Burnout? Have We Already Forgotten?

By NAfME Member Meghan Cabral

A few years ago, I started to write an article titled, “It’s Ok.” Here’s how it started:

Well, the word era is sweeping the nation by storm. By definition, era is: “a long and distinct period of history with a particular feature or characteristic.” Taylor Swift has taken this term to an entirely new level. On all social media platforms you are seeing #MomEra, #FitEra, #CareerEra, and so much more. Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour has made people define themselves within eras of their lives.

Some people might be sick of hearing about COVID, or sick of hearing “what we learned from COVID” or “what we should have learned from COVID,” but as I continue my journey as a music educator, I think these lessons should never be forgotten, and I fear the further away we are from the spring of 2020, the fall of 2020, as well as the fall of 2021, the more we are just falling back into old habits that could lead to even more teacher burnout.

We’ve seen teacher burnout prior to COVID, and at the beginning. We saw mass retirements and career changes during COVID, and it is my fear that if we do not take the time to reflect, we might end up there again. Or maybe that’s just my own personal fear?

This article started in the spring of 2024, and here I am in the spring of 2026 without the article published (until now), wondering the same dang things.

If COVID taught us anything, it was that we all had the ability to slow down, to be with family, and yet to still work. COVID taught us that we could shift, we could pivot, we could continue on, and we could still find ways to make music outside of the realm of anything we had ever thought we would have to do. Most importantly, it hopefully taught many of us that we have the ability to slow down both in and outside of our classrooms, all while still showing up for our students and programs.

We all know “the story”—in the spring of 2020 we came to a fast HALT; in the fall of 2020 we were barely moving; fall of 2021 went a little better and a little faster than 2020. 2022 started moving even more quickly, and by the fall of 2023, it was like the pandemic had never happened—except it did, and we were dealing with the same in (or out of classroom) situations that we had back in the fall of 2019.

Where Do We Go from Here?

We are hearing so much about rebuilding our programs, reimagining our programs, and regaining our programs, but my concern remains—at what cost?

In what I guess we will refer to as a “post-COVID, post-pandemic teaching world,” we know that we are full speed ahead, but it is my hope that as educators and as humans, while we continue full speed ahead, we still take the time to stop, reflect, and remember what that COVID teaching was like. I myself want to reflect and remember, while we were all scared in the spring of 2020—there were so many unknowns—we all had the ability to SLOW DOWN. We may have spent way more time on Zoom calls, but we also spent way more time walking; we spent way more time with family. Many spent hours dog training, painting their house, and finding things to do that were outside of our normal 2019 routines.

For myself, that spring of 2020 was supposed to be full of guest conducting, adjudicating, running and managing state adjudication festivals, and presenting at conferences. Yes, conferenceS. I was scheduled to guest conduct, zone rep, judge, or present every weekend from January through Memorial Day without a place to breathe or rest. While COVID brought on lots of disappointment as everything began to be canceled, and my initial reaction was anger when I could not guest conduct three All-County festivals, conduct my first All-State festival, or present at an All-Eastern Conference, little did I know the perspective this experience would bring me.

Unknown to me at the time, so many great professional things would come out of the spring of 2020, beyond what was planned. We reinvigorated music educator collegial circles for music supervisors and administrators. Additionally, we figured out how to streamline certain things in terms of professional development, online learning, as well as work-life balance.

One thing I did learn was that I cannot miss my kids growing up. As I was originally writing this article, my daughter and I were listening, hearing, and seeing the chatter about Taylor Swift and her Eras tour, and all I kept thinking was, I guess right now I am in the #MommingEra. With one child ending her elementary years and another coming to the middle of his high school years, this is time I can never get back.

It sounds cliché to say, but I have been asked so many times since returning from COVID, “Why haven’t you written any articles?” or “Why aren’t you guest conducting more?” Honestly, at first, I thought, “Well, why am I not out there more?” and “What is wrong with me? Is it just a lack of motivation? What happened to my drive? What happened to the passion? What happened to my wanting to do more and striving for bigger and greater things?”

Honestly, nothing happened. Pre-pandemic, so many of us with our type-A personalities, just honestly had a really bad work-life balance. I think for some people it works (maybe?), but I don’t necessarily know if it should, and I think some of us just keep plugging along because that’s what you’re supposed to do, but is that really what we’re supposed to do? Are we supposed to just keep plugging along spending hours researching new pieces, while not being present when we are with our families? Maybe it is in my head; maybe it is just the pressure I put on myself to do better, to be better, to strive for more.

