This is a Discussion Post related to the fourth week of 522.
What’s your ride? I’ve been very fortunate in my career in that I’ve worked variously in, or with, government, institutions, foundations, non-profits, startups, corporations, etc. They all have their own personalities, cultures and, like all human organizations, soul-draining dysfunctionalities. I’ve discovered I love the startup ride better than any other because, despite the higher risks, it is the single best vehicle within which one can focus the collective ideas and passions of a group of committed individuals toward a shared but challenging objective. As an education professional you have the tools and wisdom to choose your ride, so what is it? Describe your learning vehicle of choice.
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Read through a set of existing responses below, if there are any. Use the Thumbs Up tool to recommend any within your set that you believe are exceptionally valuable, or that you strongly agree with. Use the Thumbs Down tool only if, in your opinion, the response does not add value to the discussion.
- If you have something new and valuable to add, use the Comment field at the bottom of this post to contribute your original thoughts, or click on Reply to any existing Comment to contribute to that thread.
My job as an academic advisor is not all that different from the job of an Educational Venture Analyst – I am just investing my professional time and energy into wetware rather than hardware or software. In the same way an EVA “is responsible to undertake the… due diligence” to understand every facet of a promising learning technology, enterprise or initiative it is my job, as an academic advisor, to analyze a student’s goals, resources, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and risks and to engage that student with open, honest, and transparent discussions about their academic choices and career plans. Often our mutual goal is to convince investors (parents or scholarship boards) that their study plan, you might say their academic venture pitch, is not only viable but also shows much promise for impressive returns.
However, the glaring differences between an academic advisor and the educational venture analyst is that we are never openly skeptical, we take on very little personal risk with our investments, and we never see a failed student as a failed venture but rather as an opportunity for redirection.
Jamie, as a fellow academic advisor, I agree with what you described here! I love your last sentence on seeing failed/struggling students as an opportunity for redirection because this is what keeps us creative too. It is so often that by the time students come to us, they already feel quite defeated and feel they don’t have any options but to leave their studies. The whole notion of an opportunity for redirection is very empowering.
One thing I want to add is about the investors comment and that is university funding – academic advisors have to convince the administration that what we’re doing/about to do is worthwhile and can make an impact. The proposals one has to prepare is similar to a business plan and often it takes a few attempts and revision before getting the resources needed to operate a new project.
I feel, regardless of the scenario or purpose, motivation tends to be my propellent of choice. Not my own motivation, but the enthusiasm and motivation that others bring to a project or cause. I like surrounding myself with likeminded individuals who are animate about the project they are working on. I’m very fortunate to provide digital media support to the entrepreneurial students in our college’s incubator and it is the students who are enthusiastic about their projects who are the most rewarding to work with. I also feel supporting an organization that has a grounded goal that aligns with my personal ethics is important. I find myself often playing the pessimistic (devil’s advocate) role in discussions. Not because I’m resistant to new ideas, but because I tend to seek thorough solutions and information on a topic. I feel enthusiasm from those who I am collaborating with is a perfect offset to this and promotes a positive synergetic relationship.
Hi Julio,
You’re thoughts on motivation really resonate with me. A competent, dedicated team helps elevate the whole organization and builds a sort of momentum that can carry others along. One of the reasons I enjoy working at a medical school is seeing the incredible drive the students have, despite the absurd hours they must put in.
If only there were an edit button… I suppose “you’re” is the punishment I get for posting from a mobile device with autocorrect haha
The last 10 years of my working career I have worked in a Non-profit company. However, reading the various business models from this week’s list, I find its really a social enterprise model that this company is working towards. We are a non-profit with for profit satellite ventures that fund the institution. I do enjoy the ideology of creating something for the social benefit of society, and making some money on the side!
However, the older I get, I am also more inclined to follow a triple-bottom-line company. To have an environmentally sustainable company that gives back to society and can generate profit is what drives me.
In researching further about this “triple-bottom-line” companies especially in education, I came across a company that has been using that as their business model. The company is called Classcraft. It’s an Engagement Management System (EMS) that provides real-time data on student engagement, academics, social emotional behavior, and skills development. This type of model is what is needed in the online schools and educational technology; it shows the students what social engagement and environmental sustainability looks like all the while keeping students as engaged as possible while learning online.
For more information on Classcraft: https://www.classcraft.com/
Classcraft has a lot going for it. When I was first introduced to it, there was a lot of potential. I almost felt like it was an open version of other educational activities, such as Prodigy, where you could make your own content. The issue I found is that it was too open, and too much time was required to build something. As I have mentioned in previous posts, time is such an important factor when selling something to an educator. In saying this, I have been told that it has been improved and you are able to build off what other people of shared, which is great, so maybe I need to go and take another look.
Hi Sundeep, it was good to learn about Self determination theory and the intrinsic motivation, from the link you posted. And the TPL concept that cares for profit, people and planet; resonates with me too. Thanks for sharing!
Hello Sundeep,
I completely agree with your statement, “I do enjoy the ideology of creating something for the social benefit of society, and making some money on the side!” and I truly believe it is the only real way forward. I grew up in the world of INGOs and entered my own post-secondary education believing that it was a world I myself would enter. Experience framed within my higher education made me quickly realise the fatal flaws of the INGO and indeed more local NGO world – it is not that charitable organizations are not important, but they must have a sustained government or higher-level funding source. Social enterprises are the way of the future in the fields of development and social justice. That said, my blind spot is still in the higher education sector where I continue to grabble with how these institutions can adapt and grow to our changing world. A little tangental to your thoughts Sundeep, but just to say that it raised the thoughts above, and speaks to my own dilemmas of higher education…
This has been the big question of the past decade for me, and I’m still actively figuring it out. I’ve been doing process of elimination:
– I did not enjoy State Government. Outdated tech and lots of red tape = not particularly efficient.
– I like the day-to-day energy and relationships of a school, but get frustrated at the resistance to innovation and new ideas. Plus, in my experience, the lack of time provided to teachers to actively design and develop their own practice impeded my desire to innovate in my own classroom.
– I like the idea of universities but am suspicious about traditional academia. However, I really love the ideas of Michael Crow – President of Arizona State University (you can hear some of his views on higher education here: https://youtu.be/rJ5TPUFcYzw) and could very well be in my element working within a reformed higher education system.
– I was recently involved with developing “curriculum” for a new education venture. I really liked the start-up energy, but did get frustrated at some level of disorganisation that came with it. However, I was particularly motivated by the trust and autonomy to make something tangible happen, as well as the feeling of gathering with a bunch of experts to design a solution. But, I’m not sure this has to happen in a start-up.
My “entrepreneurial potential self-assessment” was interesting to me. My general profile put me just about at the mean score of entrepreneurs (164), mostly let down by my motivation for power/control as well as self-sufficiency/freedom. What this says to me is 1) I may just not be there yet. Perhaps when I know more and have an idea I am passionate to rally around, I will feel more of a desire to take that power and make things happen, and 2) maybe my “ride” is in an established organisation that values an entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and reform. Maybe I need to find a culture that will give me space to be an “intrapreneur”.
Hi Jessica, I like how you broke down the different environments through the process of elimination. I share a lot of similar frustrations with you in terms of the environments you mentioned. Established organizations that value entrepreneurial spirit, innovation, and reform are hard to come by; the size of the organization seems to have an inherent inverse relationship with its ability to change and be agile, so it all boils down to a negative feedback loop.
Having worked in multiple large institutions, I have somewhat given up on the hope of ever being able to make a meaningful difference in them. We have to keep in mind that 1) it is difficult to make changes when it affects a lot of people, and 2) there are stakeholders who like to keep the things they are because of (stubborn or nefarious) reasons. Maybe I’m just throwing the baby out with the bathwater, but that’s how I feel right now, so that’s why I now work at a smaller venture where there are fewer of these issues.
Hi, Yannick, I agree that it is definitely easier to turn a sailboat that an oil-tanker! Especially when they’re already going full-steam ahead.
Smaller ventures have their own issues – namely funding and some organizational chaos – with the culture being largely dependent on the bent of the founder. But easier to manage and navigate for sure. It’s a good thing we are in the era of entrepreneurialism where if you cannot make a difference in the corporate environment you’re in, there are avenues for an innovator to go out on their own, or choose the work environment from an ever-growing basket of options.
Hi Jessica,
Your post resonated with me as I scored 165 (and you scored 164) on the “entrepreneurial potential self-assessment” mostly let down by self-sufficiency / freedom and self-confidence / enthusiasm. I understand why I scored low in these areas because I have always believed I am only as good as my team. I have a strong sense of community and team-work and truly don’t believe anyone accomplishes anything in a vacuum. I believe this because of my life experience. As a young girl, I remember seeing my parents work on National Geographic film crews to make the unimaginable possible on a tight budget. I remember being totally team-oriented as a highschool student and as captain of soccer, swim team, and lacrosse. In university, I worked with a team of university students in India and Colorado to raise $40,000 USD to build an clean water system in a village in India. I worked alongside my student government as the elected representative my senior year of university. I’ve been performing and songwriting in bands since I was 14 and have learned by collaborating with other musicians how important teamwork is to develop a unique sound, brand/market a band, and gain a genuine fanbase. After graduating university, I worked collaboratively to write environmental policy with a mentor of mine who later became mayor of Boulder, CO. Next, I started an adventure tourism company in Colombia with my partner and truly understood how integral a solid team is. At the French Immersion school where I work in Squamish, I am very fortunate to work amongst a highly motivated, professional, and passionate group of educators. Simply put, my life experience have taught me how much bigger goals can be with a team of motivated people working together. A great leader will work with others and influence others to join in on a common goal. My grandfather was a businessman and senator. My grandfather always told me his team was everything. There is a recent article where his aids reflected and said my grandfather liked to advise us, “When you think you are leading, look behind and see if anybody is following.” I think this quote is incredibly wise for any potential entrepreneur to consider. Lead by example and what good is it to be a “leader” or a “boss” if no one on your team follows you.
