It was a little over a year ago when I decided that I once again wanted to try my hands at another career path. Originally, a career in teaching and education was never part of the plan. I had always considered it as an option, but it was never one that I wanted to explore until now. As a barely-mature teenager trying to decide college major, it never occurred to me just how much I might like being a teacher.
I chose to study chemistry in college, mainly because I was a math and science buff in high school, and chemistry intrigued me the most. However, it wasn't even 2 years into my program at UCLA before I realized that chemistry wasn't for me, at least not as a career. While it is true, even now, that I have an honest fascination with chemistry, when I looked at the students around me and observed their passion and determination, I knew that I would not be able to compete with them in the field. Chemistry isn't something that can draw that kind of excellence out of me. Yet, even with this realization, I wanted to stick with my commitment and finish my degree. There were still different aspects of chemistry I had yet to delve into, and I wanted to see if something in there might ignite my passion.
Shortly after making this decision, I applied for a part-time position selling computers at our university's student store. During my 2 and a half years as an employee at the UCLA Computer Store, I became more and more aware of my love for interacting with people. Whether it was my customers, my co-workers, or even my managers, you could almost always find me talking to somebody at work. Of course, the job was not always easy, but I found that I was enjoying myself nonetheless. Still, something about being in sales for the rest of my life didn't sit well.
I graduated with great conviction that neither a career as a chemist nor a career as a salesperson was going to satisfy me. So, I returned to my first love, art and graphics design. Ever since childhood, I had always loved drawing, and I had actually worked a lot in graphics design during high school. I believed that I was sure to awaken my passion in this field. With this hope set on my heart, I enrolled in a few classes at a nearby college, and took on an internship at a start-up film production company as their graphics designer. I enjoyed myself for a short while, but soon, the feeling of isolation crept in at my internship, almost to the point of suffocation. It was here that I really saw how I literally could not function without people around me. So as soon as I could, I left the internship, which brings me to early 2009.
It was at this time that a friend suggested that I try teaching. Initially the suggestion caught me by surprise, but over the next few weeks I realized more and more how perfect a job like that might be. Teaching means that I will be working with people throughout my day, and it gives me a chance to put my chemistry degree to good use. On top of that, it is a career path that would satisfy my deep-seated desire to influence the world around me. Looking back, the one thing missing from a career in sales is this ability not to just make people happy, but to really improve their lives.
As I am drawing closer to the end of my first year of teaching English in Korea, I can say that I have truly enjoyed this career path. I can see that there are many areas that I need to develop in order to become the best teacher I can be, but I see it as a welcome challenge. This being my first year, and as a foreigner, my impact on the lives of my current students feels extremely limited. I'm looking forward to the day when, after I have developed as a teacher, I will be able to guide my students to make positive changes in their lives.
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