You Don’t Have to Carry Everything: Nick Nelson’s Message to Teachers

Nick Nelson teaches at the same school his sister once attended. After she died at age 9, his family received a box containing the contents of her desk from Sabal Palm Elementary School, including notes she had been taking just before her death.

“She was planning on coming back to school,” Nick said. “Instead, we were going to her funeral.”

That experience stayed with him. It shaped how he thinks about time, presence, and the importance of being intentional about the people and moments that matter most. It also informs the message he now shares with fellow educators through his new venture, Teacher Fuel Co.

At the pilot workshop for Teacher Fuel Co., Nick encouraged teachers to reflect on the weight they carry and the urgency they often feel in their work. He shared strategies to help educators recognize burnout, protect their energy, and make more intentional choices about what truly needs their attention. According to RAND’s 2025 State of the American Teacher research, just over half of K-12 teachers reported feelings of burnout.

Nick understands that reality firsthand. A former top-five finalist for Duval County Teacher of the Year, he has experienced burnout at different points in his career. Over time, he began to see that the pressure teachers carry does not just affect them; it also affects their students, their families, and the future of the profession.

“I’ve felt burnout at different points in my career, but over the last five years, it has become harder to ignore,” he said. “What really stuck with me was how many good teachers were either leaving or talking about leaving. It started to feel personal. I remember thinking, ‘If this keeps up, what does the profession look like for my son as he moves through school?’”

That realization led him to create Teacher Fuel Co., a venture centered on helping educators sustain their energy and remain in the profession without sacrificing their well-being.

Earlier this year, the mission became even more personal when Nick suffered a heart attack. “The heart attack didn’t start this work, but it definitely clarified it,” he said. “It reinforced that this isn’t just about teachers leaving the profession, it’s about making sure they can stay well while they’re in it.”

Through Teacher Fuel Co., Nick is working to help educators shift the way they think about responsibility, urgency, and self-sacrifice. His message is not about caring less. It is about being more intentional. At the workshop, he encouraged teachers to put themselves first and to think carefully about what is actually urgent.

“The real obstacle is the expectation that everything is urgent, that good teachers are the ones who carry it all, respond to everything immediately, and give everything they have,” he said. “Over time, that leaves very little space to feel steady or fulfilled outside of school.

“That’s where the shift has to happen, not in caring less, but in being more intentional about what actually needs your energy right now.”

 Teacher Fuel Co. is grounded in the belief that teachers should not have to lose themselves to serve others well. Its approach acknowledges the real weight educators carry while offering a healthier, more sustainable way forward, one where teachers feel heard, gain clarity, and recognize that they do not have to take on everything to be effective.

The broader goal is to partner with schools and districts to help teachers protect their time and energy so they can continue doing meaningful work and still have a life beyond the classroom.

“You don’t have to carry everything to be a good teacher,” Nick said.

Even with the addition of this new venture, Nick says he feels less stressed than before because he has become more intentional about what matters most. “I’ve learned to really prioritize my family,” he said. “I’m blessed with a supportive wife and son, and I try to include them in what I’m doing so life doesn’t feel split between work and everything else. It turns a lot of those moments into time together instead of time pulled apart.

“I also don’t see everything as a conflict anymore. A lot of what used to feel like competing priorities, I now see as opportunities to be present, to connect, or to experience something with my family.”

To learn more about Teacher Fuel Co. or to set up a workshop, connect on Facebook or Instagram, or email teacherfuelco@gmail.com.