As an online curriculum developer in the field of education, I have come across many challenges in trying to implement new visions and ideas. I feel as though, anyone can have an idea, it is much more difficult to realize an “idea”. In other words, similar to this week’s reading on the ultimate learning experience, there is no textbook or how-to-guide to ensure the success of an idea or a venture. I am personally drawn to creativity, and in my classrooms, I push my students to go beyond the curricular competencies. In my mind, I am fortunate to be able to harness my own creativity by creating original content, projects, and experiential activities. However, it isn’t easy to make changes across the board. For instance; integrating Indigenous perspectives in Biology classes in itself. It is important to help students understand multiple worldviews, especially ones that differ from their lived experiences. A personal passion of mine is creating awareness in diversity and inclusivity through social media.
Amanda,
Creativity is so important but it’s also something many tend to overlook. I love how you are able to create original content and focus on experiential learning, do you notice a difference in how students react to that, compared to textbook material? What you mentioned reminds me of the professional workshops I attended in the past and some really stood out from the others when creativity played a part in training.
Hi Rachel,
Students react more enthusiastically when they are immersed in active learning. Having said that, some students do prefer textbook-style learning. It depends on individual preference. Nonetheless, in my experience, most students respond positively to experiential learning as deeper connections are made. The other day, I took my students for a nature walk to observe the natural habitats of the unit content.
I am curious on your take and experiences on creative learning?
A nature walk sounds great! I’m sure with constant exposure, more students would respond positively to experiential learning. I hope parents are happy to see the changes too.
I can’t think of any personal experience in creative learning but something my colleagues and I are hoping to do is to find a more creative way to normalize academic advising for first year university students. Similar to any venture, there are pros and limitation to how much creativity is encouraged. I’m still new to this field so perhaps I’ll have more to share later!
Could not agree more that it is almost impossible to make changes across the board! I commend you on doing it within your own classrooms – if more of us keep doing it the hope is that educational institutions will slowly change…
My ride of choice is medical school. I have been fortunate to work with UBC’s Faculty of Medicine since 2014 and find it exciting, motivating and challenging all at the same time. One of the main considerations for me is ensuring my work has a positive effect on society and the people around me. It is exceptionally motivating to know that the work I do contributes to the training of doctors who will go on to improve the health and wellbeing of Canadians. A second aspect I enjoy are the challenges of running a distributed program. UBC’s medical program is distributed around the province with cohorts in Vancouver, Victoria, Kelowna and Prince George. To enable this, UBC has one of the largest networks of dedicated videoconferencing rooms in the world, and a host of incredible online tools and teaching technologies. It’s an exciting place to work and keeps me excited day in and day out.
Hi Adrian,
It can be challenging when you don’t seem to see whether your work makes a difference sometimes so I totally get it, when you said how you find it’s important to know your work has a positive effect on society. It sounds like you’re also growing with your work too and I think that’s what differentiated a job and a career.
I’ve recently given an opportunity to work on a pilot project to create a better first year experience for university students and my colleagues from this projects are all experienced advisors who truly enjoy working with students. For me, working in higher education has always been a great experience but it really makes the job more fulfilling when you have colleagues who share the same passion wanting to make students’ university transition a less bumpy one. It is very motivating when you know you’ll get to learn from one another and everyone is working towards the same goal.
I’m also fully supported by my boss with many of the initiatives while trying out some technology tools to deliver quality services to students virtually. I have so I have to say my drive is to be in a supportive environment where I know my job can make an impact on people!
Sounds like you are really enjoying what you do! It’s great to be working in a team where people can learn one another. When you are in a supported environment, people tend to be more creative, and willing to make mistakes. Making mistakes I think it’s very important in working on new projects, it helps people innovate.
Thanks Emily and a supported environment is so important in personal and company growth. I like what you mentioned about making mistakes because that’s how people learn.
Maybe not what’s my ride, but what’s my ride for now…
I never envisioned myself as a business owner or entrepreneur when I was growing up. I followed a traditional path – did well in school, got my degree, helped out with my family business and finally settled into in a sensible career in teaching. But then, I wanted something else, something more, and I took my first pivot out of safety when I was recruited into the financial services industry. There, for the first time in my life, I did not earn a regular salary, but instead, pieced together part-time and contract work as I learned. Then I won my first client, which was quite the experience! My attention, though, still wandered and I was introduced to start-up ventures with a brander/toy designer, an online platform /directory connecting beauty professionals, and a chemist who was creating something I can no longer remember, but which was – as all new ventures are, to be sure – amazing. I have also been involved in entrepreneurial and networking groups exposing me to a universe of connections and possibilities.
But is entrepreneurialism my ultimate ride? Not sure. Despite the gradual but seemingly inevitable journey to that end, looking back, I was usually the person with their feet on the ground that made things happen, while everyone else were like farts in a windstorm, off in a million directions. But I fit because I was adaptable, could tolerate risk and manage chaos – as long as the venture was viable. Even my decision to do the MET – and take this course first – was a calculated decision to enter an emerging sector using my expertise that aligned with that area. Because of my experiences, as much as I love the sound of being an innovator, intrapreneur is probably the most fitting. My ultimate goal is to have a role or business that’s my bread-and-butter, then maintain a basket of consulting gigs or ventures that I can invest in, contribute to, or partner with to keep myself connected and growing personally and professionally.
I’ve been recently approached to partner with a digital marketing firm to help them reach health practitioners and clinics, undoubtedly due to my work in health and dental benefits. Perhaps this might be my next ride, or just a side-gig while I find my place in Educational Technology, but I’m excited to see where this, and other opportunities, take me.
After looking at this question several times throughout the week I have struggled to really think about my learning vehicle of choice. As a teacher I think the number one factor is the engagement level of the students. Sometimes I am probably jumping from one vehicle to another, maybe even in two at the same time. What is interesting, is that what is engaging for one grade 8 group is the complete opposite for the following group. Typically, I do attempt to try things that are tried and tested, although I am also willing to attempt to use new and innovating tech, although I will do so with caution. One of the concerns I have is that the concept maybe in its infancy, and has not reached its entire potential. At these times I have often moved on, however I am willing to return, if I see the value.
Hi Michael,
Great insight about engagement, that really can make all the difference. While I am not a teacher, I find having engaged clients and coworkers can make a huge difference in my own motivation.
Hi Michael,
Thank you for bringing up how there is no one-shoe-fits-all when it comes to learner engagement. I often reflect on how teaching isn’t about honing the perfect activity. Rather, its more about curating a decent toolbox and knowing well enough to gauge when one tool may be better suited than the other that worked great last semester.
Likewise, I’ve also had experience in many different settings, including large institutions, non-profits, and small businesses. They indeed each have their pros and cons: large institutions are safe and have a lot of resources at their disposal, but bureaucracy and arbitrary rules grinds everything to a snail pace. Non-profits give you purpose (usually), but they lack in resources (and pay) and bureaucracy is still a problem. They are also very prone to corruption, from what I have learned.
My preferred vehicle of choice so far has been the entrepreneurial small businesses due to the agility that can be afforded, and similar to Dr. Vogt, how my knowledge, passion, and ideas can come to fruition in a very tangible sense. A big part of it is also the minimization of bureaucracy, hence the minimization of frustration and cynicism. I do agree, that it is more of a risk, not just in the financial sense, but also that entrepreneurial work highly depends on who you work with, and it can get very personal at times (for better or for worse).
My ride of choice is the combination of entrepreneurial or intrapreneurial activities with the simultaneous effort of academic work. I have found that there is a unique kind of synthesis that takes place for me when I am working and in school; as I push myself to read recent research and am exposed to theoretical models, I can not help but integrate them into my work. I think over time this will increasingly pay off as I translate knowledge into practice and reflect on my own experiences in relation to studies I read about.
Entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial work motivates me to try new things, while studying offers me perspectives outside of my own and historical lessons to take into account. Both of these modes of being push me and motivate me together. Formal education requires a type of discipline and structure that stretches me and creates cognitive tension in ways more difficult to me than entrepreneurship, which feels more natural and exciting to me. For this reason, I will likely continue with graduate studies in some form or another after MET but also probably would not pursue a primarily academic career.
Hi Ryan,
I have had a similar experience with my work. Despite not being an educator by trade, I have found a variety of ways to integrate what I’ve been learning in the MET program into my day job. Its been a really enriching experience.
Hi Ryan, thank you for sharing your thoughts. I echo with your idea on an ideal learning vehicle. For me, my ideal is more on the intrapreneurial side of innovation. I was always the one that followed instructions and did everything as I was told. To be honest, I do not consider myself quite a creative and innovative person. At some point in my career, I was fortunate enough to have worked with a manager that came with an open mind. She was innovative, welcomed new ideas and had solid trust in her employees to finish the job well. For the first time, like you, I was able to bring some of my new ideas, new knowledge and new ventures into work. It met with strong resistance across the board, as was expected from people working at an administrative office in a big higher-ed institution. However, thanks to her support, and new staff we’ve hired who welcomed the idea to improve our unit and services, we were able to implement many innovative ideas and changes.
