I had mentioned previously that I am lacking a sense of purpose at my job. I struggle daily with going to work because I am not at home to school my child. If I take a day off to school my child, I feel uneasy because I know I have to return to work.
It's exhausting.
I like going to work because I like the people I work with and I enjoy being with people in general. The company I work for has integrity, they are generous and we have fun. It is amazing to be proud for the company you work for. I have worked for many that I have not been proud of.
That said, my sense of purpose at work, my identity crisis if you will, is making it really difficult to wake up every morning with a smile on my face. I do like having a job. I like working full time and bringing money into the household. I wish my job could be teaching at home though and therein lies my struggle. I want to be creative. I want to teach. I want to feel like I am making a difference.
I could do my current full time job from home (most days) but this company does not like to function in that way. The only time people work from home is in bad weather and even that is frowned upon. They would prefer you just take the day off. Their time off policy is generous for this very reason.
Prior to starting homeschooling (even prior to thinking about it), I had been slowly working on getting myself into a position where I do not need to go to work every day in order to be able to do my current job. Right now, I can do it all via email, phone and the Internet and would only need to come in a couple days a week. I am unsure how to approach my company about it so I have not said anything. Yet. I am hoping an opportunity will arise soon.
My workday is from 7:30a-4:30p. The rest of my team (and the other half of the company) gets in at 8a. In the 30 minutes prior to them arriving I get as much done as I do in about two hours with everyone being in the building. The phone is ringing (internal and external calls), people stop by my desk to ask questions, the team has chats about work stuff (and sometimes not work stuff)... I do not mind the interruptions but I have found that I get to the end of my day exhausted and I have not completed one task! I have been busy working on helping others and while I love helping others, I need to get my own work done.
If I were home, I would obviously be available via phone, email, text and even Instant Messenger so I think it would be beneficial to everyone. I am the go-to person for many things in my company (I even won an award for being a go-to person lol) but I think if I were not there (and I am going to try to say this gently), people would stop and think or refer to their notes before they called me on something they likely already know the answer to.
As much as I love the drop in's and quick question phone calls that give me little breaks throughout the day, I think most of that could be eliminated if people thought before they reached for the phone or took a walk to come see me. I have gone on a field trip to ask someone a question so I am no stranger to wanting to get out of my chair but it is distracting. Like I said, I am not getting my work done which means I start to lose momentum and when I lose momentum, I lack motivation to get anything done. It is a really long day when you do not want to start anything new and are just waiting around for people to call you or drop by to keep you busy.
Since I implemented my mostly electronic work day, I have saved the company more than a couple reams of paper, boxes of staples, pens and toner (the toner for the printer at my company is $400 a pop). Might not seem like much but the incidentals of running a business add up. All of this I plan on mentioning in my annual review next May. I hope to minimize my footprint there. If I reduce it enough they might not oppose my desire to work from home and give me a shot at it. I may not be successful working from home. It might fail miserably and they will see me there every day after a week. I will not know unless I am given the chance to try it.
Monday, November 21, 2016
Thursday, November 17, 2016
I'm a Homeschool Reference!
A friend of mine asked me about homeschooling about a month ago (what program do you use, how to track grades, how many hours do they work on schoolwork, etc.) and I was delighted to share my experience!
Seems their child is going through some of what my youngest went through including attending the same hospital program. Their saving grace is that this is happening early in the school year and they have me. =)
I gave advice (solicited for once!) on the program I use and how I ran things for 8th grade and how I am running things for 9th. It was fun to talk about it but also a little nerve-wracking... I take homeschooling seriously but I did not want to give the impression that the way I am doing it is the only way. And, the first year, I gave A LOT of leeway to my son and I have a feeling it came off as me being too easy on him. More importantly, I did not want them to think that just because it is working for us that it will work for them.
I absolutely hope it does work for them. There are many special circumstances in their situation which I do not have in mine so the program I am using would be the easiest for them to implement with everything they have going on; BUT, homeschooling is fluid (as I was reminded by my homeschool reference) and you have to be OK with changing things that are not working for you or your child.
I wish them the best and hope they can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Seems their child is going through some of what my youngest went through including attending the same hospital program. Their saving grace is that this is happening early in the school year and they have me. =)
I gave advice (solicited for once!) on the program I use and how I ran things for 8th grade and how I am running things for 9th. It was fun to talk about it but also a little nerve-wracking... I take homeschooling seriously but I did not want to give the impression that the way I am doing it is the only way. And, the first year, I gave A LOT of leeway to my son and I have a feeling it came off as me being too easy on him. More importantly, I did not want them to think that just because it is working for us that it will work for them.
I absolutely hope it does work for them. There are many special circumstances in their situation which I do not have in mine so the program I am using would be the easiest for them to implement with everything they have going on; BUT, homeschooling is fluid (as I was reminded by my homeschool reference) and you have to be OK with changing things that are not working for you or your child.
I wish them the best and hope they can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Socialization (Here Comes The Hives)
Do you remember when I mentioned that the word socialization gives me hives? Well, I have taken a Benadryl so here goes...
Socialization per the Encyclopedia Britannica:
Emotions play a large part in socialization. My oldest son does not like school but he goes because that is what you do. He wants a good job with good benefits so he can move forward. The best way to get that good job is education. When faced with an unfamiliar situation, even when it is unexpected, he knows he can do it and if he does not know what to do, he asks for help. He has confidence. My kids were supposed to fly on their own to my in-laws last year. Because my youngest was only 13, my husband was allowed to accompany them both to the gate. My youngest could not make himself get on that plane so my oldest went alone. Obviously, he was nervous but he did it without issue and since he was old enough to fly by himself anyway, my in-laws were unable to accompany him to the gate on their end so he had to do it by himself from security.
