Moving On or Stop and Smell the Roses?

Time seems to go so fast, and we only make it go faster by trying to reach the next plateau, the next goal, the next milestone, the next summit. Though being forward thinking, aggressive to work for what you want, and determined to improve are all good qualities, are we missing something? Have we taught ourselves, and our kids, that it is wrong to stop and enjoy the small victories? Have we taught our kids that taking a break to enjoy is “resting on our laurels”?

I am not talking about stopping, I am talking about stopping to enjoy. Enjoy is such a hard word to write about, especially when you have a series of goals you want to meet (either in a short term project or in a lifetime). For example, in the spring of 2003, I voiced something that might be considered a wish for my students. I told the school board that I wanted to start a laptop initiative. I worked tirelessly to until spring of 2006 to get our students, teachers, community, and taxpayers to agree with my idea and get things started. I didn’t have much time to enjoy this new success because I was busy training teachers and working with students that entire first year. In the spring of 2007, I was offered a job in another district that did not have a laptop initiative and didn’t plan to have one (to this day they still don’t). My choice became, stay and enjoy the rewards of my hard work and really see the program flourish, or move on and try to convince another district to do the same thing.

I stopped to enjoy, but not for long. Even though I chose not change districts, I didn’t stop trying to improve and move forward. I began working with other districts to help get their laptop initiatives started. Over the next several years we made major changes, and could see vast improvements in the education of our students. Now my choice became, stop and enjoy or move on.

How long is an appropriate amount of time to enjoy? How long is too long rest on our laurels? How long does it take to stagnate? How long until we begin to be resistant to change? How long is too long to put off striving for a dream? How old is too old to make major life changes?

How fast should someone move onto the next goal? How fast should we be trying to change? How fast can change happen and still be effective? How fast do we move before we are just speeding through things and not giving them the attention they need so others can learn?

How many opportunities do you pass up before you have lost your way? How long do you consider your options before you are just wasting your time? How do you know when you have outlived your usefulness in a district and could really benefit someone else?

It sounds like I am thinking of a job change, but I really am not. I don’t have any job changes in mind, and I can tell you why. I have a husband and three kids of my own that deserve my full attention when I am not working. If I take a job change, then my focus will have to switch away from them for a while. Do they deserve that? On the other hand, do I deserve the opportunity to move up in my profession? Can I rely on the old saying, “One Door Closes... Another Opens.”

Another reason I am hesitating to change is that financially I am secure. I know I have a good job and a steady income. In this economy can anyone really take a hug leap of faith to chase a dream? I have always dreamt of writing a book, but I don’t have enough hours in the day or week to really work on it; and I can’t afford to quit my job to do it either. I have wanted to get more involved in presenting at a professional level, but to do that you have to build a reputation, present a lot, and travel. Do I want to do that? Again financial security and time with my kids while they are growing up, gets in the way.

I like what I am doing now. I am comfortable, most days with what I am doing. I love teaching, and I love working with technology. I like the amount of presenting I am doing and I love blogging when I have time. So am I smelling the roses right now, or am I moving on? Am I somewhere in between?