I try to surround myself with team members who strive to be more than they are. People who are unsatisfied with the current status of how things are run and want to be a part of the resolution. In my company, we welcome interns who are still in university to come help out. They bring a lot of fresh ideas and they are not afraid to rock the boat. Their questions and ideas may not be the best, but they serve the purpose of helping us see things from another perspective, sometimes that’s all it takes. I work in a corporate office, and that can sometimes easily leave me distanced from the front line schools that we manage. When making decisions that could potentially affect the daily routine of our private schools, I like to take a stroll through our schools and just watch and listen to what’s happening. Listening to the admin and teaching staff’s voice helps me stay grounded and learn from their experience.
I prefer the attitude that people have in entrepreneurial small businesses, where everyone is doing anything and everything, they are not stuck doing what their job title tells them to do, instead they are doing anything that will help the business succeed. Even though having an established process brings a sense of security, I still prefer the process of looking for best practice. Having formal education allows me to have a professional expert perspective on the studied areas so I am likely to continue learning this way. I also think it’s important to keep up reading on the topics that I currently need to know for work, but with the limited time that I have these days, I find myself listening to audio books a lot more. Throughout the day, any spare time I have I would put it on, such as getting ready in the morning, the drive to work, lunch break, doing the dishes….etc. It keeps me off of swiping through my phone mindlessly as well, to train my brain to get into the habit of every time I pick up my phone, is to go to my audio book APP.
Thanks Emily for your input 🙂 It is nice to know that you have some university students in your team. It is even better to give them chance to give suggestions and personal opinions. I think young employees are more flexible with change and they may provide some solutions that may not be applicable sometimes. Sometimes, senior employees overthink the risks that makes them more fixed to routine and away from innovation. Do you think we can overcome the challenges with innovation by continuous trainings?
Emily, I like that your company welcomes new ideas. I think education for a long time really pushed against the welcoming of new ideas, although I do believe that times have changed over the last decade or so. Looking back at my own schooling, it seemed like most of the teachers did things the same way each year. However, my grade 6 teacher, we were her first class ever, did things outside the box. I have been fortunate to have three student teachers in my career who have been excellent, and I feel like I learned just as much from them as they have learned from me. I strongly believe that all areas of society, business and government, need to have a good balance of those with experience and those who are new and they both need to be willing to listen and learn.
Emily, I love this. I believe a successful organization is one where great ideas come from everywhere and the truly great administrators are the ones that understand their job is to facilitate, encourage, coach and sometimes get out of the way.
The workplace should be a team and not a competition. In education this is the best way to produce results that help the kids.
If I have to think of my learning vehicle, I would choose the one that rely on experience not on the amount of knowledge. For me, I would like to obtain my knowledge from who has more experience not how much they know. I would not risk the startup ride 🙂 as of the uncertainty. I prefer to be in a slow learning journey where I know some expectation rather than mystery :). I know it would be fun to be in an unknown learning journey where it could lead you to anywhere. However, being in a journey where I know the risks, benefits, challenges and income would be easier on me. Despite all that, I have been always in unknown journeys :). Simply, life doesn’t offer easy learning rides. We always faced with some changes that impact our decisions and learning choices. I think the more experienced we are, the more confident with our preference and our leaning style. When I was doing my undergraduate studies on Medical Biochemistry, I knew I had a future in research but I wasn’t sure if I would like it. I didn’t want to give up the research career, so I did my honours and I was working in 4 different research labs. I was also working as a physics TA at the same time. Eventually, the experience of being a researcher and a teacher led me to refine my career pathway and led me to study education to be a teacher. I have read and asked many professionals regarding a career pathways but nothing helping as much as the experience.
So even though I would like to be in a planed journey, life doesn’t offer that often. Trying several things and gaining more experience hopefully will lead to a better learning journey :).
Your experience resonates with me. I also realized that it doesn’t matter how well we planned our life journeys, there are always surprises that somehow lead you down an unexpected pathways.
I want to leave things better than I found them. I teach in the same rural school district I that spent my K-12 in. As a student, the lack of tech-opportunities frustrated me. Especially when I saw what students in more urban settings were doing at school. I returned to this district to help shrink that Digital Divide and provide learners with digital and design learning opportunities.
I consider myself an intrepreneur. It is challenging to revolutionize an existing program or introduce a new one in the public teaching sphere. Colleagues demand equality rather than equity, which is problematic if specialized tools or supplies are required. I spend much of my time liaisoning between different parties: fellow tech-interested teachers, administration, the IT department, and local businesses. And yet it is invorating what progress is made! Will I eventually break out and become an entrepreneur? According to my survey-results, I need to be more ambitious. For now I am happy to improve things on the grassroots level, but perhaps one day I’ll set my eyes on greater pastures.
There is no question about it, I am a start up junkie. I like getting people excited about ideas, motivating people into action, and building things with interesting teams of people who I trust and enjoy a challenge. In my early working years, I did this for other people (aside from my nature and science educational adventure company) and even got the opportunity as a brand new teacher to build a brand new Ministry approved school. Two years later, after we discovered our board had questionable ethics and businesses practices, the parents wanted to invest in me building a new school. While flattering and tempting, I was exhausted and this provided me a natural shift into my own entrepreneurial endeavours – my media company. The thing that is kind of perfect for me about my media company is as we’ve built a reputation for ourselves on experimenting with emerging media around storytelling, it allows me to be perpetually in start up mode with projects. Luckily over the years this has also brought other people to working with me, which has meant that I’ve kept alive the aspects of the company that provide financial sustainability but don’t excite me as much. I have also been lucky in that BCIT seems to appreciate what my entrepreneurial spirit brings to the Broadcast Media and Communications Part Time Studies Department, and as such have allowed me to approach my courses there in a similar fashion to a start up, in which I pitch new course ideas of my own, that they often embrace. And now they in turn are pitching me on new things. This past week that has meant my 100 level courses are being transformed into 500 level courses for a new advanced degree that the school is offering. Things don’t always workout like that as a start up junkie (I have probably had more rejections than your average human being), but wow does it ever feel good when magic like that happens. The beauty of putting yourself out there again and again is while you might be met with many, many “nos”, every once in awhile you’ll get a “yes”, which you would have never received had you not put yourself out there in the first place.
Erica, I’m glad to hear your story of flipping a bad experience into an opportunity. I have a similar story in whereby after a lay-off following the great recession, I eventually found my entrepreneurial spirit. Although my venture at the time may have been met with only mediocre success, the ‘first’ experiences of say securing a desirable bid or finding a well-suited alliance remain pleasant thoughts of mine. To use your words, this motivation is what puts me out there again and again.
As a Principal I have been fortunate to have the ability to lay out and attempt to implement new ideas and visions for teaching and learning. More importantly though, I have the opportunity to support other people’s ideas and help to make them a reality. So often as a teacher I felt my creativity was stifled because my Principal either did not understand what I was doing, was resistant to change, or was simply a top down individual who felt my job was to do what I was told.
My “ride”, if I can call it that, is being a facilitator and empowering others to take chances and possibly deliver something game changing.
Hi Ryan, I agree. The facilitator role is the place I feel most comfortable. I am able to guide and support others without having to worry about what someone else may think. I am able to give them the answers that work and deliver concise feedback.
My ride has adapted as I’ve gone through different ages. When I was a student studying computer science, I was looking forward to trying everything and drew motivation through hoping to find a good paying job with a good environment. However, with the IT bubble bursting in the early 2000s, I found that I was entering the job market as a programmer at the wrong time and couldn’t get a good paying job. Having children also caused my motivation to adapt, I had never planned to be a teacher but when I often questioned why my kids acted the way they did, I found myself being drawn to the education field. I am very happy that now that I have become a teacher I feel rewarded when I seeing the sparkle in children’s eyes after my help. In recent years my family’s travels through rural places in Asia have made me think if there is anything I could do to help more kids outside of my classroom. Taking on teaching as a charity has given me the opportunity to see directly how my efforts can be real differences in the lives of individual children, while I see this as having been my ride in the past, that stopped abruptly with COVID-19 and now I need to reconsider my approach to reach out and continue making a difference. I did the entrepreneur’s self-assessment, and I find I need to work on motivation and putting plans into action.
When I reflect back on the most rewarding life and work experiences I’ve had, I’d say my ride of choice has always been to ride with a team of creative, committed individuals who are working collaboratively toward a common, albeit difficult, goal. The earliest authentic taste I had of this was through songwriting with other musicians, performing original content, and reaching an audience. There is a lot of noise out there, so any chance to connect with an audience and build that relationship has been very meaningful. I am very product-driven, so writing songs has always been a good outlet for that. I am also working on a team of writers and illustrators to publish my first children’s book. I think having a bit of creative control and teaching autonomy was something that drew me to teaching, the career of a “life-long learner”. I also enjoy planning and setting goals, so when I wanted to learn Spanish or French, I made it a goal to teach it one day. I see my students as products of the energy, passion, and hard work I put into my teaching. I often carve quantitative results as opposed to qualitative outcomes, so I rely on data to make my teaching decisions and to actually gain satisfaction when I assess what my students can do. I am grateful to learn something new everyday from the students, parents, and colleagues I am fortunate to work with. Honestly, I find being a teacher far more solitary than I imagined it compared to other team work environments. At times, I also find I have greater ambitions (e.g. I’d like to reach more students and make a greater impact or change on the world). I’m keen to learn more about the ed-tech field for the reason as I become energized when I work on a team to reach a challenging goal. When I took the entrepreneur quiz, I scored low in confidence mainly because I truly believe in the value of a team or collective over that of an individual (e.g. just me). I scored highest for in the persistance area (above the average for an entrepreneur).
