How to Support Your Mental Health in Museum Education
As I write this, it is (finally) a cool October day. The last time I wrote for this fledgling blog, it was a cool April day. My work schedule last spring was simply insane. I was hiring and training a whole new team, while still running my education department solo until the new team could onboard and actually be helpful. And, despite the ongoing pandemic, we were actually kind of busy. Not large groups, of course, but lots of small family groups.
And then, right as I hired new staff and started looking optimistically toward the fall, here came the Delta variant and all of sudden, there was once again an undercurrent of caution running through our whole staff as the summer wore on. I felt stretched thin, trying to train three brand-new staff members all at the same time, while also preparing to restart many of our long-standing programs, while ALSO wondering if I was just going to have to cancel and postpone them all over again.
A New Start in a New Season
But, there’s something about the change in seasons that brings clarity for me. And since I live in the south, summer doesn’t actually change into fall until about the middle of October. As Mother Nature has been teasing me with cool mornings lately, I’ve felt the renewed interest in reflecting once again on my job - its joys and its pitfalls.
Maybe it’s because all of my favorite planners launch their new versions in October, or maybe it’s because I finally take down the last of my red, white, and blue summer decorations, or maybe it’s just the lingering effects of my childhood obsession with Anne of Green Gables and her classic quote about Octobers, but this is a month that always brings me to life. I suppose it’s ironic, really, since all around me nature is slowing down and going to sleep.
But regardless of why, I dusted off my laptop and began to reflect on why I feel like my professional life jumped the tracks lately and what I can do to course-correct now and how I can keep that from happening again in the future.
Challenges to Maintaining Mental Wellness in Museum Education
Challenge #1: An Overcrowded Schedule
Everything in life is seasonal, including a museum’s visitation. Certain times of the year are prone to higher visitation - such as summer months or the holidays. Other times, your institution might look like a ghost town. When you add the uncertainty of a global pandemic, well, it can be hard to keep a clear head about scheduling programs.
The fear that the people you can see today are the only people you’re going to see anytime soon can lead us to a “feast or famine” type thinking. This past spring, I was operating under the misconception that I had to say “YES!” to every bus group, teacher, or scout leader that came my way for fear they might be the last.
This kind of thinking leads to a calendar that is overfull and unsustainable.
Challenge #2: Inadequate Resources
Whether we are talking about site-wide or department-wide resources, most museum educators have experienced a lack of something. In my particular experience, at my museum, I am always wishing for more space. It seems that no matter what program I plan, space is constantly at a premium, and I never have quite enough.
Lately though, over the last two unusual years, there are a lot of things I wished I had:
My staff back - They were all furloughed and let go or left due to COVID.
School groups back - What’s an educator without someone to educate!
A spending budget - Our spending was almost entirely frozen, except for essential operations.
More than ever before, the last eighteen months have been characterized by an overwhelming sense of “lack.” Maybe you’ve felt this, too? Whether it’s a lack of people, or space, or money, or supplies, or all of the above, we’ve looked around at one time or another, and wished for more.
Challenge #3: Difficult Subjects
Maybe your institution interprets injustice against indigenous people, African Americans, or immigrants. Maybe your institution displays art or literature that had been censored in the past. Maybe you spend your days educating visitors about a topic that has become strangely controversial lately - science.
Regardless of what kind of museum you work in, the fact is most of us deal with topics that are sensitive, contentious, or just plain hard.
Working at a historic site with a history of slavery brings challenges every day. I have long felt the weight of ensuring our education efforts are elevating the story of African American history and doing justice to the horrific nature of slavery, while also not being exploitative. Particularly since the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, the importance of doing this work has continued to mount. To be clear, this is work I’m passionate about and honored to undertake; but it can be hard.
Challenge #4: People
Oh, the public. What would we do without the people?
Well, for starters, we wouldn’t have a job, since what we do is literally educate people. But all educators know that the people can sometimes be the hardest part of this job. Whether it’s because they disagree with you or because they are simply disagreeable, sometimes keeping that all-important pleasant attitude can be a real challenge.
Especially in the last couple of years, the strain of a divisive election, racially motivated murders, and the social, political, and economic fallout of the pandemic have really done a number on American society. Time Magazine recently published an article entitled “Why Everyone Is So Rude Right Now,” the Rhode Island Hospitality Association produced a “Please Be Kind” kit for it’s members, and my local nail salon has plastered its walls with posters written in bold magic marker, declaring “Be patient or go away!”
Clearly, it’s not just museums who are dealing with unpleasant people.
How to Protect Your Mental Health at Work
Healthy Tip #1: Take a Walk
Take a walk around your site. Get your body up and moving. And while you’re taking a walk, take a look around! Museums are usually very pretty places. There are amazing things to see! Remind yourself of the beauty around you. Consider the amazing culture that is at your very fingertips. Remind yourself of the intangible wonder of the work you do.
If you still find yourself spiraling into a stressful state, try the Look, Listen, Feel strategy. Standing still, concentrate on your present moment and situation. Consciously name something you are looking at while taking a deep breath. Then name another thing. Then another thing. Next, stop and listen. Consciously name something you can hear. Keep listening and name everything you can hear. Lastly, consciously consider what you can feel. The point of this exercise is to ground you in the present moment and to stop the swirling anxiety in your mind.
Healthy Tip #2: Know Your Non-Negotiables and Advocate For Yourself
In non-profit organizations, we often wear many hats. Sometimes it is non-negotiable for our schedule to be crazy. For example, of the last twelve days, I only had one day off, because we had a weekend event I had to work right before leaving town for the Southeastern Museums Conference. Has it been exhausting? Yes. But is it over now? Also yes. That kind of schedule is not an every week thing and it can’t be.
Accept that there are busy seasons in our line of work, but draw a boundary where you need it. Don’t let a seasonally busy schedule become a perpetually busy schedule.
A word of note: I recognize that setting these kinds of boundaries is harder when you’re not the boss. Perhaps you find yourself overscheduled and overworked. If so, practice advocating for yourself. I used to work for a very driven woman, who had a different capacity for work/life balance than I have. I made things harder on myself by not advocating for myself early on and communicating what I needed.
Likewise, if you are the boss, encourage your employees to set boundaries. Don’t let them work themselves to the bone. Offer the chance to clock out early. Let them take a long lunch. Make sure they know that they can talk to you about what they need.
Healthy Tip #3: Be Realistic About Your Resources
Be realistic about your schedule and resources. Over-scheduling plus under-resourcing is a recipe for disaster. Full disclosure - I’m really bad at this. Overcommitting is my Achilles heel at work. But I’m trying to improve, and I plan to share my insights here as I continue to learn more over this next year. Here are some of the ways I’m focusing this winter, as I plan and prepare for a busy spring and summer season:
Know what supplies we have and where they are stored
Organize my staffing schedule
Create a strategic plan for my department
Use the strategic plan to inform our action items, tasks, and habits
Take charge of my to-do list (and delegate or delete tasks ruthlessly)
In our profession, we give a lot.
We give of our time, our energy, our knowledge, our resources, and our heart. This is good work we are doing.
But remember to give back to yourself. You can’t pour from an empty cup.
Looking for more support?
No one understands the complexity of museum education like other museum educators. Join a growing community of like-minded educators and find resources, hope, and encouragement to keep you going on the hard days. I can’t wait to share my resources with you! Sign up below or visit modernmuseumeducation.com/introducing-resources to find our more!