Should I Become A Superintendent?
We all look for opportunities to get happier and wealthier with less effort. It would be even better to have a “job” that could sustain the desired lifestyle and liberate us from worries, financial instability, and having to wake up early and commute to the job you wish you didn’t have.
As I grew in my entrepreneurial spirit and my obsession to read every single book on financial freedom and the movement of liberation from 9 to 5 rat race, I started noticing the opportunities around me that would otherwise be ignored for fear of failure or embarrassment. Most importantly, I have understood the trick of how some people get higher positions with more substantial pays or more power. It’s not the matter of education, talent, the right place and the right time, it’s rather the matter of doing something different and scary, showing courage, and taking decisions now – something that the majority would never risk to do or would consider “unrealistic.”
I have seen people in the education field who are probably not that smarter than I am, but who achieved more significant results and a better financial situation just because they made strong choices to show courage in exploring the paths available to everyone and feared by most. As they say, those who are able to change the game are rather ordinary but, at the same time, extraordinary in their ability to think differently, see the hidden path, risk, employ unconventional methods, and speak up when everyone prefers to hide their face behind the brochures and offers.
You see, every expert becomes one after being a student first. Those who drop fear and take action then become leaders and achieve excellent results. Why then some people can break away from this conventional routine of career ladders and years of work before they can see better opportunities for themselves? And why others are successful from the get-go, seem to have better positions, higher pays, and faster decision-making time? In my view, it’s all about one transformation of thinking that starts with, Do I accept conformism and being the follower? Or am I the one who is in charge of the present day? – which eventually brings much better future outcomes.
In one of my earlier posts about starting a career in teaching “It’s important to fail in teaching,” I mentioned this pervasive, sick, false perception of teaching as the trap you sign up for with no possibility of reaching more freedom or financial stability. I was in the trap as well. To my regret, I haven’t met the people yet who would drastically change my view on teaching as a career. Two years into my career, twenty or more books on financial freedom and personal development later, I already feel I can never fall victim to the negativity or pessimism that is often associated with teaching as a profession.
Teaching is multifaceted. There are so many options to choose from. You can be a classroom teacher, a counselor, part of the administration, an adjunct, a university lecturer or professor, a self-employed tutor, and many more. Not only this. You can go for any salary target. It becomes the matter of additional education and certification. It’s entirely realistic, step-by-step controllable and achievable. It’s not about getting it because you are smarter or more privileged. It’s so much more accessible, comprehensible and doable that if you think otherwise, you must be stuck in a very dark place from where, by the way, you can drag yourself out by just asking for help.
“Should I become a Superintendent?”- the question popped up in my head during the recent interview I had for a position of a teacher. It’s funny of course to be an applicant, be interviewed by a director of the department your applying to and the supervisor at the table and think about shooting for a higher position somewhere in the near future. Why? The answer is simple: the ratio between what a regular teacher earns and the salaries of school district directors and supervisors is unbelievable. Such a gap does make you question whether your ambition is in the right place and whether you miss shooting for the stars. I have to mention that I have a complete admiration of people, especially women, who hold a high position and get big paychecks. Zero envy but absolute, unequivocal respect of those who showed courage, spoke up, challenged the status quo, addressed the questions, If not me then who? If not now, then when?
By no means do I have any desire to be a Superintendent. It doesn’t interest me at all. By no means, however, am I determined to stay in the same position until the rest of my life, not even five years. Am I positive or just delusional? Think what you may. I clearly see the opportunities that I can pursue. I can be a simple teacher for now, but the doors are open for those who knock.
If you are a new teacher, and you think you are stuck on the side of the earth where the sun never rises, you need to start seeking help and start educating yourself. Dig the literature on the topics that spark your passion, start transforming your perception of the job you have. Start listening to your inner voice and stop comparing yourself. The opportunities are there for everyone. Just show the courage to grab them.
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