* Typo: I often crave quantitative results as opposed to qualitative outcomes
From doing the “entrepreneurial potential self-assessment”, my general profile put me slightly below the mean score of entrepreneurs. Am I surprised? Not really. The areas I had lower scores were my tolerance towards ambiguity/resistance to stress and my motivation for self-sufficiency/freedom. I am fine with the results, but I think I will change and eventually achieve a higher score one day.
My learning vehicle of choice is startups. I love working with people who are passionate and committed toward a shared goal. I think cooperation and collaboration are important in working with others. I believe that everyone has their own strengths and can benefit from learning from one another. Discovering and utilizing each other’s strengths help make the team stronger.
Personal example:
Two years ago, my family and I travelled to Idaho to attend an AAC (augmentative and alternative communication) camp for our son. We had to travel the distance since there was no such event in BC. The AAC camp was an eye-opening experience for our family and it made such an impact on our lives that my husband and I decided to startup one in BC. After we came back from Idaho, we contacted different organizations in BC to find a partner for the AAC camp. To make a long story short, we are now partnering with UBC to host a mini AAC camp as a pilot project this summer!
Joyce, thank you for sharing this story. Congratulations on making this a reality, and I hope it is a HUGE success!
This is beautiful Joyce!
So happy for you, I am sure this project will be a success! A lot of families will benefit from this.
Right now, I’m turning my focus to where I could add original value for learners. Although I like to think I have some valuable ideas, I’ll cautiously proceed with my ride. I’ve decided to keep my ears and eyes open and mouth closed until the all-important eureka moment happens. I believe it is only at this moment I can be confident about leading a venture rather than having the weariness of pushing it.
To date, the most rewarding ride I’ve experienced was that of working for a foundation in the second half of the previous decade. From a perspective of a former member of a team whose mission was to pilot a career and education program, I had the opportunity to observe the real-time complexities involved in the change process. This had implications! By first building the program infrastructure, we were then able to establish program targets which in turn enabled us to prepare and deliver programming which finally led us to evaluate post-production developmental opportunities impressed values I will not soon forget.
Though the environment with which I surround myself on my next journey may look different, I suspect it may not be so different after all.
I scored above average on the Entrepreneurial potential self-assessment, and honestly I am not at all surprised. I am going to bring in a little cultural context to unpack why at this ‘later’ stage of my career I am finally embracing and exploring my entrepreneurial side. As this review article in Frontiers in Education argues (https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2018.00058/full), there is a “complex interplay between the personal aspirations of youths in their career choices and decision-making and the external influences which act upon them” (Akosah-Twumasi et al., 2018:2). I grew up and was educated in contexts where the field of business was seen as an area you went into if you ‘failed’ in sciences or social sciences. I am a problem solver with a strong creative approach to this problem solving, but I have also always been interested in business/economics. However, I never felt the encouragement to explore this interest, but rather felt the push into social science and research to explore and educate. I have often referred to myself as the ‘accidental academic’. Of course I had/have agency and so at any stage I suppose I could have pushed through the external influences and followed my own path – why I did not is probably a complex psychological question! It is not to say that I do not believe that the field of education is important and that I have been successful thus far in my career, it is rather that I find it suffocating and without any encouragement for being a ‘pioneer’! Better later than never I suppose in coming to this course and at the same time pursuing my entrepreneurial persona.
To the question of ‘what is my ride’ – I am the ideas person. I relish in identifying an issue and then working to find a solution. I also thrive on creating space or giving a platform to have people discover their own potential, this is my general interest in education. I would therefore contend that I would be most comfortable working in a start-up context. I would definitely not be the CEO down the line if the company was successful as I would tire of the day-to-day management of a larger team and would rather be off exploring other possible ideas. In the broader field I believe that a social enterprise is the time of entrepreneurial venture I would explore as I do have a strong altruistic self that wants to find ways to empower not only myself, but others. I would find government or non-profits frustrating in the same manner that I find public higher-level education institutions frustrating, the pace with which they move is tediously slow. I am currently exploring how I can shift my expertise and skill set into the corporate private sector of education and training…
Almost all of my co-op / work experience has been in education — a chunk of time at a private college, and the rest at UBC in some capacity.
It’s fun to complain about bureaucracy and administration, but I’ve realized that I actually thrive in more structured environments. Workflows and processes are often in-place already — it’s rewarding to (1) master and understand them enough to recognize how I can add value, and (2) figure out ways to streamline, improve, and innovate.
A few years ago, I spent my summer working at a software startup. I loved the “perks” — fully stocked kitchen, wear shorts to work, lots of ping pong. I can’t speak for all startups obviously, but it didn’t take me long to notice the high turnover. Management was more or less stable and intent on “scaling” the company up, while employees were depended upon to contribute. It just didn’t seem like there was much room for long-term growth within.
I promise I’ll think about this if I ever launch my own startup 😉
, but your other employees
ignore that last line…
On the self-assessment, I was less than average the mean scores of entrepreneurs, with much of my lower marks coming from self-sufficiency. I am a bit of a walking contradiction; I like taking risks and trying new things but I also can’t function properly without some form of stability. I have tried starting up many different ventures myself but only if I have a full-time job or some kind of capital to support me. I’ve had to find balance between starting too quickly or thinking too much. Once, I even got so absorbed with a potential opportunity that I lost $500 to a scam. Other times, I successfully found a successful passive income source of about $50 a month. I would consider a startup in the future, but I feel I would need stable footing and a reliable work partner to help me jump that eventual hoop.
I’m in this program to discover the answer to this question. I spent 15 years hanging out in government offices where you could innovate in small ways, but there were no means of actually changing what counted (the public generally frowns on donating taxpayer money to dabbling in ideas). I then spent 3 years working with a private not-for-profit organization: the freedom was astounding. I changed websites, branding, the entire curriculum of a course- it was fantastic… but the pay was TERRIBLE. Also, the communal leadership of the organization meant there were a lot of meetings to make sure everyone agreed and nobody’s feelings were hurt, when sometimes it would have been good to have a leader put their foot down. I think what I am searching for is some middle ground. Somewhere that my creativity is actually put into use, but with a little more job security and better pay. If it really came down to the wire, I would likely put being able to make a difference and use my skills over a paycheque… although we’ll see if this holds true as life continues to become more expensive!
The fuel that initiates and continues my ride has always been learning. It is the basis and foundation of almost everything I initiate, continue with, it picks me up when I fail, aids me when I’m in a super stressful situation and well, doesn’t enable me to keep feeling like a dummy when I’ve made an error. It is also what drives me to coach colleagues, friends, staff, students and how to think about implementing learning and curriculum in all areas and industries.
I like being around students. After 4 years in IT consulting (implementing marketing and eCommerce systems), I started my journey in education as a public school English teacher in Korea. As a consultant, we would spend a significant amount of time learning about our customers, end-users, and their business processes (through interviews, observation, etc.). As a teacher, the students are, in a way, the “customers” (but in Korea it’s really their parents…jk). When I started this job, there was a lot to learn in terms of language, culture and education in general. How do Koreans learn? How do they learn English? How do Korean teachers teach? In efforts to create a better “product” as a teacher, I immersed myself into the school system and tried to learn everything from everyone (e.g. observing and participating in classes taught by Korean teachers, hanging out with students, attending private tuition centres, etc.). Though I initially set out with this “goal-oriented” mindset of becoming a more effective teacher, I found that I just enjoyed spending time with these middle school students just for the heck of it. Young people see and interact with the world in a beautiful (but sometimes annoying) way, unencumbered by intellect or social norms. They give me hope, purpose, and life. Thinking back to the last day of the semester, sitting in that empty building, I’d say my vehicle of choice would be the school, and the school is its students.
My fuel would be curiosity, creative people and learning something new. I remember when I started working in recruitment years ago in London my boss telling me after about a month, “I’m switching you to sales, I can tell you get bored easily,” And she was right, kind of (not really huge into sales).However, I like to learn about different things all the time and I would not add value to others lives doing something that I wouldn’t have passion behind. I see that education is changing and the world as well and I would like to be a part of that change. I know I cannot continue on one particular ride for the rest of my life, that’s just not what makes me personally happy or energized. But learning new skills, learning about different people, new cultures, new technology and ways of doing things, these are the things that propel me forward in life and add value to my life. I would like to add value to education by enhancing my skills, collaborating with other creative people in technology and education and offering up what I’ve learnt to the world in some way in the near future, I’m still not exactly sure how yet, but this is what my end game would be. So I suppose at the moment, I am an inventor with a lot of creative ideas and a growing skillset looking to grow and become an innovator to put these skills together with some talented and creative colleagues in the future.
What fuels me is developing people through two vehicles: by creating experiences or through training. I started off in the K-12 system but found it too structured (I like some structure but found it too much). This led to a career in teaching outdoor sports, managing sports programming, and developing training in workplaces. I have dabbled in different environments: corporate, non-profit, K-12, private education. Where I have felt the most at home in my current work environment. I currently report to the owner of our company, she is an entrepreneur. We are for-profit but our mission, vision & values do contribute to better communities – and create experiences for kids. Since the owner, my boss, is an entrepreneur – both creativity and curiosity are celebrated! At the same time, I still like and need structure, and have the autonomy to implement that in my environment. I feel like I am in a place of the best of both worlds. I felt the same feeling when I coordinated programming for another entrepreneur years ago. I took the time to really define what fuels me when I was laid off a few years ago, the work really has really helped with my satisfaction in the workplace.
