for teaching has never been stronger.

Today, my mission is to help teachers like you (who are also wondering “Should I quit teaching?”) identify what’s within your control and take consistent action that will lead you not only out of burnout but into a career that fuels your passion for teaching.

When I started teaching, I didn’t have the environment or the tools to help me develop into the teacher I wanted to be.

My team wasn’t fond of my enthusiasm and didn’t welcome my innovative ideas. My principal had a very hands-off approach to leadership, leaving me with no support to navigate the friction between my colleagues and me. And I had little to no knowledge of how to manage my workload, set boundaries, or collaborate with my team in a productive way.

I spent many mornings crying in my car trying to keep my mascara from running so no one would know what I was going through. I was deep in burnout, but I didn’t want anyone to know. On the outside, I had all my shit together.

I was an excellent teacher and my students were successful. My husband taught down the hall from me (I know, pretty cool right?), my girls went to school in the same district, and we had a wonderful life. I felt guilty for not being grateful and for constantly asking myself, “Is teaching really for me? Should I quit teaching?”

But no matter how much I tried to hide my unhappiness from everyone else, I couldn’t hide from myself.

I hit a breaking point one day when I left school during my lunch break to go home and let my dog out.

When I walked in the door, I discovered that he had shit himself. It was all over his kennel and all over him and the sight of it triggered a full-on panic attack in me.

After cleaning him up, I sobbed all the way back to school only to have a very public meltdown in front of my eight other teammates who assumed, based on my state, that my husband had died.

You can imagine how underwhelmed they were when they found out I was crying about dog shit.

But the thing is, it wasn’t just about my dog. I knew this was about months and years of overwhelm and bitterness slowly chipping away at my joy and today was just the tipping point.

I needed a change.

So after seven years of switching grade levels and experiencing some huge wins but also many difficult challenges, I quit teaching …for the first time.

Leaving teaching felt like the best decision in the midst of the conflict I was feeling internally and observing in my school setting.

Sometimes making a career change is the best way to tend to your burnout and make space for personal and professional growth. But usually, there are mindset and practical changes you can make first. I’d figure that out my second go-round with burnout.

After I left teaching to start working for an esteemed educational nonprofit in my community, an unfortunate chain of events closed the organization and brought me back to the classroom. Later that year, with feelings of isolation and sadness, I started experiencing burnout again along with depression.

That’s when I started learning everything I could about burnout and how changing my beliefs, actions, and habits could drastically improve the one life that I had to live.

From that point forward I took intentional steps to help me find a path that gave me purpose and fueled me with passion.

I started paying attention to what I could control instead of focusing on the negative factors that were beyond my control.

I became intentional about setting boundaries around my schedule instead of letting anything distract me during my work hours.

I started setting professional goals that would affirm my strengths as a teacher and help me reignite my passion for teaching.
And I made consistent decisions to prioritize things I wanted personally that would fulfill me as a person outside of my career.

Most educators will tell you that teaching is exhausting. But I believe that it can be empowering.

Yes, it requires so much of your mental and emotional energy, especially in the first few years. Yes, we face significant challenges as educators that are stressful and even heartbreaking at times.

But you shouldn’t be miserable at your job.

The good news is that there are steps you can take that have the potential to not only improve your experience in education but also rekindle your excitement for the profession you were once so passionate about.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When I initially decided to shift from teaching, I embraced a new opportunity as an executive director at a local non-profit. This move was exhilarating and promising. However, as I delved into the organization’s financials, a challenging reality emerged – they were operating in the red with seemingly no viable solutions. Despite my efforts, I came to the difficult conclusion that the organization couldn’t be salvaged. Within a span of just six months, I had to navigate the process of winding down operations and returned to the classroom.

Undoubtedly, this transition was humbling. Moving into a different teaching role within a new district and at a new grade level posed significant challenges. Yet, this change turned out to be pivotal. Although the adjustment period was hard, it ultimately led me to a district that provided invaluable opportunities. This new phase of my career presented chances for growth and development that I might never have encountered if I hadn’t taken that initial risk.

Reflecting on the entire journey, I am now so grateful for the twists and turns that brought me to where I am today. While the immediate aftermath was so difficult, those experiences showed me the importance of resilience and adaptability. They reinforced that even in moments of difficulty and uncertainty, the choices we make can pave the way for unforeseen and positive outcomes.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

One important thing I had to learn was that teachers don’t have to give up their own well-being just for their job. I used to work way too much for a long time. But then, I realized I needed to take care of myself too. So, I started setting limits on how much I worked and how much energy I put into my job. It wasn’t easy because I worried about what people might say, but I knew I had to prioritize my own happiness. This change helped me have a better balance between work and personal life.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.burnedinteacher.com
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