Tip #2: Don't be afraid to make mistakes

As a first-year teacher, you will make A LOT of mistakes. Hopefully they won't be too terrible. Hopefully they won't be detrimental to your career or to the education of your students. But you'll mess up some on your classroom management plan. Some of your lessons won't go exactly as planned. You'll probably have a mini-freak-out on a student a time or two your first year.

But, repeat after me..."It'll be okay. I am not perfect. I am human. I will make mistakes. But I will also learn from them, exactly like I tell my students to do."

The gist: Don't be afraid to make mistakes. But always, always, always...make sure you learn from them. And if you make a mistake that affects a coworker or student, own up to it. Apologize. And next time you are in that situation, remember "that time you messed up," and take a different approach.