My vehicle of choice for learning is structure and stability, but that is not so stay I would be opposed the idea of a start up if that entrepreneur had the knowledge and experience to back the venture up. I think passion and charisma showcasing new opportunities can be exciting for many people, but when it comes to taking the risk, the quiz confirmed for me that I do not have that the entrepreneurial spirit. It’s the same for me in my teaching career. I need planning and structure the start the day, but if class discussions or other opportunities arrive to add value to my lesson, I am not worried to bust away from routine. I like to lean on other’s experience and bounce ideas around, and my reluctance to take on risks should mean I should avoid opportunities that make risk taking possible for them.
I have worked in both private as well as the not-for-profit sector. When working for a not-for-profit organization, the intrinsic rewards and the intangible benefits were extremely noticeable. Quite often, we did something that benefited the communities and segments of the population that are often overlooked or underserved. This was a good feeling, even though it wasn’t financially the strongest option. On the other hand, working for the private (for-profit) sector also has its own advantages. The level of creativity that is permitted and encouraged, is endless. As project managers we are given full autonomy to be as creative as possible, as long as we are aligned with the overarching schedule, budget, and scope. Over the years, I was able to find what I’m truly looking for in the private sector which is working for a company that performs strongly on the balanced sheets, and also cares about the communities it comes in contact with. The specific area is always learning and educations (e.g. corporate education). Luckily, my current employer is a prime example of how a company can be successful financially and also leave a positive impact in the society.
Meeting new people and listening to their experiences is an major drive for me to keep learning. I personally enjoy sociable environments and while all of my working experience is heavily focused in the private sector, teaching in higher education is probably the most satisfying job which I’ve invested time and attention to. There’s something unappealing about the monotonous nature of corporate work although it does teach you many useful skills which are transferable to other career paths. Was the job stable? Sure. Did it encourage me to be creative and try new methods of working? Not really as everything is defined by procedure and regulations. Education on the other hand has genuinely made me feel I was working for a worthwhile and meaningful cause, which acts as fuel to maintain my passion to helping students succeed and enjoy their education experience. That being said, I also wouldn’t personally compare different career paths as every job field has its learning opportunities. Take entrepreneurship and ventures as an example, having the chance to create your vision and synthesize a product based on it is highly attractive. The level of personal control is also important, being able to make your own decisions is another factor which influences whether I will be invested into my work. The colleagues you work with also affects personal drive as it’s always a blessing to be able to collaborate with highly talented individuals who also share similar career objectives.
Working as an interior designer for commercial projects, my “ride of the day” – AKA the type of work I am doing, and the type of team I am working with – varies with different clients. My core, internal team at the small private firm where I work is certainly my wheelhouse, as I have worked for large institutions and global firms in the past which were much too slow moving, but what matters more to me than that is the variety of “rides” I get to come along for with my clients. Whether it’s the new design of a 5-storey high-security building with no windows that I have to work to make feel like a ‘regular office environment’, the construction of a brand new, fully fundraised children’s community center landing in an underprivileged area, or a one-on-one personal relationship with a start-up company opening their first ever brick and mortar location, the clients I work with represent completely different dynamics, stakeholders, priorities, and attitudes which I am happily “along for the ride” for. What pulls me away from ever working directly for a start-up venture or especially small company (which I have not experienced to date) is the concern that this variety may diminish – especially with a ‘new era’ effort which may be more about trying to one thing perfectly instead of the million things I do now. At the end of the day, if I could do the type of work I love, I wouldn’t be too fussed about who I am working for.
Hi Ally, I can definitely empathize with the preference for small versus large teams. Prior to teaching, I worked for a variety of ski hills and outdoor education companies, and ironically, I found the bigger the organization, the less varied the clientele were. Small hills had tons of folks from all walks of life who simply shared a passion for skiing and the outdoors, whereas larger resorts were “destinations in and of themselves, and while it is awesome to share that experience with folks who are here for their first time or locals who’ve been here hundreds of times, the experience can get bogged down in the monotony of the familiar.
Brendan, this is a great point. Just because you are in an area with a lot of people, doesn’t mean they are different kinds of people! It is definitely the variety of the teams I get to work with / for that I love – if it was all the same type of client over and over, I’m sure I would sing a different tune. You also make a good point about clientele… there’s certainly some boutique design firms, or simply designers/firms that choose to do the same type of work, and even if it was a similarly sized and run office to my own, that variety would not be present. More than meets the eye to this “ride”!
This will be my 5th year working in K-12 education and the 15th year since I began my first job in outdoor education and ski/snowboard instruction. While I certainly miss the freedom of the mountain being my classroom and seeing the excitement of students mastering new terrain or appreciating their environment in a newfound sense, I certainly have gained a greater sense of fulfilment from the work I do now, so it has been a worthwhile transition overall. Within K-12 education, I have taught English, Math, Socials and Science, but it is the creative elective courses such as Makerspace where I enjoy the “ride” most. Teaching students how computing and design technologies work is so empowering, and the excitement students feel once they have mastered a new programming skill is palpable. Furthermore, they can immediately apply these skills to create something meaningful to them, whether it be a game to entertain themselves with friends or a device to solve some problem they have at home (usual alarms for nosy siblings). It is a privilege to be both guide and co-constructor alongside them as they grow their capacities before your eyes. Funnily enough, I think it recaptures the “wow look what I can do” feeling that was so apparent on the ski slope but that which is often elusive in the English/Math/Socials/Science classroom; that is why, despite being trained in Biology and Philosophy, Technology is my ride of choice in education today.
Brendan, you have a great motivation for your love of EdTech! I’ve spent more time as an mentor and/or post-secondary educator, so I don’t get to see those “aha” moments as much as you describe (more often, I have them on my own… which is still satisfying! …but not as satisfying, hah!) That said, I agree, and I think most educators would, that watching your learners come into their own with new knowledge, and feel empowered, is one of the most fulfilling things of all.
I used to work in Aerospace, and one aspect of my job in business development was holding what we called a “gate review” with the all the stakeholders (executives). Basically, if I found a project that I thought was worth looking further into I would hold a gate review or a pitch as to why the company should invest the time and effort into putting together and submitting a formal proposal. If the gate was opened engineers, project management, estimators, etc. would all put together their parts, and I would write and submit the overall proposal. While, often the projects brought forward were not met with an open gate, the ones that did get the stamp of approval would literally take 5-10 plus years to come to fruition (aerospace is that slow). This I couldn’t really handle, I guess I don’t have the patience to see things through if the process is too long. After about 5 years in this role, I wasn’t satisfied, and decided to pursue my interest in education. I feel that as a teacher I can easily attain a sense of purpose and see my ideas that are brought to “the gate” come to life in a timely fashion!
My “ride” has mostly been within the startup crowd. Unfortunately, I have never created any ventures, but I have been very active within the Kickstart crowd. Usually, I invest in tabletop games using that platform, but there are times where I would also look into technology such as watches or water bottles. Kickstart is a semi-risky endeavor as an innovator as there are many potential issues such as production or the lack of investors, but it is a strong platform to find new ideas and to express your own.
Some aspects of Kickstarting that are unique are the duration of the project, the stretch goals from the funding, and interactions with the developers. The duration of the project allows many people who are not extremely up to date with the scene to be able to explore, do their research and ultimately make a final decision. This works extremely well together with the stretch goals, which reveals more incentives as the project’s funding reach certain thresholds. Lastly, the interactive nature of the platform allows the developers to engage with small community projects or tweaks through the comments of the investors, which could create a more tailored project for them. As much as I remember the failed projects that I lost money on, I also remember many fantastic creations that would not have been possible without the use of Kickstarter, which makes it an ideal balance between risk and reward as my favored ride.
As a visual designer and a systems analyst, 3 years ago I would have told you my drive is to help my clients succeed. I would create designs that graphically enhance their web presence / presentations. I would pull data and spend days and nights cleaning, and analyzing the it to propose strategies that drive decisions for the company. However, now that I have working in the hospital for 7 years, I’ve been asking myself “what’s next?”. While the environment is comfortable, and the team I work with is amazing, I find that there is little room for growth. I have a lot of innovative ideas, but like most organizations with multiple layers of hierarchy, there is very little room for risk and I have to reach many channels and gain their approval to be able to drive an idea forward. It can be de-motivating to say the least and at times, I rather not voice out or move forward in case I accidentally step on someone’s toes. – which it did happen. It did not end well for me!
Could this be a time where I switch my environment and take more risk in what I can do? I feel like I am ready to find a new ride that I can freely learn. I feel like I have learned a lot from my peers in this course. It is optimistic to see that not all environments are like the one I am in and that innovation is encouraged and that they can drive a decision forward without worry. Am I brave enough to take another risk? My pay may be lower and the hours may be quite different as a result of that change.
