Today I was asked why I choose to teach. And that too, in a
government school, in an NGO which teaches underprivileged children. I
always thought I knew the answer. I thought I worked here because I wanted to
make some difference. I wanted to give it back to the society.
These kids deserved better than what they were getting.
But today, as I thought deeper, the answers struck me suddenly. Was I doing those tiny little children a favor by teaching them? Did they ask me to come here and teach them? Not really! I am not doing anyone a favor by teaching them. The kids have always deserved an excellent education. All children have the right to excellent education. And I don’t think I can ever give them that ‘excellent’ education, I can only try. The only favor I am doing by choosing this profession is to myself. The reason I say this is because I have always wanted to be a happy person, all of us want to be happy. What does an individual look for in an ideal job? - A place where he can put his skills to use; skills which he has acquired in all these years, a place where what he does matters, a place where his work shows results, a place where he gets to experiment on the subject he is passionate about, a place where one feels a sense of belonging. In two words- job profile and job satisfaction.
Now let us consider this. How many people we meet every day love their job, are passionate about it? How many of them would work overtime if the job doesn’t demand, or if there are no added incentives? How many of them would take that initiative? Not many, I would say. May be a few. More than a few. But still, today I can confidently say that I am one of those fortunate few. I am one of those few who loves to work from home every day after work, who feels her students belong to her and she is responsible for their actions- feels a sense of belonging, I am one of those fortunate few to have found a passion, to feel a sense of satisfaction every time a child grows, to have a smile on my face each and every single day after work. Every day at work is a new day. I am NOT doing anyone a favor by choosing this job. I am being selfish. I have chosen this profession because it keeps me happy, challenges me, pushes me to my best, makes me feel worthy, worthy of an innocent child’s love. I don’t teach because I want to change this world, I teach because I want to learn.
But today, as I thought deeper, the answers struck me suddenly. Was I doing those tiny little children a favor by teaching them? Did they ask me to come here and teach them? Not really! I am not doing anyone a favor by teaching them. The kids have always deserved an excellent education. All children have the right to excellent education. And I don’t think I can ever give them that ‘excellent’ education, I can only try. The only favor I am doing by choosing this profession is to myself. The reason I say this is because I have always wanted to be a happy person, all of us want to be happy. What does an individual look for in an ideal job? - A place where he can put his skills to use; skills which he has acquired in all these years, a place where what he does matters, a place where his work shows results, a place where he gets to experiment on the subject he is passionate about, a place where one feels a sense of belonging. In two words- job profile and job satisfaction.
Now let us consider this. How many people we meet every day love their job, are passionate about it? How many of them would work overtime if the job doesn’t demand, or if there are no added incentives? How many of them would take that initiative? Not many, I would say. May be a few. More than a few. But still, today I can confidently say that I am one of those fortunate few. I am one of those few who loves to work from home every day after work, who feels her students belong to her and she is responsible for their actions- feels a sense of belonging, I am one of those fortunate few to have found a passion, to feel a sense of satisfaction every time a child grows, to have a smile on my face each and every single day after work. Every day at work is a new day. I am NOT doing anyone a favor by choosing this job. I am being selfish. I have chosen this profession because it keeps me happy, challenges me, pushes me to my best, makes me feel worthy, worthy of an innocent child’s love. I don’t teach because I want to change this world, I teach because I want to learn.
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