Should You be a Martyr?

My girlfriend told me that in her education class they had a discussion about whether or not teachers should be martyrs. Should they be giving up their livelihood for the benefit of the students?

Now, obviously this isn’t a life or death situation, but the bigger question is about work-life balance. Should our educators have to take low salaries, work long hours and spend their own money on supplies because they’ve chosen to be teachers?

It may feel necessary to give up a more comfortable lifestyle in order to educate future generations. But how do we think about this discussion in other fields?

Certain careers have the expectation that you will start out working 60-80 hour weeks and when you move up in leadership, it won’t change much. Do those professions have discussions about being a martyr?

No, they don’t have these discussions because no one imagines someone giving up their life for an accounting firm. No one imagines sacrificing a person’s well-being for the sake of consulting job.

As a teacher, it would seem fair to be all-consumed by your work because it is a noble task. Educating our youth is extremely important. On the other hand, what does it look like for someone to work tirelessly filing papers and having meetings? Is that a noble enough cause to give up your own well-being?

This is something we need to talk about. These are discussions we need to have,

There’s a reason that the airplane safety procedures instruct you to put on your own mask before helping others. You need to take care of yourself so you can be best fit to help those around you.

The point of this is not that some professions are worth giving up our lives for and others are not. The point is that while some may come close, it’s important for every worker to realize that taking care of yourself is a priority. If you’re not taking care of yourself, you’re not bringing your best you to your work.

If it’s been a while since you’ve felt like your best you, don’t worry. Take the time to get a good sleep. Eat some good food and remember that you’re important. Your best work is yet to come.