I’ve worked in many industries over the past 8 years of my career including non-profit, corporate and now higher education. I started my career working in the non-profit sector working in event fundraising. While I liked non-profit there was not a lot of opportunity to grow in my role, so after a few years, I transitioned to the corporate world. The corporate world was definitely a faster pace which I enjoyed and there was so much opportunity to learn, however after four years I wanted to find more meaning in my work. I felt like higher education might be perfect for me, combining what i loved about non-profit (purpose) with opportunities for learning and growth (which i found more of in my corporate roles). I’ve had a ton of growth and learning in my role over the last three years in higher ed and have loved the purpose of working with students however recently I’ve started to think about what might be next for me. I have spent a lot of time working with start-up’s and small ventures in my role and had the chance during covid to build out an internship program for students. I had a lot of automony in the internship program that I developed and as we were operating in a fast environment due to covid, it felt a bit like a start-up venture. I loved the experience of the fast pace environment and the ability to change and pivot quickly. The opportunity made me realize that my ‘ride’ might be a start-up environment. I want to work in an organization where i can find purpose, make change and move quickly. I tend to operate well in fast paced environments and while i would love to start my own venture one day, I think the opportunity to learn in a start-up envrionment may be where I want to work next!
I have been teaching students in grades 7 to 12 for many years now. One of the highlights every year is graduation. As much as we would like to keep some of those kids in school forever, when it comes down to it, the point of my job is to do what it takes to get them to graduation. Not only is graduation their “reward”, it is also mine, knowing that I played some part, however seemingly small, in the accomplishment. It is also rewarding to see students become successful in whatever path they have chosen. I certainly haven’t chosen to remain teaching or this long because of the money. I continue to learn new things to make sure I have the knowledge and skills to continue to prepare students for whatever the world holds for my students. Right now I am happy and comfortable with the “ride” I have. At some point, I could see myself possibly working for a nonprofit organization.
My vehicle of choice is Director of Educational Technology. I was previously in the role of Principal at my school, where I essentially did both of these roles. Only recently was I able to appoint someone else as principal so they could take over the academics and student/parent issues so I could focus on education technology. I have been very fortunate in that I have been able to design this role myself (I have added pieces that I enjoy and removed those that I don’t). I like this new setup because my job is to look at the various systems we use and improve them. For example, I recently worked on the integration of an online tutoring platform to help our students get quick access to teacher assistance while simultaneously lowering the workload for out students. This was particularly enjoyable for me because it was combination of improving student learning and finding efficiencies for teachers. I often enjoy working with pedagogy as well as operations. Another project I have worked on (that I am just finishing up) is in integrating our LMS (Learning Management System) with a new SIS (Student Information System). This is purely an operations task, however, I really enjoyed it because allowed me to analyze the roles and tasks of the entire administrative team at the school (8 people) and find ways to make their jobs easier. In the end, I was able to automate 20-80% of each person’s role (depending on their specific job). The team was very happy because most of the processes I automated were very tedious ones that they did not enjoy. This is where my passion lies. I am always motivated when I get to look at something and make it work better. Whether that means automating processes or improving learning outcomes for students, I am very interested in this work.
Traditional and conservative. That is the career path which I have chosen and been on in the past (though it is not indicative of what I may want for my future). As an elementary teacher, I am perfectly content delivering my program and implementing learning technologies in my classroom to generate change and motivate my students. My passion remains teaching and inspiring young minds by incorporating engaging and meaningful instruction. So this question generates a few emotions, one being embarrassment, like I SHOULD be putting myself out to invest in the latest venture or be involved with a new start up. Not surprisingly, the results from the BDC Entrepreneurial Self-Assessment test were similar to this outlook, where my general profile was below the mean score of the entrepreneurs; the lowest scoring section being ‘self sufficiency/ freedom”. I know this about myself, I crave stability and the uncertainty of being an entrepreneur would be far too anxiety inducing. Though these aspects may not be in my favour, my “attitude” and “perception to control my destiny” scored at or close to the mean, which goes to say that despite my risk-adverse lifestyle I DO believe that change comes from within and we have control over our life and that paths we take, whether in the entrepreneurial or intrapreneurial sense. Might I aspire one day to consult or advise for a new venture to ‘derive benefits without sharing the risks”? This route seems more likely for what the future holds!
Hello Jocelyn,
You know your passions, to teach and inspire, and it seems you have deep self-knowledge. Please let me know if you find a venture to derive benefits without sharing the risks. Until there, I believe in the pendulum that swings from security to freedom, and it is up to us the decision to run or not the risks. Nevertheless, controlling and measuring the risks is always wise. I bet you are an insightful and discerning person to get future opportunities. Very nice to know about your ride.
Hi Jocelyn,
I found your answer here to be refreshing and honest. I often find myself asking these same questions or making these same assertions about myself: I sometimes prefer the same, conservative tried-and-true approaches. Other times, I get physically excited about new ideas and tools and feel I must spearhead their use around my office. I think it’s useful to strike a balance here and recognize that not every working wheel needs to be rebuilt.
I work on a learning design team where we are constantly discussing new tools and how we can implement them in our work. In some moments though, I find we all get over-excited about a tool and forget to ask if it is really necessary or if it will bring a justifiable value to our training offer.
I want to echo Alexei is saying that it sounds like you know yourself and your passion in teaching. I think it’s important to feel justified in doing exactly what you are doing and that entrepreneurial skills are not the be-all end all of innovation and effective learning.
My ride is very metamorphotic. After forty years old, I decided to move from my country, profession, and mindset. To summarize, I was touched by the wind of change. Nevertheless, I still want to help people, not exactly in a physician’s daily routine, but as an educator about Health using technology to reach more people assertively. I have been adventuring with projects, apps, videos, governmental discussions, and Online and in-person lectures. I have realized my mission as a Brazilian physician with a family and a master’s degree in Canada regards promoting health equity, starting in Brazil and maybe, further. Perhaps, I have an ambitious plan, yet it keeps me moving. I used to be a mentor in Clinical Oncology, and now I want to be a Teacher and have already set up an institute of education and innovation in Health.
Sounds like a great ride, Alexei. Very inspiring that you have followed your passion for education and are using your background in clinical oncology to educate and innovate and promote healthcare equity in Brazil and beyond. Your journey sounds like it is not for the faint of heart, but based on all of the different types of projects are have been involved in, the start-up/innovation ride is something you enjoy pursuing. As an adventurer in your field, have you “handed-off” any of your ventures to other individuals or organizations, or do you typically stay involved in the venture throughout its lifecycle?
Throughout my career, I have worked primarily in the environmental not-for-profit world, and it has definitely been a ride. It is often referred to it as “feast or famine,” in that small non-profit organizations working in conservation are often either scrounging to find enough funding to run programs, or extra funds at the end of the fiscal year-end find their way into the mix and there can be pressure to “make work” and use the funding before it disappears. This can be difficult, especially when we want to ensure that meaningful and sustainable work is being done and that those carrying out projects are valued and have the resources they need to succeed. However, riding this wave of funding cycles can also be very rewarding, and the thrill of getting approved for funding from a granting agency or government body for a new, innovative project is incredible. Small non-profit organizations also provide amazing opportunities to get exposure to many aspects of business and running programs, projects, and managing people. Often one person will have many hats within an organization and be constantly forced to think on the spot. Although this can be very stressful, I’ve learned to appreciate and be accustomed to this type of cyclical ride.
What’s your ride? My ride is in software education and design. I have had amazing opportunities to work in the software space for almost 8 years now and I love it. Software design and training is a great space for learning and innovation. It’s where I can grow and learn to think out of the box and create custom solutions and resources for software users. It is thinking about the learner as not a student, but as a user who needs to quickly learn what they need and get back to their work. The software training and instructions need to be short, sweet, and consumable. It is less focused on gamification and more focused on giving the answers and solutions the users need to support them in their work.
My family knows me as the idea generator. I am always coming up with new ideas for a business. I even tried starting a couple of small start-ups. One of these was a home-based bakery, which became successful and I still run on the side of teaching. There’s something about thinking of a new idea that no one else has thought of, or just feeling the confidence that you have something that others don’t, so your work would be worth putting out there in the world. Some of my ideas have been really good – but, I waited to long to get them going and they ended up being started by others. So, I would say my learning ride is a start-up. They don’t all necessarily connect to my teaching profession, but they are learning opportunities and experiences. As a teacher, I always feel a rush of adrenaline based on my students engagement. I work really hard to keep every school year unique. I try not to repeat units or stories, etc. I try new projects and activities. I want to keep it fresh for myself and for my students. I feel like this sense of trying something new aligns with my other learning ride of a start up. Start ups involve trying something new. In my profession, I absolutely love trying new things.
I can relate to your experience of being an idea generator in the family. I admire that you have been able to turn some of theses ideas into something more tangible in some cases. I tend to find that part the hardest and I have noticed that teachers are not always encouraged to follow ideas that they generate to their conclusion due to budget or the drain of dealing with systemic issues in education. I wonder how we can overcome these barriers more effectively.
I’ve worked a fair amount with both non-profits, and I’d say they’re my ride based on the fact that they can bring people with shared passions together to successfully solve problems and overcome barriers. I’m see myself as more of a helper and solution finder type than a conceiver of big ideas, and non-profits can help me channel that. I think other ventures can solve problems, but institutions and government often get bogged down with red tape and politics. For-profit ventures can promote some great ideas, but often financial barriers mean that those who most need solutions can’t access them. Non-profits often focus their efforts on social causes with obvious need, and delve right into solving problems creatively and with less distractions than other ventures.
My ride is, without a doubt, the conception of creative educational ideas. Unfortunately, passed that phase, my ride veers sharply off a cliff.
