"Life begins at the end of your comfort zone."

~Neale Donald Walsch~

Sunday 27 October 2013

What does influence really mean?

You when I was a kid I always wanted to be one of the popular kids. I was not. I was hard working, at times incredibly shy and awkward and thought I probably would never get noticed. I was shocked and surprised when at school in my final year I received the schools most prestigious award for school service. I couldn't believe that whilst I was lurking in the shadows someone had noticed. 

Well I can honestly say that feeling of overwhelming shock, surprise and pure joy are not
Image by Bigstockphotos.com
moments in ones life that you get to live everyday. In fact in my career those feeling are few and far between. There are kids in our classes who just try all the time and aren't at the top of the class, they aren't the most attractive in the class and yet they are endearing with unique personalities and it is these qualities and enduring personalities that are the ones I remember. They have few opportunities to shine because they aren't at the top and they aren't the worst behaved but yet they help out the strugglers and always are the first to put their hands up to have a go at things. It is these students that I most resonate with because I was one of them. 


On Friday I was fortunate enough to participate in a staff development day on how to deal with difficult customers, facilitated by my good friend and colleague Bronwyn @Ms_Bee_2U (twitter).We completed the DISC personality test and my dominating personality tendency is an influencer and promoter. I never had thought about myself like this however as I read more about myself I discovered I was. I love to share,  and am enthusiastic about what I do and have a strong desire to share with others. I just thought I was sharing what I was interested. So why am I telling you this? Not sure. However in reflection I hope that my actions as a teacher are to influence others for good. I will always strive to do better and one of my weaknesses is that sometimes I overestimate what others can do. I always see the best in people and can see their potential however I am coming to see that people need to make their own way and my job is to encourage them to be the best they can be whilst they are part of my life. 

I have been asked to write another blog post for the TAFE NSW blog site so I am in the middle of writing this. I have also been asked to provide training for TAFE teachers in Maitland on Tuesday and show them the joys of blogging. On Wednesday I am going to the Central Coast Campus Friends AGM and have been nominated to be a board member. I really love this group as they support academia and work on the Central Coast. Super excited about my opportunities this week. Unfortunately as I sit here with a chest infection and a temp I am hoping to be well enough to go to all these wonderful things. I am still working on the Symbaloo accreditation and am now half way through the course. I am really starting to see the benefits of this program and I like it more the more I get into it. 

I am still slowly working away at my Graduate Certificate in Adult LLN and handed in my first assessment for Numeracy last Thursday. I am determined to get all my assignments in on time. Last term was very stressful trying to get things in and I need to manage my time better so I don't get so stressed.  

My favorite sites for the week:

Whilst setting up my Symbaloo page I went back into the archives of my favorite sites and it was fun to remind myself of some of my favorite apps and places to go.

Trends in technology for 2014

Animoto

Pic Monkey

Until next week,
K

Monday 21 October 2013

A world of opportunity

I can't believe I have left my blog for so long. It's terrible. I have missed it. I must say. I tried to do a brain dump of all my ideas on my holiday but it just wasn't the same.

I went on a holiday to the USA with the family and whilst it was very busy it did give me time to step back from things and look at things in a new light. I had forgotten that I am an adrenaline junkie and love roller coasters. The scarier the better. I love the thrill and adventure and you know sometimes you just have to take life by the horns and go for it!

There are so many pressures on teachers and I admit at times I have really struggled to keep up with everything. Marking, lesson prep, feedback, coordinator role, getting ready for audit and working on my Graduate Certificate in Adult Language, Literacy and Numeracy. I really felt swamped and not sure where to begin. Well unfortunately I still feel like that. Yet dangling like a carrot in front of me is a world of opportunity.

I had so missed my random surfing the net that I just allowed myself time to cruz the other day. I love exploring new apps and looking at new and different trends. Last week I dived into the inner workings of Symbaloo and completed about 1/2 of the course to become a certified trainer. Was good to put my brain in a different space to think. The world of technology appears to me to be stabilizing and moving forward at the same time. There are things in the world of tech that are now becoming so familiar. Yet I still love to be surprised by new things or new apps or ways of doing things. Twitter, Facebook and Google are staples yet there is growing interest in other areas.

                                                  



As the end of the year approaches it is the constant uncertainty about next. I always hope I will have work for next year but there are a few hairy weeks when you have no idea. I'm in that phase at the moment. I also like this time of year to reflect upon what worked and what didn't work.

I have been thinking that next year I really should build on my business. I have now run two training sessions from the courses I have been accredited to teach by the NSW Teachers Institute and they were a great success. They want to do further courses with me. I can see that there is a market I just have no idea how to get in to it. I need to work out how I can get into this market.

I can't put all my eggs in one basket and I need to look for further opportunities for employment. I feel a lot more comfortable now in the adult learning space and I have the confidence to go forward whereas before I was unsure. So I need to take these opportunities and be excited by the unexpected places I might be taken to.

Until next time,
K