Youthful Hubris, Where Art Thou?
Written by kellyt: kelly, make a difference 9 Comments
I can’t make all the difference I want to in my job. At least, I can’t always do it with a positive viewpoint. There is enough reality in my life to know that I can’t affect all the change I want to because it is, simply put, impossible. From getting students to see their best possible options to leading teachers into doing what’s best for kids – it’s all a moment by moment career. But, aren’t they all?
So in your jobs and your daily dealings with people I must ask: how do you get through without feeling entirely weary? How do you get up, wash your face, eat your Wheaties, and make it through another day when you don’t see the positive changes you had hoped to make an impact on when the hubris of your youth was your driving force?
I really want to know.
May 7th, 2008 at 8:50 pm
That is a terribly loaded… but interesting question. I think for most of us… we temper some of the higher ideals to a certain extent as we get bogged down in our own lives (bills, families, etc). Of course, it’s sad if you give up on everything… or kill yourself trying to reach the impossible. The happy worker is the one who can do both. I don’t believe for one second that you’re not making a difference at your school, specifically because you’re in education, where making a difference is part of the job. You may not be making as big a difference as you had hoped, but you still can make a difference in society without it being something extravagant. After all, is the guy who runs the cleaners making a difference in the world? I would think that if he was nice to his customers, did a good job, was fair, and was community-minded — he was. I’ve worked on some dumb jobs, and I take the same approach. By doing my best and acting fairly, I’m making an impact.
You may not see what impact you are having right now, but we all know how your school years stay with you for the rest of your life. I’m sure you are having an impact on hundreds of kids and teachers in ways you don’t even know about yet.
May 7th, 2008 at 9:17 pm
Actually, often it is the moments that are forgotten by you, unmarked by drama, that may leave a lasting impression. I have had people thank me many times for things that I had no recollection of. It keeps me mindful.
May 7th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
I, too, come home exhausted too many days of the week. But when all is said and done, if you’ve made a real difference for one child a year, you’ve done well. The trouble with that philosophy is that we never know which one our “one” will be, so we try to touch them all.
May 7th, 2008 at 9:32 pm
For me it’s all about my focus. When I think of the negative side of things I feel absolutely spent. Like I’ve had enough. The days where I can focus on my passion, and why it’s my passion, those are the days where I really feel successful, no matter how much I actually got “done”.
May 7th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
I’m a teacher, so I totally get you here. There’s always at least one kid I know I’ve reached, and I try to focus on that kid at least as much as the one I can’t reach, the one that keeps me up at night worrying about what more could I do that might make a difference.
And I keep all those little notes, scrawled in misspelled, sometimes broken English. Those notes that say, “Ms. McSwain, you rock!” and “I’ve changed schools 8 times, and this is the BEST first day of school I’ve ever had,” and “Thank you for helping me with my math.” On those days when I don’t feel like I’m reaching kids, like maybe I made a wrong career choice, I pull out those notes and read them until I forget why I ever doubted in the first place.
May 8th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Here’s my downer answer – a big reason why I left university teaching was that it seemed to make so much *less* of a difference than I thought it would when I was in grad school. So many apathetic students, so many students uninterested in the subject (political philosophy). Maybe one bright-eyed student for every hundred. Would it have been worth it to stay for that one student? Maybe. But I’m happier writing more, lecturing less. So, I get through each day doing more of what I love, even if it isn’t changing the world.
May 8th, 2008 at 11:09 am
I would quit my job today if it weren’t for those bills that keep needing to get paid. Theoretically I’m improving society with drug development, but my piddley contributions aren’t what keep me here. Maybe when I’m here longer and get more responsibility?
Mmm, maybe today wasn’t the best day for me to answer that.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Life is a hologram – every part contains the whole. It is not about making a big difference. I think the big difference might be a lie. All we can do is what is in front of us as best we can with what we have. It is simply a sign of being a good, decent, hardworking person that you feel you should do more than you already do.
May 9th, 2008 at 12:23 am
Honestly, these were far better answers than I could have come up with even with a shot of tequila or twelve. So, thank you all.
And Suebob? I need that quote on my wall at work and at home. It fits nicely in both places.