With a background in education, I am always looking for new ways to promote and foster learning. I am a strong advocate for innovative change in the classroom and am constantly dreaming up new ideas for improving education. I usually brew these ideas over a period of time and continually build on them before I am ready to make my “pitch” to someone. That unfortunate soul is usually my wife who patiently listens to my latest pitch about how my idea is going to revolutionize education, all the while knowing full well that I am never going to actually take the necessary steps of further developing this idea and will quickly move on to the next new revolutionary idea. The times I have tried to build or develop one of my ideas, I lost interest soon after and moved on to the next idea. Probably not the best quality to have as a solo entrepreneur but perhaps in a team that makes up for my shortcomings, one of my ideas might eventually come to life.
My first full-time work experience was an internship at a scientific research company. Even though the vision was great and had a triple-bottom-line, I found the research cycle to be too slow and the field of research was not my passion. Since then, I have only worked with K-12 students in various settings. For me, teaching is much more rewarding as the students grow very quickly right in front of you.
My first teaching position was at a tutoring centre, where the feedback from students and parents was immediate as it was an intimate setting with plenty of contact time with each student. The feedback allowed me to reflect on my teaching constantly, sometimes making changing on the fly. The benefits of working at a tutor was that there was minimal administrative work and little classroom management issues (since the students were motivated to be there).
After becoming a certified teacher, I have taught in schools that were joint ventures between a company and a public school, a for-profit satellite school affiliated with a national ministry of education, and a fully for-profit private international school. I enjoy teaching in an international environment with educators and learning from various backgrounds bringing different ideas and perspectives. However, I struggled with issues such as the rigidity of certain mandated curriculums and the power parents had in some schools. There were many times I wanted to change aspects of a school but felt powerless as a lone teacher. I think I am suited to be an intrapreneur, making changes at my own school full of experts I can consult and network with, and then bringing the ideas to other schools or education systems. In a school environment, there are many opportunities to form and develop new ideas and the risk is low since setbacks are all part of my professional development.
What is my ride? Well, as much as I would like to be the creative entrepreneur that comes up with new innovative ideas, my personality lies more towards the logistics and planning side. Where I feel like I shine and am the most inspired, is finding ways for my teams creative ideas to come to fruition. I thoroughly enjoy the planning process when it comes to teaching, figuring out how much time we will need for each step, what resources we need and where we can get them from, how we can integrate our ideas into various points of the curriculum. The term intrapreneur was interesting to me, and I definitely agree that in education this may be a more effective route to create change from within a system. As there can be so many road blocks with a large school board, making changes within your own classroom and school can have a ripple effect that may be challenging to create outside of an organization with so many regulations in place. For me this idea resonates, trying to impact those closest to you and seeing where it goes.
For me, I think the reality is that I analyze my way out of taking chances at every opportunity. I would love to be an early adopter of many technologies, but I can’t justify the expense. I have many projects I would love to start, but I just don’t have the time. For every great idea I have, I also have quite a few excuses as to why they are actually bad ideas. I avoid making decisions until I can no longer delay, or it is no longer my decision. I am a procrastinator, and I’m not sure that goes too well with entrepreneur!
That said, when I can see a clear vision, a guaranteed payout, or a looming deadline, I have quite a bit of drive. I’m pretty good at prioritizing essentials, and deciding what can be left out if needed. I am always working on building better habits and making better choices.
Bringing students together to create music requires planning, but also a constant balance between tempo, rhythm and melody. You have to be able to filter out the wrong notes to hear what is going well, who is together, who to emphasize, and who to circle back to. So many hear a beginner band and say they sound awful, but when my band is playing I hear the progress they have made. Mastery of a musical instrument requires a lot of failure before things start to go right, and I find myself with little patience for those who judge without having gone through it themselves.
So that is my ride.
It’s like we are speaking the same language Douglas. I often feel that I get ‘paralysis by analysis’ and don’t pull the trigger when a new opportunity presents itself. Oddly enough, when I do get in early, it’s been successful. I got into crypto in 2017 and that has paid off greatly, but I still worry about the ramifications of failure. The truth is that most start-ups fail and choosing the right one can often be the same as picking a needle in a haystack. Lately, I’ve separated 10% of my assets to ‘risky’ investments with the remainder going to index funds.
My ride is that I need to be sure of something before following through, but once I’ve made a commitment, I put my head down and go full bore.
I admire your vulnerability of acknowledging procrastination. Who doesn’t? Perhaps it’s just we’ve been given too much to tackle at the same time. I find multi-tasking concerning, because it often ends up not doing one single thing right. Particularly, multi-tasking create crazy amount of stress. Don’t feel frustrated! We are only human. Give yourself some credit, you are doing well!
Teaching K-12 students and adults has been my ride for a long time. In addition, other experiences have also become my teaching values. To motivate myself as a teacher, I teach, study, and participate in educational events. For my students, I talk about the importance of the learning process rather than the results so that students can enjoy learning and find their interests. Extrinsic motivation affects learning and teaching, but I think intrinsic motivation is much more important. I play a role in helping my students study by themselves by emphasizing their intrinsic motivation. If my students are self-motivated, they participate in activities more actively and with passion.
I usually make time for myself in my busy schedule for my growth, finding something that interest me just as Google let their workers spend 20% of their time on their projects and learning something new for Google.
I have been on the international teaching ride for four years now. It’s been exciting, rewarding, fun and challenging living in China. My job gives me flexibility to live a comfortable lifestyle in an affordable place and gives me a high ability to save. My daily expenses are minimal as my apartment, utilities and travel are taken care of. The students at my private school are excellent and I have less teaching periods than back in Canada. Furthermore, I have numerous lengthy holidays including a month in Jan/Feb that has afforded me the opportunity to travel Asia. The staff are all like-minded, certified teachers that build community around living away from family and close-knit friends.
Man, this sounds good. But there are also hard times on this ride too. The pandemic hit hard and minimized the ability to travel and go home to visit family. The small community, although friendly, can feel overwhelmingly small as you build relationships and socialize outside of work with the same people you see on Monday. Language barriers and cultural differences can, at times, be challenging. You miss the comforts of home and Facetime doesn’t always fill the void of being away from loved ones.
I have really enjoyed the international ride, and recommend it to anyone looking for something different or an opportunity to save some money. I am leaving to move back to Canada, as it feels like time for a change. I want to try something out of the classroom back in Canada in the educational technology world and explore what my life looks like back home close to family and friends. However, I know I’ll miss this ride.
Hi Paul, which part of China do you teach? I’m glad there’s no quarantine anymore and you can travel freely in and out of the country.
My ride is pretty unique, I initially started as an ESL teacher working at a private school in downtown Toronto, where I found they gave just enough structure that I wasn’t scrambling, but also enough flexibility to be creative. On the other hand, I found teaching at a university, as a TA, to be very limiting – as others have mentioned, there is far more red-tap During the pandemic, I applied for a role in the communicable diseases unit at The City of Toronto, while in that role I worked for the government but found that because of the unique and changing circumstances for COVID, there was more flexibility and opportunity for my ideas to be put into action. Through that role, I found that I enjoyed having flexibility and having the voice to be making organizational changes. My experience revealed that I like being in a position where my contributions can be immediately put into action and there is constant change. I currently work for a tech start-up, where folks need to wear many hats and our structure is constantly undergoing new developments. We face many growing pains, like an expanding team, new undetermined roles, outgrowing our systems, and finding new ways to continue to maintain efficiency. However, I know that I prefer being in places where there is more of a willingness to test-run new approaches allowing me to use my problem-solving and interpersonal skills. Despite my appreciation for startup culture, I do miss the consistent work hours, paid overtime, and slow nature of a more immobilized government role.
In my professional journey, I would describe my ride as one of patience. When running a startup business, there are inevitable ups and downs. Sometimes, despite putting in significant effort, the rewards may not materialize immediately. However, it is crucial to persevere and continue putting in the effort, as the results may come later. This aspect of waiting for the fruits of our labor is one of the most challenging aspects of sustaining a startup. Many people struggle to remain patient due to reasons such as limited funding or other distractions. I often share this advice with my friends: always plant seeds around you, for you never know which seed will blossom into a beautiful flower next spring. Therefore, it is important to trust the effort we put in today and cultivate patience. Eventually, we will witness the results we desire.
I have only worked with students in our publish school system. It is not as exciting as the startup ride, but it shows me how our school district works. My role as an early literacy teacher is a bit different since I get to visit all the K/1 classrooms at different schools. This has given me wonderful opportunities to observe how different teachers approach teaching in their unique ways and see beyond my own practice. It was very eye-opening the first couple of years, seeing the differences in everyone’s teaching practice/philosophy and how they impact our students vastly. Our system relies on these individualized practices. Since it is a district position, our department is lucky enough to be involved in initiating and advocating changes in literacy instruction. As a team, we learn about the latest research-based teaching strategies, try them in our own teaching settings, and reflect on our experiences during meeting times. However, getting the ball rolling on changes within a district is not easy, especially when the school district is a big one. Even though the district is advocating these new changes by providing as many professional development opportunities as they can, it is very difficult to get everyone on board. Some teachers like to stay in their comfort zones, while others simply don’t have the time because of all the things on their plates. This experience really got me thinking what are some more effective ways to initiate conversations and advocate changes so it is easier for the front-line teachers to try.
My ride is a co-curricular educator. As a current student engagement coordinator and former student life coordinator, I have witnessed firsthand the immense value of co-curricular activities in shaping students’ lives. These experiences provide a unique platform for fostering essential skills such as leadership, communication, and teamwork through hands-on practice.
