Congratulations, teachers. You made a good decision (as if I had to tell you that). Because you chose to be teachers, you chose the good life. Seriously. Let me repeat that for those of you at the back who might not have heard me. Choosing to be a teacher means you chose the good life, at least according to analysis of data gathered by the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index.
Do you know what job offers more feelings of “well-being” (such as physical and emotional health, job satisfaction, community and safety) than teaching? Only being a physician.
Of course it’s not all gumdrops and rainbows, as we all know. Since you’re standing in line right behind physicians, you should also know that you’re second only to doctors when it comes to feeling stress on the job, according to Gallup. Furthermore, what happened when teachers in the poll were asked, “Does your supervisor always create an environment that is open and trusting, or not?” Well, those teachers answered “yes” less often than any other profession. Yikes!
So we find some good news and bad news in there, friends. But I think you understand you made a good choice when you picked teaching. A full 91.5% of teachers participating in the index said they got to work to their strengths to do what they do best every day. And that, I believe, is what makes teaching so special.
What do you like best about your job? Do you agree with these findings? Or simply name your greatest teaching strengths in the comments.
I always say that I am blessed to be able to do work that I love. Teaching gives me personal satisfaction and allows me to be a force of positivity in the world. There is no other job I would rather do. ~Stacy