A New Era

We talk about what is right for our (school) kids and what is best for our programs, but if we are not in a state of mental wellness and rest, then we are not what is best for our programs. So, yes, I pulled back, I stepped back, and every once in a while, I get humbly invited to guest conduct, and I overwhelmingly accept. Two years ago now, I had the honor and privilege to guest conduct a Connecticut All-State Elementary Honors Band. The year after, I humbly and with honor accepted an offer to guest conduct a District-Wide Band, and as well as several All-County guest conducting opportunities. They were spaced out enough where I felt I would have time to be rested, rejuvenated, and inspired!

Then, I had to say no. I had to say no to a few guest conducting opportunities. I turned down one state chair job, I had to back away from presenting at conferences, all while a feeling in the pit of my stomach had me worried that if I said no, would I ever be asked again?

I just have to trust this process, and trust that my #era right now is to rest, rebuild, and find my balance.

Sometimes as educators, especially music educators, we talk about balance and how that will look different throughout the entire year. For some, it is OK to push through for 10 months of the year and take the two months of summer off. For others, this balance needs to come within the year. Knowing that concert season is a heavy hit on our schedules, maybe we pull back during other parts of the school or calendar year. We need to find a balance that works for us, our family, and our mental selves.

As we all might be sick of hearing terms such as, “the post-pandemic era” or “the post-pandemic years,” I wonder where we are. Are we just back? Are we back to overscheduling, to having students working on solos every period of every day? Are we pushing for more concerts, having our students perform at more events, and not stopping in an effort to bring our programs back?

While we may not want to think about it, the memories that pop up on my social media feed, are still memories of the pandemic. Our current juniors and seniors in high school were DIRECTLY affected at the start of their musical journeys. These students started and learned instruments through remote learning. It is wild to think about. Our numbers are still growing, and we are still trying to bring back programs to the way they used to be.

As we enter many years now post-COVID, it is my wish and hope for our industry to stop and take a step back and reflect on our work vs. home life balance.

Do you need to pull back?

Do you need to rebalance your life?

Without just standing on a soap box, which it seems I have been doing for the last 1500+ words, I encourage us all to look inward and ask ourselves, “Is it time that we re-evaluate again? Should we try to find a way to balance?”

Mapping Our Journeys

I want to stop apologizing for not wanting to have four nights of concerts in a week, or wanting to be home to sleep! I personally want to continue to find the balance, to be able to be present at home, be a mom, and not miss big or small moments.

Mind you, though, I say all this as I am continuing to write articles, find my own way in this profession, as a high school band teacher, a co-department chair, an adjunct professor at two colleges/universities, and taking on (slowly) more positions, presentations, and students.

I would like to think that I am still here, trying to continue to support my family, with a touch of publications, a touch of presenting, a touch of guest conducting, and a focus on growing our band program.

So there’s my journey. Not sure if that’s your journey, or if it is just my own type-A personality showing its face again, but here’s to figuring out how to move forward with the rest of my career, and career goals and paths, while still staying balanced.

I’d always love to hear from you and hear your stories.

Find me at www.meghancabral.com and/or in one of my VanderCook asynchronous classes.

About the author:

NAfME member Meghan Cabral currently works in Carmel, New York, as a high school band teacher and serves as the co-department chair for K–12 Music. Meghan started her career at George Fischer Middle School in Carmel, New York, teaching beginning and middle school bands for more than 15 years.

In 2019, Meghan became the District Director of Music for the Carmel Schools, later titled the K–12 Chairperson of Music for the Carmel Central School District in New York. Meghan conducts the Carmel High School Wind Ensemble, the Carmel High School Freshman Band, and Carmel High School Concert Band. She is an active guest conductor, clinician, presenter, as well as author for music publications. Meghan has presented at the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic, NYSSMA, CMEA, NJMEA, as well as many other local and regional conferences.

Meghan is an adjunct professor at Marist University, serving as the woodwind studio teacher, the Woodwind Ensemble conductor, as well as leading the Wind Symphony.

Meghan is also an adjunct professor for VanderCook Music College. She has written two courses thus far for VanderCook and teaches them asynchronously on rotation every semester, including summers.

She can be contacted at musicmegs@gmail.com.

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The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) provides a number of forums for the sharing of information and opinion, including blogs and postings on our website, articles and columns in our magazines and journals, and postings to our Connect member portal. Unless specifically noted, the views expressed in these media do not necessarily represent the policy or views of the Association, its officers, or its employees.