TM4T Techniques 3.1.8 Self Awareness - Clear-Headedness

The concept of clear-headedness is closely linked to that of mindfulness.

To understand the importance of having a clear head, we use the metaphor of the mind as a rattle-bag or stuff-bucket, filled with problems, worries, ideas and things to do. An efficient teacher needs techniques to empty out this jumble of thoughts and emotions. Stress frequently involves going to bed thinking about what you have to do; and waking up still thinking about what you have to do. Many people find that by writing down what they have to do – in an effective way - they sleep better.

TM4T involves being aware of this aspect and applying it ruthlessly. Many teachers have an ingrained habit of writing down important things. This probably follows on from their college days, when - taking notes - they wrote down the key points of a lecture.

This is NOT how TM4T works. The key requirement is to write down the unimportant things, to clear your head of anything which might rattle round and disrupt your day. Of course, in practice, TM4T doesn't insist that you write down only the unimportant stuff - it insists that unless you can deal with something now, within 60 seconds, you write it down. Jot it down, on what we call a Tick List. You can read much much more on this by clicking here.