Starchild on the job hunt
After over a week of searching here in Shanghai, a week of interviews, and a typhoon somewhere in the mix to give me a day to calm down and think, here's what I now know about myself:
I hate structure.
I hate early mornings if they're expected of me. (Getting up at dawn to go hiking or hit the beach, though, is another story.)
I have absolutely no desire to work weekends.
I don't feel like spending my after-work time on coming up with lesson plans. Or grading assignments. Or hunting for materials. No. I'd rather be doing yoga. Or attending spiritual workshops. Or writing. Or traveling. Or dancing. Not thinking about and creating more work.
I have serious issues with binding commitments, for any length of time.
I do not want to indoctrinate anybody into any faith, much less impose a faith on children.
I'm too serious-looking for kids; unless we're playing or doing something otherwise genuinely delightful, it's just not in my nature to plaster a grin on my face. And, since I don't like forcing/pretending anything, I can't even promise to try. :-/
I dread the idea of classrooms full of little kids who can't speak ANY of the target language. (Really -- much as I loved working at preschools back in the U.S. and as passionate as I am about language.) This is because I don't think I could hold their attention and do a good job. And because I'd know I was wasting my strengths in higher-level things, by NOT spending the time with more advanced learners.
On that note, I'm not keen on the idea of devoting my days to flashcards; I MUST spend my days on higher-level thinking. Surface-level information is not stimulating enough to hold my interest or rouse my enthusiasm after about. . . twelve seconds.
I have no interest in dressing like a professional; I will dress however I damn well please, because you will respect my qualifications and my character -- and, more importantly, my status as a human being -- so HELLZ no to uniforms or the purchase of an otherwise stuffy, expensive wardrobe.
Now. Thank you for listening to me complain about the things I do not want. :)
Speaking in more positive terms, here are the things I realize are my strengths!
flexibility
one-on one guidance
deep explanations
an uncanny knack for pinpointing exactly what somebody doesn't understand
super-sharp skills at clarifying complex ideas
creativity (especially for finding multiple ways of getting a message across)
the tendency to give my very best to whatever I *do* commit to
compassion
patience
and uncommonly strong qualifications as seen "on paper"
Basically, I've realized I want a job on my own terms -- pay, schedule, wardrobe, location, ALL of that. I'm 28. I've more than paid my dues. I'd like to believe that I was made to take the world on according to my own M.O., because there's a lot of good that I can do, if I'm given the freedom to focus on my own personal interests and lean on my own strengths.
ALL of us deserve this opportunity. I'm just old enough now that I finally realize it and am willing to stand by my own awareness.
Can a free-spirit newcomer from the U.S.A. make a niche for herself in China?
Something tells me. . . yes. . .
