What Calendar?

Why have a planner when nothing goes as planned? This week has been one of those weeks when, no matter what is on my agenda, something else happens. While every replacement activity has been worthwhile and important to the overall accomplishment of my job, I still have the feeling that I have not accomplished all that I should have done in the week.

That is the nature of a job in which you work with meeting people’s needs. You cannot be all things to all people but you do your best when they are around and do the paperwork later. I stay late almost every day just because that is the time that will allow me to get the bureaucratic tasks of my job done. The interaction with people, teachers, students, parents, truly make my job the one I love to do. While those interactions can be frustrating more often than I would hope, successful completion of them give me the energy to come back the next day - to look forward to the next day - even when it promises to be 12 hours long.

Although I know it is not always going to work, I do plan my days fairly carefully so that those I work with know what to expect. I even post my calendar on my door, so that when others drop in, they know what is on the agenda for the day. Most importantly, it lets people know what I am doing with my time, because many people do not know what people in my profession do from day to day. As often as it offers job security, it can cause confusion and frustration when others do not recognize the urgency that some tasks have over others. They do not realize that their immediate situation is not the most important thing I have on my calendar - because it is the most important thing they have on their calendar for me.

Each day I go to work with a mental calendar of activities that must be done.

Each day at work I adjust my calendar to match what needs to be done.

Each day I do to work looking forward to the challenges that come with it.

Each I come home from work, thrilled at the challenges I have met.