What motivates teachers? A personal journey...

In my earlier avatar, before I became a teacher, I used to be a regular sales & marketing guy, always on the run...for the next big deal or the next big break. The transition from a marketing guy to a full-time teacher was rather sudden as I had  been scarred and disillusioned (fortuitously, I feel now) with the Corporate world and couldn't carry on with Life, keeping up appearances that everything was hunky-dory. The desire to 'sell' simply fell away...like a rotten fruit off a tree. 

But I was a 'driven' individual and had to do something with a whole life ahead, a family to support and this exasperating urge to find meaning and purpose. I was 31 and completely at sea. 

After a painful process of soul-searching, delving into past experiences, on a balmy summer day, walking barefoot on a beach in Madras, feeling the warm salty breeze on my skin,  I realised that I enjoyed teaching. It was my Eureka Moment! During my early sales & marketing days, I was called, 'The Teacher' (somewhat derisively, I remember) by colleagues because of my penchant for explaining the subtleties of the product. It struck me that I could make a living and still save my soul, as a teacher. I rushed home, almost ecstatic, to my wife proclaiming I'd decided to be a teacher. She was a worldly-wise woman, beginning to get rather weary of her husband's wayward ways and asked drily "soru poduma?" It was the Tamil equivalent of  "will it bring home the bacon?" This devastatingly simple, staid  question posed by the Woman-of-the-House who had her feet planted firmly on the ground was a challenge I was confronted with. But I had found purpose, taking an inspired leap into the unknown, and all I had to do was to find the means to realise it. 

I'm reminded of Paulo Coelho's words from his enchanting allegorical novel The Alchemist "...when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it."

Soon, I came across a lady from an 'intentional' organisation looking for a committed teacher. I confessed that neither did I have the experience nor the relevant degree in Education. She thought I would make a good teacher because of my unconventional background and not necessarily in spite of it. She trusted me more than I trusted myself . Before I knew it, I was hooked for life teaching wide-eyed students. The Director of the school had warned me that teachers earned peanuts. I didn't heed it...I had found more than what money could possibly give...meaning and purpose (forgive the cliché) which eluded me all my life. 

I have been teaching for more than a decade and am still excited by the possibility of a student completely stumping me with a question  and I respond with an honest "Gee, I really don't know...could we learn about it together?" 

To be vulnerable seems to the best way to learn...every moment, every day.

Now, what motivated me to be a committed teacher and sustain my interest for more than a decade? It was definitely not the money...not the almost non-existent career growth prospects. I  was seeking answers for all these years till, I came across a pop-psych book tantalisingly titled Drive - The surprising truth about what motivates us. Authored by Dan Pink, a maverick and one-time speech writer for Al Gore, this book completely demolishes our notions of reward and punishment, incentives and rest of the Brazilian carnival.

The book comes highly recommended as it has interesting insights on what drives human beings to be motivated and excel in their chosen fields. 

I have uploaded the Royal Society of Arts animation production of Dan Pink's famous TED-2009 talk which crystallizes the essence of his book. Enthralling...

You could watch his talk on Motivation too at Dan Pink TED Talk