Blog #10

Blog #10 – 4/16/2013

Chapter 10 from the Corey (2010) book was an interesting one for me because of where I currently am in my life’s journey.  Personally, I have been working in my chosen occupation for over 20 years, but was definitely able to relate my experience to various ideas posited within the chapter.  I did go through a period of searching during college, and ended up not only changing majors a few times, and actually leaving one college completely and entering anther in the middle of my freshman year.  I related to the possibility mentioned in the chapter concerning having others choose a career for you.  My father was very influential in my first choice of becoming a pharmacist, but I recognized pretty quickly that it was not for me and made a significant change of path.  I have always liked school, was good at my academic subjects, and generally enjoyed my school experience.  Becoming a teacher had not really crossed my mind, however, until I actually graduated and moved into a new phase of my life and education.  I believe I made a good choice for myself and truly enjoy being a high school teacher.  I do find it meaningful and fulfilling, but also frustrating at times of course, but I cannot imagine doing something unrelated to education or interacting with/helping others. 

I suppose my choice to pursue my master’s degree in counseling could be considered by some to be a change in career at midlife (Corey, 301-302), but that is not how I see it.  Numerous people have asked me, both within and outside of my high school whether I am “tired of teaching” and “do I want to get out of the classroom?”  My answer is a definitive “No!” but I did find myself feeling a little stale and looking for something new.  The opportunity afforded me within the counseling program has not only alleviated those feelings, but also given me a new purpose and sense of accomplishment.  While I can certainly see myself working in the guidance department at a high school, and would enjoy a new challenge and way of interacting with students, I am still happy teaching psychology and sociology and have found that I am not only learning a great deal personally from my classes, but have also applied my knowledge to my own classroom.  I could certainly use the resources outlined in the textbook to encourage future students to discover their own talents and interests and consider how they could be applied to a career.

Leisure time has been a topic of some discussion between my husband and myself.  We have traditionally spent much of it with family, although that has changed in recent years.  When we were younger with small children, we did not tend to take extended vacations, but opted for more long weekends away.  More recently, we have taken several trips as a nuclear family.  We try to use our weekends to have some type of family time, but with two teenagers (17 & 15), it is getting more difficult to all be together.  Our attempts to make it a priority have been met with varied success.  Personally, I find it necessary to have my own “down time”, and try to either exercise or read or simply walk the dog each day as a chance to recharge my battery.   As a counselor, I would consistently attempt to inspire students to consider how they spend their time.  Everyone should have a balance between work and leisure.  Our culture stresses success at the expense of almost everything else.  All of us, including our young people, deserve the chance at a well rounded, fulfilling life and should be encouraged to make appropriate choices to that effect.

Retirement is a topic that is becoming more and more concerning to my husband and myself.  We both have secure jobs, but have discussed what may happen to my retirement (as Governor Corbett attempts to gut our current system), and how we need to be planning now for the inevitable future.  We both realize that there will certainly be an adjustment period, especially after watching both sets of parents navigate this time in their lives.  Maybe it is naïve, but both my husband and I have sufficient outside interests, separately and together, that hopefully will help to alleviate some of the stress of retiring.  I am not ready to do so yet, but I believe that I can see a time when I would like to leave full time employment for either part time or volunteer work, and of course to focus more fully on my own hobbies and personal interests.  Hopefully, we will be able to do so financially!

Corey,G.,& Corey, M.S. (2010). I never knew I had a choice: Explorations in personal growth. (9th ed.). Belmont, California: Brooks/Cole.