Eventful Day

Being hopeful and energetic definitely seems to be paying off!  Maybe emitting good thoughts and good vibes leads to good things.  Who knows?  Have any of you read The Secret?  Missy told me about this book probably 11 months ago.  Missy had decided to make major changes in her life, relocating across the country and switching jobs…all by herself.  She knew she needed a change, that she wasn’t happy in her current situation and followed her heart.  Things definitely seem to have worked out for her, which continues to give me hope.  Missy gives some of the benefit for her good fortune to following The Secret.  I have read the book and I am definitely not 100% sold by the concept or notion but I do believe that good things happen to good people.

Yesterday I was talking about how hopeful I was with the current job search.  Well today a few things happened that are making me smile and feel extremely positive.  The first, and most major, is that I got a phone call from the company that I am looking to tutor through.  We went through a brief phone interview, which I felt went very well, and they invited me for an in-person interview.  1 major step closer to securing some income!

I think tutoring will be a very rewarding job for me.  I adore children and have always wanted to teach.  I have been frustrated with the difficulties I have faced with teaching due to the fact I do not have a teaching degree.  I have looked at working in private schools where this is not a requirement.  Tutoring would be a great way for me to still work with children, teach and not be restricted by the classroom and teaching licenses.  The subjects that I feel comfortable tutoring in would be social sciences (especially history), reading, writing and elementary french.  The one issue here–how many people hire tutors for their children in history?  Too bad I don’t have a secret knowledge of chemistry or can’t obtain Justin’s statistics knowledge through osmosis!

The interview is on Monday and I am really looking forward to it!

The other step that I took was completing Loudoun County’s extremely extensive substitute teaching course work.  I am not sure if all school districts are like this (I have to believe they are not) but this felt as extensive and almost as difficult as a college course.  It consisted of lessons, videos, audio and tests.  The topics covered were Classroom Management, Teaching Strategies, Legal/Educational & Special Education Issues, Preparedness & Professionalism, and finally Fill-In Activities.  Some of these topics were much more difficult than others and it was a very time consuming process.  I have definitely dedicated hours to this process and actually had to study to pass the exams.  Luckily they allowed you to take the exams more than once!  Loudoun requires that you obtain an 85% to move forward in the substitute teaching process.  In the end, I got a 93% so I can move forward to orientation!  No idea when that will take place.

Still waiting to hear back from some of the vineyards, but at least some things are looking up.  I have continued to do the freelance writing and my articles, especially through Textbroker.com, continue to be successful.

I suddenly have gotten hopefully that we may never really miss my salary.  I am electing not to work the week of Thanksgiving because my mother and brother will be in town, but I am hoping that by the following Monday the ball will be rolling for me to be bringing in money.  If some how, all these positions fall into place, and I have obtained some income, it will be such a stress relief.  I already think leaving my corporate job was the best decision I could make but this would make me wonder why I hadn’t done it sooner!

To Smile.