Business
I’ll Never Return to a Classroom and Here’s Why
“My first year working in a school, there was a fight between two middle school girls. I jumped in to break it up. One blow landed on my right cheek, and a foot landed on my upper left shoulder.”
I still remember the day I walked into my college advisor’s office to outline my thesis paper. He stared at me in disbelief and a little bit of disgust when I told him my research was related to my career aspirations – I wanted to be a teacher.
He said, “Why would you consider becoming a teacher? That’s just a stupid choice for you to make.”
My eyes widened and I stared back at him with the same reverence of disbelief. I didn’t even know how to respond. I recall not being too thrilled that he had been made my advisor in the first place. I had taken more than one class with him and wasn’t too keen on his teaching approach or how he spoke to students. But, let me add this, he was an absolute gem when it came to me; it was how he handled my peers and his inability to never come to class on time (and the satchel of books he carried around and then displayed on the tables to show us how accomplished he was).
He continued lecturing me on the dangers of being a classroom teacher and that I had a better chance of survival as a police officer. Of course, he didn’t mean that in the literal manner. And, of course, I didn’t listen. I was young and the idea of anyone older than me telling me I wasn’t ready for the world didn’t resonate. I thought I was ready for the world, and it was the world that wasn’t ready for me! Afterall, I had been on my own since 16 and I always thought having to pay bills equated to “being grown”. I am now at the age where someone my age then, would consider me to be grown, but I question my ability to adult all the time (hope that makes sense).
Anyways, I did not heed his advice and I went on to teaching in several traditional schools over the span of ten years. My first year working in a school, there was a fight between two middle school girls. I jumped in to break it up. One blow landed on my right cheek, and a foot landed on my upper left shoulder. Then I was sent to the principal’s office and reprimanded. I was told that I was not properly trained to intervene in student fights and that there could be legal ramifications against ME for trying to stop two girls from trying to rip one another’s heads off.
Guess who never intervened again? Me, even after I was certified in the proper techniques of stopping student violence. Nope, I stayed out the way.
Eventually, I did leave brick and mortar schools. The short version of the story: I started homeschooling, I traveled and became a worldschooler, and I grew my business teaching online.
Many of my educator friends questioned how could I leave – like I was supposed to be a part of this huge crusade to save the children and the failing school system. I had advocated all I could and saw that those ideas I had in college where just that – cute ideas. I didn’t want to fight through all the bureaucracy. I didn’t want to be reprimanded for doing what’s right. I also didn’t want that low @$$ salary. I couldn’t be guilted into returning to teach in a physical environment not after traveling the world with my daughter, earning six-figures, and never getting attacked by a child, a parent, or even worse, admin (not physically, but if you’ve been there, you know).
On this next phase of my big, grown, adult life, I plan on helping others recognize and achieve their dreams. Maybe they had an advisor that they did listen to and they’re thinking about all the other possibilities and paths they could have taken. Maybe you know a teacher that is struggling through burnout and wants to leave but they feel that little pang of guilt (trust me, it doesn’t last long). If it’s you or someone you know, you have to tell them they have to get in here and get them one of these (a little trending sound humor).
What is it? My upcoming Accelerator Course. It is a super intensive, 4-week long course that will take ANYONE from the idea of creating an online course to a course that’s ready to launch by April 1st.
If you’re still at that diverged road (a little Robert Frost for ya), sign up for a FREE info session --> HERE
If you’re on my email list, you’ll find out about how you can start working with me to earn some extra money and possibly gain access to the course for free.