How I became a teacher

 

One of my students recently asked me about the biggest influences on my teaching career. While I have been lucky to have had tremendous mentors, I often think that my path to becoming a teacher had a profound influence on who I am today.

I started my career as an assistant basketball coach for a Division II college. During this time, I learned how to build a program that would attract players to come to our university. At a small school, you do not often get the best players, so you learn to become an expert teacher. I really learned during my coaching career the importance of motivation and inspiring people.

My next stop was working for Domino’s Pizza. I still remember my dad saying, “You went to college to make pizzas?” Domino’s taught me the importance of taking care of the people who work for you so that they can take care of the customers. Feedback is the breakfast of champions, and it was my job to search for the feedback. We had a company slogan that still sticks with me today: “If you are not getting better, you are getting worse.” That provided the mindset of continual improvement.

When I moved from job to job, I thought I was wasting my life away. Now I realize that my past jobs brought me skills and perspectives that have helped me at my new job. Even though I started my teaching career later than most, these past experiences gave me a unique perspective that was helpful.

My point is that most of us do not know what we want in our younger years. College should be about exploring these opportunities and not about building a resume. Take some classes that you might be interested in, do an internship, but do not feel that you must stay in one field. You should not continue to date someone you do not like so do not continue to do a job you are not enthusiastic about.

When you find the job that you love, the way I love teaching, all the skills from the other jobs will give you an edge over those who have just the experience in that one field. The challenge is to be patient with yourself as you find a place that you are passionate about.