Day 361 - Self Discipline

Lack thereof will surely lead to my downfall...

Teaching is alot about self discipline so far. The discipline to plan each lesson ahead of time, the discipline to mark 30 books with lucid comments, the discipline to write 60 reports over a weekend, the discipline to give up some of your holiday to look at the curriculum and think through a half term of lessons across 5 or more different classes ahead of time, the discipline to ask other teachers for advice and sift through the mountains of resources available to help, the discipline not to show your emotion when confronted with rudeness, laziness, indifference, stupidity or all of the above!

I've never been that disciplined. I am completely capable of being organised and would never have been successful as a marketer without it but I preferred to exercise the right to be spontaneous, unplanned and doing the minimum necessary to get by - winging it. As I climbed the ranks at Diageo it became easier to do so, placing the burden on those around me to compensate. I can't do that anymore and it's stretching me way beyond my comfort zone, which is GOOD.

The trouble is, I'm not sure how long I can keep it up. I know it's the right thing to do and as a result I am better prepared and deliver a better lesson. Winging it was always my thing and it's very tempting, especially when I look at my more experienced colleagues who jot a couple of key points in their diary and off they go. The good thing is that I've tried it a couple of times and it's gone horribly wrong. The other good thing is that I know the right thing to do and will keep striving to do the right thing. Maybe in 10 years I can start winging it again.