I have chosen this path because it aligns perfectly with my passion and values. Like a well-crafted roller coaster, being a co-curricular educator allows me to take students on an exciting and meaningful adventure. Being a co-curricular educator fills me with energy and purpose. I found my worth and value in helping students discover and develop their potentials. There is something truly special about being able to ignite that spark within them, witnessing their growth, and seeing them achieve things they never thought possible.
Co-curricular education offers an exceptional opportunity to guide students in their journey of self-discovery and personal growth. It is a ride that allows me to create meaningful connections with students, inspire them to embrace challenges, and empower them to unlock their hidden talents.
My ride over the past eight years has included working in K-12 education in Japan, higher education as an international education professional, and now currently working as a corporate trainer in the healthcare sector. Each one had their pros and cons, with these vehicles have the similarity of being relatively risk adverse as opposed to the startup ride. Consistent hours, benefits, steady amount of work etc. Over that time and trying on a few hats in education, I’ve found adult education has been the space because I feel I can innovate in an environment that aligns with me avoiding a large amount of risk.
Even in a sometimes-draining bureaucracy, the uniqueness of being able to identify learning gaps and then work with professionals to collectively implement ideas and concepts into the day-to-day work is a challenge I welcome. The combination of being able to innovate and seeing that immediate relevancy all within a structured environment fits with my values and even in situations where ideas are not implemented due to red tape, practical or otherwise, I feel those discussions help me to understand how education fits into an environment where business comes first, not unlike a startup in some ways. I’m happy I’ve chosen the vehicles I have, because each one has ultimately led me to one where I feel I can make the most impact.
To give context to my answer, I want to describe a bit of my journey:
After highschool, I followed the path of my peers and did a 4 year undergrad in Kinesiology. Post-grad, I pursued a career in fitness and banking for a couple of years. Bored with fitness (a passion, not a career for me) and tired of working in adult-based customer service roles, I took off to Korea to teach internationally. About 3 months in, I realized teaching felt pretty good and I applied to teacher’s college. In 2017 (5 years post university graduation) I was finally working as an occasional teacher in my current school board. Fast forward to now – I am 7 years in and still unable to obtain full time permanent status due to slow board growth, ever-changing hiring practices, and hiring freezes. That being said, I have intentionally/unintentionally created a “ride”.
So what have I chosen AND what do I continue to choose as my ride?
1) Openness to New Experiences:
My willingness to traverse multiple industries and countries reflects my strong openness to new experiences. I have learned to embrace cultures, adapt to a variety of working environments, and *hopefully* have improved my holistic understanding of the world around me. This ride continues to be of the utmost importance to me as I look to foster personal growth, increase my cultural competence, and remain adaptable. It can be a little intimidating at times, but is also practical and extremely fun.
2) Continued Skill Development:
My commitment to ongoing education and skill development is another aspect of my ride. I continue to set goals and seek new educational experience, actively investing in both personal and professional development. I believe acquiring new skills along this ride is crucial to positioning myself as valuable in whatever I wish to pursue next. It requires me to practice humility, to be vulnerable, but provides a sense of accomplishment and just feels good.
I appreciated hearing about your unexpected ride. Mine is similar. I initially began working in my current job because it was meant to be temporary before I could save money to go to school. My initial degree was in psychology – it was my work that requested I switch my degree to education. I stumbled over my Master of Education from Brock – there was a program that I did not expect to get accepted for. Initially, I ended up on a waiting list. Currently, in my job, I spend little time in each position, providing an overall understanding of the entire system rather than an in-depth understanding of only one area. I too did not expect this path, but it has changed my goals and the direction I see myself going in the future. I have remained flexible and open to experiences. I have remained committed to life long learning.
My life and career choices have taken many paths from a college and professional athlete to going to vet school to then completing a PE/Ed after degree and teaching and coaching in my dream school to transitioning to law enforcement I feel like I have had many experiences and opportunities that have shaped my ride. Reflecting on this journey I can pick out a few things that have carried me through and will continue to be my ride.
1. Challenge
I want to always feel challenged because I feel that is where change and growth happens. This is something that I strive for in and out of my career and I want to take opportunities that will keep me challenged and where I can continue to grow
2. Openness
This could be an openness to change, to listen to others as well as the openness for new opportunities. Changing careers to some seemed risky, I was in a dream role doing something that was awesome but I wasn’t feeling challenged or that I had a place to grow in that role and so when this opportunity presented itself I knew it was time for a change.
Challenge and openness is something that has allowed my journey to be full of ups and downs but with a beautiful view. I know if I continue forward on this ride wherever it takes me is going to be worth it
I’ve got a pretty sweet ride.
To describe it in this way I would have to consider my main goals in life. Through my journey, I’ve been able to push myself as an educator which is what has empowered me to grow as an individual. My ride consists of a journey full of winding roads and road blocks but the destination has never changed. The destination of empowering students and making a difference in their lives and in the lives of people that I care about. My vehicle of choice is education, and it has been this vehicle for as long as I can remember. I navigate this path not for the monetary rewards, but for the joy of seeing my students grow and succeed and for improving myself with every pit stop along the way.
I’ve created a non-profit film festival called the MAD Film Festival, which is a unique platform that combines education and entertainment, allowing students to learn in a fun and engaging way while raising funds for a cause that is dear to my heart, childhood cancer research. Sharing this venture with the public for years and then passing it down to my students shows shades of my unique approach to teaching and my commitment to providing diverse learning experiences. In my daily job as an educator I volunteer to support, coach and assist with every extracurricular activity that my school has to offer, which demonstrates my dedication to ensuring that my students have the opportunity to explore various fields and discover their passions at a young age. My versatile ‘ride’ can traverse any terrain and enable me to guide my students on whatever path they choose to take.
In essence, my ride is a journey through destinations called passion, love, dedication and innovation within the field of education. My philosophy points out that I’m not just teaching subjects, I’m attempting, at least, to shape futures and make a lasting impact on my students’ lives, which is why I stated from the top…
I’ve got a pretty sweet ride.
My educational ride…
From day one of my post secondary education, I wanted to be a high school music teacher. Even before then, that’s what I wanted. While my dream never really died, it didn’t take long into my post secondary journey for that dream to seem really REALLY far away. Through having to learn more than about both my subject area and myself, surviving a family break up, and attempting to find new possible careers, my two years at college turned into seven. Even upon graduating, my dream was still far away. It wasn’t until I was finally admitted into UBC that things started to feel more real. I did lots of volunteering in classrooms (both secondary and elementary), and it started to feel great, albeit like a dream. I still had to wake up from this dream and go to work for the BC Liquor Store (not nearly as glamourous as it sounds, but it did pay for my schooling). Finally, I graduated with both my BMus and Bed, and was TOCing in 3 districts (yes, you read that right). I was TOCing all over the place, but really wanted that place to be in a high school music room. That began to change in April of 2015 when I had to relieve in an elementary music room for a teacher going through a crisis. It took two days, and I started to fall in love with it. I was making lessons, I was making UNITS! I was developing relationships. After being there for only two weeks, I was reassigned to a high school music room where I would stay for the rest of the school year, and the whole school year after that. In the years since then, I’ve reflected on it, and I wasn’t at my best. It was a well established, reputable program that I had to idea how to wrangle. When my term there was up and my contract was not renewed, I was actually happy. My non renewal wasn’t a reflection of my teaching, but my lack of seniority. That summer, I got my Orff Schulwerk Level 1, and was ready to step into an elementary music room. Even as I write this and reflect on that, starting in that position was much easier than starting the high school one. It was only 4 days a week, but the next year, I would receive a permanent placement in another elementary school, and I’ve been there ever since.
It’s been a great ride. It’s been a tough ride. It’s been exhausting, it’s been stressful, and it’s been emotionally draining. But I LOVE THIS RIDE!!! I was told by my university choir conductor that I was meant to be an elementary music teacher. I didn’t want to believe it at the time. I have thanked that prof since. It’s been the best ride ever, and I hope to keep on riding it!
I’ve been fortunate to have two roads that only have one ride. What fuels my ride is the joy of teaching people how to be people. But two roads you ask? The first road is my current position teaching in the public school system. I currently teach music and when I teach them, I always remind them of the life skills they gain through the vehicle of music. My second road is teaching Cadets as a Reservist of the Canadian Armed Forces. I get to serve my country and teach youth how to be good people and good leaders. Now both paths have their ups and downs. The days I enjoy the most is being able to come home knowing that I’ve done a good job. The days I don’t enjoy are the ones that weren’t great but I never back down from reflecting on what went well and what went bad; I’m always striving to the be the best I can which is my ride.
I’ve been on a great ride. For the past 14 years, I’ve worked at an Independent School in British Columbia that has gone through significant growth. I came in not at the entrepreneurial stage, but the leveling-up stage. When I arrived, ours was a school of just over 100 students K-Grade 9, but a school with the ambition to develop a high school and grow enough to provide a world-class education. That’s exactly what we’ve done.
We are now a K-12 school with over 700 students, and we are on our 10th graduating class. I’ve had the chance to be part of the planning, development, teaching, administrating, and the creation of our post-secondary guidance department. What a ride! The transition from small to mid-size school has not always been smooth, but it has certainly been challenging and rewarding. One very interesting development has been the addition of faculty and staff over time, the changing job descriptions, and the value of new personalities and ideas to keep moving the school forward.