I love being a teacher. Quite honestly, I cannot imagine me doing anything else. I’ve said before that there were only 3 thing I ever “wanted to be when I grow up”: an astronaut, a film maker and a teacher. I feel very lucky that I was able to accomplish one of those.
I think the wild part for me is that I had a period of my life where I really second-guess my decision to become a teacher. I moved down to South Carolina to accept the teaching position and things didn’t really go very well there. I got out of teaching after being there for three years and tried a few different jobs, including working at a call center. That was really my first experience dealing with not only cubicle life, but having a job that did not revolve around the academic calendar
I knocked around for a little bit after the call-center job didn’t work out, and got in into substitute teaching again. I was covering an English class one day, going over the crucible. I could’ve just told the kids to read act two of the play and sat down and let them do their business, but I decided that I wanted to go ahead and teach that at since I had not read, but also taught the play myself.
I remember one kid in the classroom, putting his face in his hands and saying “Crap! This guy is a real teacher“. That’s when I knew that I had to get back into the business.
It wasn’t until my divorce and I moved back to Michigan. Then I took some classes to get recertified here. This was really the “phase 2” if you will of my teaching career. I haven’t looked back since.
It sounds really cliché to say this, but the fact of the matter is you have to find something that you truly enjoy doing as a career. You have to have a job that makes you want to get out of bed in the morning. Sure, teachers pay. I wish it was better. And I complain about my job. In fact, whenever one of my students tells me how much they hate school, I will look at them and say “I know, right? They have to pay me money just to come in here every day!” I complain about the job because I love it. I love working with young people. I love the energy they have. I love the questions that they ask that get me re-examining things that I’m teaching.
Do you enjoy your job?
Thanks for stopping by Rebuilding Rob. Be sure to like, comment and subscribe to my blog below. It’s greatly appreciated! Also, feel free to follow me on social media as well! Check out my most recent posts as well as some earlier, related posts
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- The Supporting Cast: Navigating the Eras of Male Friendship
- Life is What Happens: A Look Back at My Non-Existent 2025 Vision
- The Moment I Walked Inside a Hallmark Movie
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The article “a job that gets me out of bed every day” first appeared on Rebuilding Rob.
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