Issue 34 | July 8th, 2022 
8&21
Welcome to your three-minute pause. 
This is your practice space.

 
Frustrated? Check!
Learning? Check, check!
My favorite practice this year is to reframe emotions. 
 
Feeling nervous? 
I must really care. 
 
Feeling frustrated? Well, I'm probably trying something new. Or difficult, which is awesome! 
Human instinct is to get rid of negative emotions—to try and stop feeling frustrated. And I don't enjoy being frustrated, so I get it. 
 
But instead of spending my energy trying to “calm down” or erase what I'm feeling, I've tried to take “frustrated” as a sign to: 
   1. check in on progress ("How far have I come since day one?")
   2. confirm goals ("Why am I doing this, again?"). 
 
With that mindset, frustration gets reframed from an unwelcome emotion into more of a… sign. A chance to pause and think about whether I'm on the right track, headed down a path worth walking. 
 
Most often, I keep right on going.
 
- Dr. Sarah Glova, Co-Editor of 8&21 and Constant Contemplater

 
 
“There is no separation of mind and emotions; emotions, thinking, and learning are all linked.” 
 
- Eric Jensen, educator
 
 
Before we get started…
At the start of each class, I ask my graduate students to reflect on how they are feeling and to select their emotion from a list of emotions to share with me.
 I do this because I want to:
   1. know how my students are doing, and this check in gives me 
       an opportunity to connect with them about situations that
       may influence their ability to learn
   2. encourage them to take a moment and practice identifying
       their emotions, which can improve their resilience
   3. track trends and patterns over time to determine if a change
       in my curriculum plan would be beneficial.
 
While they complete this brief check in, I am doing the same thing–reflecting on how I am feeling, considering what situations may influence my teaching that day, and naming my emotion. This practice has improved my ability to engage fully in the moment 
(a skill I am always working on both inside and outside the classroom!).
 
- Dr. Sarah Egan Warren, Co-Editor of 8&21 and Always-Learning Teacher

 
“Feelings are much like waves, we can’t stop them from coming, but we can choose which one to surf.”
- Jonathan Mårtensson, Swedish actor
 
Expect the breakthrough
 
“There are certain emotions that will kill your drive; frustration and confusion.  You can change these to 
a positive force.  
 
Frustration means you are on the verge of a breakthrough.  
 
Confusion can mean you are about to 
learn something. 
 
Expect the breakthrough and expect to learn.”  

 
- Kathleen Spike, Master Certified Coach
 

 
“We cannot tell what may happen to us in the strange medley of life. But we can decide what happens in us—how we can take it, what we do with it—and that is what really counts in the end.”
 
- Joseph Fort Newton, American author and minister, 1880 - 1950
 
Even the challenging ones
 
“My message for everyone is the same: that if we can learn to identify, express, and harness our feelings, even the most challenging ones, we can use those emotions to help us create positive, satisfying lives.”

- Marc Brackett, Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help 
  Our Kids, Ourselves, and Our Society Thrive
 
 

 
What's something you're learning that's frustration-worthy?

 
Great job!
Way to take a pause and give 3 minutes to your practice of pursuing awesome 
by exploring this issue's theme. You rock!
 

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