Episode 118: Choosing the Right Path Forward

In last week's episode, I talked about seeing the possibilities that are in front of you in this new year. And I think that's such an important practice for us all, to try and see all the many, or at least many of the many possibilities in front of us. So often we can start to see things in our own life so narrowly that we don't see there are so many other ways that things can be.

I encourage you to really make it a practice of seeing these possibilities. And when you do, it can be so inspiring, but it can also be overwhelming, because it can be like, Well, where do I even start? And so in this episode, I want to talk about choosing the right path forward.

 

Topics Discussed:

  • How to explore different options beyond the classroom

  • How to take small steps to go after your dreams

  • How to develop a litmus test to evaluate and attract the right opportunities

Resources mentioned:

Related episodes and blog posts:

 
 
 
 

Read the transcript for this episode:

Welcome to Educator Forever, where we empower teachers to innovate education. Join us each week to hear stories of teachers expanding their impacts beyond the classroom and explore ways to reimagine teaching and learning.

In last week's episode, I talked about seeing the possibilities that are in front of you in this new year. And I think that's such an important practice for us all, to try and see all the many, or at least many of the many possibilities in front of us. So often we can start to see things in our own life so narrowly that we don't see there are so many other ways that things can be so I encourage you to really make it a practice of seeing these possibilities. And when you do, it can be so inspiring, but it can also be overwhelming, because it can be like, Well, where do I even start? And so in this episode, I want to talk about choosing the right path forward. And the best advice I can give you is to actually just choose each best next step over and over and over again, and that becomes the right path forward. It's not going to be perfect, and you're going to try things that don't work out well, and that's part of the journey. So it's not like, Oh, I'm choosing this right path, and then everything has to go perfectly. That's not realistic, right? That's not life. But and sometimes this quest for perfection or expectation of perspective perfection can make us feel paralyzed. So the best next step, that's what I want you to think about. For you, what is the best next step that I can take? And if you're kind of thinking about things, if you're like, oh, maybe I want to be a curriculum writer, or maybe I want to be an instructional coach, or maybe I want to start my own education business. Whatever it might be, you owe it to yourself to try to explore it, to see if it's the best step for you, the right path for you. But you have to give yourself a chance to explore that exploration phase is not going to be anything near perfect. This is just you trying it out. You're trying it on. You're being like, Oh, maybe I want to be a curriculum writer. Let me try and write a lesson. Probably, if it's the first lesson you've written in many years, it's not going to be great. But that's not what we're going for. We're not going for your best lesson right off the bat. We're going for an exploration, for you to have an opportunity to see, Hmm, do I like this? Is this interesting to me? Does this feel like a good fit for my skills? But you owe it to yourself to do that exploration of the things that are calling you. You don't have to quit your job tomorrow, and go down a path, because you feel like it might be interesting, but you do need to explore it. Think about what small steps you can take to explore your goals. And as you get into this, you might realize that you want to take on many flexible jobs in education, or you might want to take on a whole different role in education, or you might want to see a teacher and start a business on the side. Whatever it is for you, there's no right answer. It really is about what feels aligned to your goals when you start exploring options, though, kind of like the possibilities you can see, oh, wow, there's a lot of things out there. And so when I started taking on flexible work beyond the classroom, I at first took on everything, like, truly, anything that paid me, that I could do at home with my kids, and that was in education I would pretty much do. And that was great at the beginning, because I got to try out so many things. I got to try out things that I ended up loving. I got to try out things that I ended up hating. I got to work with lots of different organizations and feel out what felt like the best fit for me. I wouldn't have known these things if I hadn't tried. But then I got to a point where I was like, Okay, I don't need to say yes to everything. That's not sustainable, and I have a better sense of what I want to do. So then I created this kind of litmus test so that I could evaluate potential opportunities and decide which ones to pursue and prioritize. So for me, I have these four criteria, and any opportunity had to meet at least two of these four so the four criteria were that it pays well, it doesn't take too much of my time. It came easily or naturally to me, and I loved it. So again, it pays well, it didn't take too much of my time, it came easily or naturally to me, and I loved it, and so with it pays well, it's like, alright, the income meets or exceeds what's I'm after, right? That's an easy one. Like, it pays well, it doesn't take too much of my time. This means, like, the task can be done efficiently, leaving me time and energy for other projects. Like, it's.

Easy to do, right? That kind of goes with the next one, it's easier comes naturally, like it aligns with my strengths, and while I might learn new things, it's not so complex that it creates extra stress. And then the last one, I love it like the project excites me or motivates me because it aligns with my passion and interests. I wasn't going for projects that met all four of these things, though, of course, I would have said yes, if one came up, but it had to meet at least two of the four. So if it paid well and didn't take too much of my time, but it was kind of, you know, came harder to me, or wasn't super a natural project, and I didn't really love it, I might take it because it was relatively easy and it paid well, right? Like, Alright, that seems fine if it came naturally to me and I loved it, but it kind of took a long time and didn't really pay that well. Sometimes I would take that project because it was a passion of mine. It developed my skills. It wasn't always about being able to complete things quickly or getting paid well. And so this litmus test allowed me to really evaluate opportunities and get clear about what I wanted to learn or get out of certain projects. Sometimes I took on a project because it funded my life, right? Like it was able to pay the mortgage, it was able to have some money left over. It was all about the financial gain. Other times I took her on projects because I felt excited about working with an organization or it gave me an opportunity to learn new skills. Being really clear about what I wanted from these certain opportunities was huge. So as you think about all the many opportunities in front of you, I want you to think about maybe developing a litmus test. How will you evaluate potential opportunities? How will you decide what to take and why? And as you think about this, and as you go out and you try new things, so whether it's new jobs or new new classes that you take, or new communities that you join. The first step is really defining your goals. Clarity is crucial. So think about what success might look like for you. Are you aiming to make a certain amount of money? Develop a new skill, have better work life, life balance. Let your goals and the litmus test I described guide your work choices, and then start small. If you're able to like test the waters, maybe you take on one project on the side. Maybe you freelance for an education company. Try it out, just see how it goes. Take the next best step. Starting small, can even be talking to somebody about what you're interested in doing, and then that talking to somebody might lead to a connection or lead to that person checking in with you about your goals. And then when you're doing anything for yourself, I want you to think about strategies for holding yourself accountable, especially as a busy educator. As a busy person, you likely are going to have many competing responsibilities. So if you have this desire to do something new, you have to build that into your life really intentionally and then regularly check in goals. Don't have to be your exact goals forever, like your goals can change. And if we're thinking about taking those best next steps, you're going to get data and you're going to be like, actually I don't like this, or actually I love this, or actually I need to learn these new skills. So find time and build in time for reflection, so you can get clearer on where you're at and where you want to go, and then really stay connected and join professional networks. There are so many awesome educators doing all sorts of inspiring work beyond and within classrooms. The educator forever network, it is our amazing community here at educator forever full of awesome educators expanding their impact beyond the classroom. And if you're looking for a network to join, we'd love to have you join us. The network membership consists of our beyond the classroom course, which walks you through lots of different options beyond the classroom, our jobs board, many calls throughout the week, and a really inspiring community. And whatever you decide. Again, I'm going to say it over and over again. I want you to think about what's calling you. What are you interested in? What are you longing for? What do you wish you had? And then take a small step to explore different options. I know that you'll be able to find your way by doing it and by doing it imperfectly, and I'm always cheering you on.

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Transcribed by https://otter.ai

Lily Jones