Thoughts for a Busy Day

Tuesday’s have become the busiest days of the summer by far. I began today at 7:30 with a Skype interview which ended around 9:45. This has been by far the most difficult yet possibly most successful interview so far, but left me with the inability to think clearly and put the marathon into context. I feel grateful that it went well and that i had the opportunity, but it really changed around my plans for today!

Lately, I have had between 1-3 rehearsals on Tuesdays, every once in a while all three will land on the same day, today being one of them. I hope that i’m on my toes ready to go by then!

I have noticed on my blog lately that my most popular posts have been the movie reviews I’ve done, although I haven’t done a review in a few months. I was fortunate enough yesterday to go see Man of Steel and This is the End yesterday with a couple close friends, so maybe tomorrow or Thursday I will at least get around to sharing my thoughts on the two. I wish more days could be like yesterday.

If you’re reading this, wish me the best of luck!

Thoughts on today’s Teacher Recruitment Fair

Today (surprisingly for myself but no one else) was Webster University’s Teacher Recruitment Fair. Despite feeling very hurried and upset with myself before I got there, things went rather well. There were high and low points, and I was not surprised that I would consider my first interview to be my worst. I felt fortunate to meet with four big districts: Wentzville, Laue, Rockwood, and Pattonville, two of which are currently hiring music teachers. Other thoughts

I always feel funny wearing a suit or being overly-dressed only to be placed in a gym. This is nothing different for me. I’ve had countless concerts, meetings, interviews, and conferences in gyms.

Two of my interviews today were complete formalities, while two others really just wanted to talk and take a few notes..maybe. My last interviewer said we would just “hang out.” I hope that’s how it was for the others he interviewed…..because he really seemed to enjoy speaking with me! Nonetheless, going from district to district was more interesting than I anticipated.

This reminded me of parent-teacher conferences at Parkway Central High School, which reminded me of speed dating. Every twenty minutes, half the people at tables get up, and new ones come in while some are off to the next interview. As a people watcher, I like to look out for body posture and all the smiling that goes on.

Last thought, the best question I had of the day was “Can students learn from a teacher they do not love?” I laughed at this because this was a question that he read to me, and I just don’t hear the L word very much in this setting. I took another second, and in response I said that students can only learn from someone they trust and believe in. Now…….If I were on my game this afternoon, I would have referred to one of my favorite parts of Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly People, where he says proactive people treat love as a verb, while reactive people treat it as a feeling. But it is a verb first, and an idea i’m comfortable with.