What do you do if your boss is constantly micromanaging your teaching?

Difficult question. Been there. Many school systems have very rigid standards and curriculum, giving teachers very little room for teaching to the specific needs of their class. It is really hard to realize the micromanaging is not about you. It is a broken system. I became a life coach and work with teachers to change their mindset and learn proven techniques to take the beat up and anger out of their day. You can’t control the situation but you can control your response. When you are calm and clear headed you respond with calm and look for ways to work with the broken system without making yourself angry. With a clear head you find ways to navigate what you can control.

1) Play Detective: Time to put on my Sherlock Holmes hat and sleuth around for clues on how my boss's micromanagement is impacting the classroom. I'll observe student reactions like a hawk and monitor my own stress levels faster than you can say "elementary, my dear Watson!" ?? 2) Keep a Micromanagement Diary: I'll whip out my trusty notebook and jot down every micromanagement moment faster than you can say "elementary, my dear Watson!". 3) Hold a Secret Micromanagement Bingo: What better way to turn a stressful situation into a game than with a micromanagement bingo? Every time my boss checks in one too many times or hovers during a lesson, I'll secretly mark my bingo card and celebrate my victory silently.

This step involves looking beyond the surface-level inconvenience of micromanagement to understand its deeper implications. It's crucial to consider whether the micromanagement is a minor irritant that can be adapted to, or if it significantly hampers one's ability to deliver quality education, innovate teaching methods, and connect with students. Identifying the specific ways in which micromanagement affects teaching effectiveness allows educators to articulate their concerns more clearly and propose constructive solutions. Such an assessment is the cornerstone of addressing the issue, paving the way for open dialogue and the establishment of healthier managerial boundaries.

Been there. Your brain has 2 sides, left (survival) where anger and anxiety is triggered and right (wise) where calm clear headed thinking takes place. Take some deep breaths before your meeting. Bring calm to the meeting. Mirror neurons trigger the mood in the room. If you are in right brain, your calm gives off clear headed solutions. Proven neural science calming techniques allow solutions and bring compromise into the conversation. Figure out how to meet the expectations and goals you both want to achieve. This works with my teacher clients and with myself, a 30+ year teacher turned life coach. I wish I had these skills earlier.

Keeping an open mind as a teacher is key. It might be challenging, but approach the situation as a learning curve. Constantly seek feedback from your supervisor on your teaching methodology, lesson planning and execution etc. Ask for places you can improve on and take necessary action. This will show you're someone who is not afraid of corrections and who is willing to learn. Every teacher must embrace all opportunities to learn and grow, even if they are uncomfortable.

This step requires a deep understanding of the educational goals and the areas where independence in teaching is most beneficial. Educators can suggest detailed plans that demonstrate how certain freedoms in teaching methodologies can lead to improved learning. For example, presenting a well-thought-out proposal for a pilot project that allows for more autonomy in lesson planning, coupled with an evaluation metric, can be an effective way to show how less oversight could result in positive impacts. By offering solutions, teachers engage their superiors in constructive dialogue aimed at enhancing the educational experience for students. This step underscores the teacher's role as problem-solver, willing to take initiative and lead change.

As a teacher,30 year, and now trained life coach helping teachers successfully manage their teaching day, your mindset matters. The stresses and expectations of your day are real and cause anxiety, anger, and sickness. You can only control you, not the situation. You can’t control the ocean, but you can learn to surf the waves. Instead of looking at the situation as life throwing you obstacles and challenges that trigger your negative response, change your attitude of life sending you gifts and opportunities. Is letting somebody else trigger you with it. Don’t give them power over you. Take deep breaths to calm yourself, evaluate the situation, and flow with it. You can control your response. Look at the situation through another filter.

It is really hard and challenging to go higher up. It is hard to fight a system. Document the situation for your protection. Ask yourself what will change if I go higher up? What do you hope to gain? You can really only change you and how you respond. I have learned as a retired 3O year teacher(now teacher life coach) who has been there, looking back I wish I knew what I know now. Anger is triggered by your survival brain. You can learn how to change your mindset so you respond with calm brain. Understand your triggers, and learn to pause, rewire your brain pathways, and control you. When you respond differently, you will see how others react. Get clear headed solutions. Don’t be afraid to walk away. New opportunities await.