Classroom to Capital

I know many teachers have had similar experiences to mine. I have spent too much of my time dreading going to bed because I did not want to return to a dysfunctional school in the morning; I’ve had less time to do what I want to because I had to plan for three different classes and made sure I had differentiated lessons for every type of learner and their mother; I spent my whole planning period researching potential career changes that maybe I could have done if I had any relevant experience.

Almost a decade of teacher burnout hits pretty hard, and I give Kudos to those who decide to stick to it in the long run, but if you are unhappy like I was, you should know there are other options out there. 

       I am thankful I taught for as long as I did, as I can’t deny I built nearly all the professional skills I have now while I was in and around the classroom.

I hate to admit it, but I was not a great public speaker 10 years ago. I was always anxious speaking in front of anybody, and here I was in front of two dozen 13 year olds who didn’t give a shit about the slope-intercept form of a line (imagine how much they cared about solving systems of equations). 

          So, after a few weeks my principal and AP pulled me aside, in the solace of my lunch hour, of course, to let me know how monotone I was and that basically nobody would want to listen to a voice like mine. They said this in a much more polite manner, but I was picking up what they were putting down. And honestly I agreed with them, but being verbally abused by the students made it really hard to teach with any level of excitement.

Over and over again, I would repeat their phrases, like “WELcome class, PLEASE take your seats,”…. Welcome CLASS, PLEASE take your seats,” etc., etc. …. 

       That was my first year of teaching in an underprivileged school in my home city. As uncomfortable as that exercise made me, it helped and started opening me up to constructive criticism and working outside of my comfort zone.  Fast forward to today and I am getting compliments on my tonality in my scripting class as a financial professional, who would have thought? 

  I feel happy about the change I made everyday! I feel a weight lifted off of my shoulders. I feel like I did my duty to the community and now I can focus on building a career I am interested in So, what looks different in my day to day?

• I have greater control of my schedule.

• I have time to go to lunch if I want to.

• I can work from home two days a week.

• It is easier to go to the gym.

• It is easier to get together with friends and family.

• The last game changer? Not having to hold my pee in for 2 hours before I can finally step out to go to the bathroom. (People are just allowed to do this at other jobs??)

       So I know blogs are not really hip at the moment, but I’ve been told I don’t have a face for video so here I am. Writing is something I have wanted to do for a long time, but I never felt like I had the time. I’d love to use this space to tell stories of my experiences teaching, the good and the bad, among other things.

I’d love to hear experiences from other teachers and transitioners, as well as anyone else interested in adding to the conversation. So, where are you on your journey? Has anyone else made the jump? Are there still some committed career teachers who are locked in for life?

Tony