My youngest was unable to fly because of fear. He knows his brother would not let anything happen to him and if he were traveling with him to get to us or to get to his grandmother, he would have no problems getting on the plane. Because he had not flown nor seen the in-laws in many years, his fear kept him off the plane. The comfort of knowing he would be with his brother was not enough to get him on the plane and that is OK. His brother was bummed but he still enjoyed his trip. Had their grandfather not been out there already, who knows, he might have gotten on the plane but to be with people he has not seen in many years and does not know (even though they are family) in addition to being with a person he finds difficult made him too anxious to fly. He got on a plane without issue two weeks later when our family took a trip. He was completely annoyed with me the whole time but that is another story.
My youngest knows how to behave in society. He opens doors for me and others, he is polite, he engages in conversation if spoken to, he can order his own meal when we are in a restaurant, he and his brother go places together and engage with shopkeepers, cashiers, etc. I get compliments galore on what a wonderful young man he is. The idea that he is missing something by not attending public school is absurd to me and I will explain why.
The alleged benefits of public school are that kids learn to relate to different personality types. It is said (by Scholastic) that working through disagreements on the playground or at the lunch table helps negotiation skills, problem-solving abilities and self-control. All of this is true unless your child is bullied (really bullied not just the normal garbage kids do to each other at school) or otherwise subject to many conflicts while in school (teachers and administrators can be bullies too - unfortunately, we have experienced that firsthand). Bullied kids and those who cannot seem to avoid conflict do not socialize, they exist until they can go home. In addition, kids who attend public school are introduced to drugs, sex and pornography. How is this helpful to my child? Outside of school, our kids will interact with people of all ages - people at restaurants, stores, church, family functions, etc. My child functions fine in these situations and behaves in a manner approved by the group which leads me to believe he is socialized.
Whew, I feel better now. Thanks for 'listening'. =)
------
I have read many articles on the subject over the years. This link will lead you to one I have read most recently and have used information from in my blog post. It's a pretty neat site overall so check it out.
http://oureverydaylife.com/school-impacts-childs-socialization-16255.html
Socialization per the Encyclopedia Britannica:
Socialization, the process whereby an individual learns to adjust to a group (or society) and behave in a manner approved by the group (or society). According to most social scientists, socialization essentially represents the whole process of learning throughout the life course and is a central influence on the behaviour, beliefs, and actions of adults as well as of children.Psychologically, your feelings will either inhibit or promote your socialization (yep, breaking out that undergrad knowledge, thank you very much). For instance, if you are fearful of large groups, it is unlikely going to The Taste of Chicago is something you would consider even if it does take place in the greatest city in the world (yeah, I am partial). Walking around with 1.4 million people does not appeal to me and I do not have a fear of large groups but for someone who gets jumpy in a group larger than 20 people, the thought of 1.4 million is likely paralyzing.
Emotions play a large part in socialization. My oldest son does not like school but he goes because that is what you do. He wants a good job with good benefits so he can move forward. The best way to get that good job is education. When faced with an unfamiliar situation, even when it is unexpected, he knows he can do it and if he does not know what to do, he asks for help. He has confidence. My kids were supposed to fly on their own to my in-laws last year. Because my youngest was only 13, my husband was allowed to accompany them both to the gate. My youngest could not make himself get on that plane so my oldest went alone. Obviously, he was nervous but he did it without issue and since he was old enough to fly by himself anyway, my in-laws were unable to accompany him to the gate on their end so he had to do it by himself from security.
My youngest was unable to fly because of fear. He knows his brother would not let anything happen to him and if he were traveling with him to get to us or to get to his grandmother, he would have no problems getting on the plane. Because he had not flown nor seen the in-laws in many years, his fear kept him off the plane. The comfort of knowing he would be with his brother was not enough to get him on the plane and that is OK. His brother was bummed but he still enjoyed his trip. Had their grandfather not been out there already, who knows, he might have gotten on the plane but to be with people he has not seen in many years and does not know (even though they are family) in addition to being with a person he finds difficult made him too anxious to fly. He got on a plane without issue two weeks later when our family took a trip. He was completely annoyed with me the whole time but that is another story.
My youngest knows how to behave in society. He opens doors for me and others, he is polite, he engages in conversation if spoken to, he can order his own meal when we are in a restaurant, he and his brother go places together and engage with shopkeepers, cashiers, etc. I get compliments galore on what a wonderful young man he is. The idea that he is missing something by not attending public school is absurd to me and I will explain why.
The alleged benefits of public school are that kids learn to relate to different personality types. It is said (by Scholastic) that working through disagreements on the playground or at the lunch table helps negotiation skills, problem-solving abilities and self-control. All of this is true unless your child is bullied (really bullied not just the normal garbage kids do to each other at school) or otherwise subject to many conflicts while in school (teachers and administrators can be bullies too - unfortunately, we have experienced that firsthand). Bullied kids and those who cannot seem to avoid conflict do not socialize, they exist until they can go home. In addition, kids who attend public school are introduced to drugs, sex and pornography. How is this helpful to my child? Outside of school, our kids will interact with people of all ages - people at restaurants, stores, church, family functions, etc. My child functions fine in these situations and behaves in a manner approved by the group which leads me to believe he is socialized.
Whew, I feel better now. Thanks for 'listening'. =)
------
I have read many articles on the subject over the years. This link will lead you to one I have read most recently and have used information from in my blog post. It's a pretty neat site overall so check it out.
http://oureverydaylife.com/school-impacts-childs-socialization-16255.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)