Tomorrow I will be going to RHAM, my Alma Mater, to teach BOOTCAMP at Wellness Day for the third year in a row. This is always a great day for me. First, it is always nice to go back to your own High School, and give back in any way at all. Second, it makes me so happy to see how interested these kids are to do class, and how hard they work. They seem to legitimately enjoy it. This brings me to the main point of this blog…..

 

I am not sure how many of you know that I went to school to be a PE Teacher. I got my BS in Health and Physical Education, and went on to Student Teach and recieve my Teaching Certification. Immediately after graduating I started to apply to every PE opening I saw, and landed a long term sub position in my current hometown, East Hampton. During this time I started to realize that teaching was maybe not the right job for me. Although there were several parts that I loved, there was too much that I was questioning.

 

(Before I say anything else, I must say this was MY experience, and I know some teachers who are PERFECT for the job and AMAZING at it! I respect them a ton after doing it myself!!)

 

I am someone who hates routine, and I could not imagine the rest of my life being run by the sound of a bell. I need constant change in my life, whether personal or business. Also, I decided to go into PE because I loved fitness, and I wanted to be around it everyday. Little did I know that a majority of students were not like my friends and I, and HATED “gym” class. I did everything I could to try to make them enjoy it, but to no avail. This, mixed with some other reasons, led me to make one of the hardest decisions I have ever made. It was the beginning of me going with my gut, and not listening to the people around me. I decided to give up on teaching, and go in another direction.

 

Many years later, I made another very difficult decision. I had somehow gotten lost in the 9-5 corporate world. I was moving up the ladder quickly, and had everything you would “want” in a job. Good pay, good benefits, etc, etc. However, I STILL was not happy. So many customers (some who knew nothing about me) would say “you don’t belong behind a desk”. I knew that, and I knew that was why I wasn’t happy. That was when I made another difficult, life changing decision. I decided to do what made me happy, leave my corporate job, and start mission FITNESS with my brother.

 

10 years later, I sit here EXCITED to go TEACH at the HIGH SCHOOL. It was a long road that got me here, but I have come back full circle. I am teaching kids who SIGNED UP to do my class….kids that WANT to be there. This day means so much to me because it reminds me that I can have anything I want if I am willing to take chances and trust my instincts. Who knows where I would be if I stayed in teaching 10 years ago. However, I can almost guarantee this: I would probably not be this excited to go into school tomorrow to teach!

 

Follow your heart****Find what you love, and find a way to make money doing it****Do what you like, like what you do.