Getting Out Of Your Comfort Zone

Wow, it can be rather hard as an educator to get out of your comfort zone.  You don't want to fail and let everyone see it.  It is so much easier to keep doing the things you do because you know you can do them correctly.  You are comfortable with doing it the way you have always done it.

Well, I have had the opportunity to push myself out of my comfort zone twice in about a years time.  Both times, it was my boss, Todd Nesloney, pushing me.  About two weeks ago, he asked me if I would moderate the Kids Deserve It Twitter Chat.  I had a million thought go through my head.  Here are some of them.

1. Who, me!  
2. He has to be just joking.
3. What would be my questions?
4. I am just a beginner when it comes to Twitter.
5. I am not at his level in the education world.
6. I am scared to death to say yes, but he is my boss, so I better say yes.
7. I am going to FAIL.

I talked to several people after saying yes.  I just knew I made the wrong decision.  I sought out a co-worker that had already done it.  He told me that it was not hard and that I could do it.  I then talked to one of my biggest cheerleaders, my mom.  She told me that she was so proud of me and that I better not turn it down.

So, I picked up the book that I wrote a small piece in, the book was Stories From Webb.  (The other time I went out of my comfort zone.)

As I started reading my little section, I started coming up with so many questions.  In fact, I had more then the four I needed to do the chat.  As I was coming up with the question, I typed them in a Google Doc and then picked the four best.  Or at least I thought they were the best ones.  Then I shared the document knowing that Todd would just laugh at me and tell me that they were horrible.  Well, that did not happen.  He thought they were good and to use them.

I then sat down with him to show me how to schedule them.  I had already decided that this would be hard.  As I sat there watching how he was doing it on his computer (because mine was not working correctly at the moment), I realized my thinking was all wrong.  Granted, I also was thinking, I am going to get back to my classroom and not be able to do it.

When I went back to my classroom, I thought "okay here it goes, I am going to try it and hope for the best."  As I was typing, I kept thinking "this is way to easy, I must not be doing something right."  I then showed Todd, and he said great!

The night of the Twitter Chat I was so nervous.  The tweets were showing up so fast and it was so hard to keep up with what people were typing in.  The 30 minutes went by so fast.

I am glad that I was pushed out of my comfort zone and did this.  I realized that I was thinking it was so much harder then it really was.  Thank you Todd for pushing me.

It is hard to push yourself out of that comfort zone, but when you do you find out that you learn more about yourself and others.

I am now in the process of thinking what will be the next thing that will push me to get out of my comfort zone.  Will it be to present in the symposium next year in our district.  Will it be trying to find a position that gets me out of the classroom.  Will it be to have another student teacher next year.  I am not for sure yet, but I know when the opportunity is before me I will take it and be uncomfortable for awhile and be glad at the end that I took on the challenge.

I challenge you today to push yourself out of your comfort zone and try something new.

No Dads

Do you have students that come up to you and say the following things?

• My dad does not live with me and I wish I could see him?
• I don't know my dad, but I wish I did.
• I wish I could hang out with my dad this weekend, but it is not the correct weekend for me.
• I don't know if I have a dad, Mrs. Marsh.
• My dad is in jail/prison and I don't know if I will ever see him again.
• Mrs. Marsh I don't have a dad, do you?

I started my journey in the classroom in 2000.  Every year, I would have a student come to me with one of those statements.  All those statements always tugged at my heart as a teacher.  I always tried my best to comfort those students and tried my hardest to understand them.  It was hard because I had my dad.  I didn't completely understand what they were going through.

Then flash forward to October 2016, I received a call from my mom that my dad had become really sick and that I needed to come as quick as I can because he might not make.  He lasted for two weeks and then went onto to be with the Lord.

I remember sitting down in my classroom soon after coming back to work and realized that I am just like those students in my classroom with no dad.  I remember beginning to cry for myself, but for all those others students feeling like I did.  I remember those feelings and here were just a few of those feelings:  sad, scared, lonely, and angry.  Granted, there were so many more I felt.  I wanted to go back and find my former students and tell them that I now understand what they were going through and sorry for what I said to them because I am sure it didn't help.

Since, I went through this experience of losing my dad, I sure have more empathy for these students.  I can understand now how it affects their learning and behavior in class.  It is hard to understand these emotions as an adult at times.  I cannot imagine feeling these same emotions as a child.  

I have more compassion and really want to help them more, because I am just like them.

So, when a child comes to you and says they miss their dad, give them compassion even if you don't know what they are feeling.  You can send the student to another teacher that understand what they are going through if you haven't been in their shoes.

Just remember what a child feels is a real thing!