Kailee Schimmel

Within the education world it is extremely easy to feel overwhelmed, stressed, and exhausted. On top of the personal feelings, we then face negativity and comparison. This last summer when I started my Masters in Educational Leadership at Baylor, there was one comparison that stuck out to me. We talked about the ‘crab bucket’ effect. It was described as when one tries to succeed or go against the norm, there will always be others that are trying to bring you down and back to everyone else’s level. Learning about this mentality really opened my eyes and made me reflect on if I was living in the ‘crab bucket’ or if I was living for God’s purpose.

The Challenge
Teaching has always been my dream and is something I am passionate about. As I reflect on my four years of teaching, one thing I noticed is how easy it is to feel overwhelmed with demands in our profession, to feel discouraged, and to let the ‘crab mentality’ takeover. I remember in my first year of teaching, I showed up excited to have my very own classroom and couldn’t wait to start planning engaging lessons for my students. As my team and I met I was eager to share ideas. Spoiler alert, they were pushed to the side because they did not fall in line with what had always been done. Throughout that year I continued to struggle with comments about ‘being new to the profession’ or ‘not knowing anything because I just graduated’. I remember these moments vividly as it was the very beginning of me feeling dragged down and discouraged.

I am now in my fourth year of teaching and I can say, I have grown a lot personally and professionally, but before this school year I was still feeling that fear of sharing my ideas. While sitting in Dr. Eckert’s class last June, I felt the push to make my way out of the ‘crab bucket’ environment and to make a shift in mindset that left me feeling encouraged and uplifted versus fearful.

Mindset Shift
“The novice mindset is the belief that we grow continuously through fearless, deliberate practice.” (Eckert, 2016) This was exactly the new mindset I wanted to strive for, why not replace being fearful with being fearless? I started the 2022-2023 school year in a new district, at a brand new campus, with only one familiar face. The words ‘fearless’ and ‘deliberate’ are my two new traits that are helping me live out a ‘novice mindset’. This shift has not always been easy, but it has been life-giving. The relationships I have built with my admin, my team, other educators in our school, and my cohort for grad school are all helping this shift be successful.

As I continue to run with this new mindset, I have been reminded of how great God is and how much all this has to do with his love for me. With my mindset shift of being fearless and deliberate in my practice, I also took on the challenge of being fearless and deliberate in my relationship with God. I knew the only way to truly escape the negativity we can face each day, I would need to be living my life for God’s purpose.

Purpose
Our profession does not define who we are. God already wrote our story and He wants us to be part of the miracle he has for his sons and daughters. Through our relationship with God and being the living image of Christ, we will all find our purpose. The best thing we can do is apply and live by Matthew 22:37-39:

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Genuine love for God and for others will take us so far. I think of how often this applies in our profession. I love my students, they are what make this job so fulfilling. Seeing their excitement for learning and growth they make each year tells me that I am where I need to be. I choose to love those who doubted me, because they ignited my desire to continue my personal education and growth. I love those who walk with me in taking chances in my profession, as it helps me be fearless. This genuine love leads a life where we are living our purpose.

Reflection
I will forever be thankful for Baylor and the wonderful professors involved in the Educational Leadership program. Their expertise and encouragement has helped me shift my mindset and focus to God’s purpose for my life. Those two changes together have helped me escape the ‘crab bucket’ of education and have brought me so much joy and excitement for what is to come.