From a very early age, I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher. I even knew that I wanted to teach English. I would often “play” school with my younger brother and sister, me the teacher, them the students. I’d give them work to do, chivvy them along if they nattered instead of doing the allotted task, and then mark their efforts with a red pen. I really was a School Ma’am! They were golden days for me. Days when I was doing something that naturally appealed to me (even if it didn’t to my siblings), something at which I felt gifted.
Later, when my siblings no longer indulged my love of school, my attention turned to the joy of reading. I always had my nose deeply buried in a book, I remember the days of Enid Blyton and The Famous Five (I always saw myself as George), then growing up and discovering Daphne Du Maurier and Thomas Hardy. I would become part of the story – to this day, I can still feel what it was like to be Tess of the D’Ubervilles.
So how come I’ve spent the last 20 years of my life as an Accountant? The traditional view of these two professions just seems so far apart. The teacher, front of class, commanding the attention of children or young adults, joining in with the painting or sand play, directing learning through lectures, role play and exercises. By contrast, the traditional view of the Accountant is someone who may be somewhat introverted, a back office type, quietly sifting through the numbers, conservatively saying no to all developments that cost money! [Read more…] about Finding My Purpose!
