Do you love your job?

"Do you love your job?"

The unexpected question came from a girl who was generally quiet in class. On second thoughts, the question should not be so unexpected given that we were discussing the topic of jobs and careers in our oral English lesson. The students had been having a lively debate about how important it is to love what you do, particularly in relation to other factors like work-life balance and salary. As the conversation died down, the question, "Do you love your job?" was presented to me. Being caught off guard, I quickly said, "Oh yes, of course!" The student beamed and replied, "That's great." 

Later I was thinking to myself, do I really love my job? I hadn't really thought much about it. A word of warning from an education lecturer years ago came to mind: "Don't become a teacher unless you really want to be a teacher. If you're not passionate about teaching you might as well quit now." The words had stuck with me and even haunted me as I became a teacher. Am I really passionate about this? Should I continue on this path?

These doubts continued as an inexperienced teacher, though I tried not to think about them too much. But when that question from the student came I really stopped and reflected. There are certainly hard days and failures and stresses - that's a reality that I can't ignore. But I realised that, yes, I do love my job. And here are four reasons:

Teaching is social

I'm known to be an introvert but sometimes I doubt it; good company brings me joy and energy. I love people and teaching allows me to be with others. 

Teaching is creative

To create is to bring something into existence, and when you think about it, teachers are constantly creating. We're imagining ideas and possibilities, we're curating and adapting resources, we're designing physical objects and meaningful experiences, we're constructing complete lessons, and we're building relationships. I've always loved creating, but it's only recently that I have comprehended creativity as an essential element in the work of a teacher. 

Teaching is altruistic and nurturing

According to my Myers-Briggs personality type I would suit a 'nurturing' profession such as nursing. Teaching is also a kind of nurturing. It is other-focused; our goal is to help our learners learn. Whether you see yourself as a conduit of information, a facilitator of growth, or a co-constructor with the students, teaching is altruistic and other-focused. I love that I can have an impact on people's lives. 

Teaching is learning

As a teacher I'm constantly learning. I'm learning more about the subjects I'm teaching, I'm learning more about my students, and I'm learning from my students. Just a couple of examples: in my public speaking class I've studied for myself the science of why stories in speeches have a strong impact on listeners in order to be able to teach that to my students. And when my students give their speeches I learn more about them as people as well as the fascinating topics they speak on. The name of my blog is Journey of Learning, and teaching plays a major part in my lifelong learning journey.

Do I love my job? Absolutely! And next time I get the question I'll answer with much more certainty. However, my love for teaching was something that developed. At the beginning I don't think I could have honestly answered "Absolutely". I didn't have that 'teacher passion' my education lecturer talked about. Maybe some people have that love right from the beginning, but for me, it's something that has grown along the way.

• Can you relate to any of these points?
• What's your opinion on my education lecturers words: "Don't become a teacher unless you really want to be a teacher. If you're not passionate about teaching you might as well quit now"?
• Do you love your job? If so, what are your reasons?
• How important is it to enjoy your work?