As we get back to more regular work schedules and send our kids off to school, I’ve been thinking a lot about education and the experiences I’ve had. Education transpires in various ways and is the foundation for success. But I don’t mean education or success in the traditional definitions of the words. To me, success is happiness. And education can be found anywhere as long as you’re willing to look.
An Educator’s Education
Long before I found my way to promotional products, I went to college for education. I fell in love with being a teacher and more specifically, working with children on the Autism Spectrum. It was an indescribable feeling watching a child learn something that “stuck”. The pride they had would glow so brightly.
A couple of years later I was placed in a first/second-grade split and was petrified to make the change. Would I be able to effectively teach in a completely different type of classroom? After brushing up on a few skills, the answer was yes. Also, the reward was equally gratifying but totally different. I loved watching the kids grow – learning how to read, write, engage with hands-on science projects, and develop their social skills. Through my experience as an educator, I realized how important education is to an individual. It provides a foundation for life and instills a curiosity – a hunger for those lightbulb moments. All of which makes a child feel proud, competent, understood, and ultimately happy.
Classrooms are everywhere
When I switched gears to the branded merchandise industry, I quickly understood that to be successful, I would need to do my due diligence and learn a lot. However, this didn’t mean going to school or taking online courses but reading countless books and spending time with as many talented and seasoned professionals as I could.
What I found most interesting is that being a teacher helped me in the promotional products industry. Teaching taught me patience, taught me that we may have to “turn the cube” to reach an understanding, taught me resilience, but most of all, it taught me that you never stop learning and never stop educating.
I believe educating our customers and partners is essential. Doing so helps the customer better understand, the process, the safeguards, and why what they are purchasing is the right fit for them. This industry is constantly changing and staying abreast of all the different aspects like printing, logistics, and testing, to name makes us accountable to our customers.
Education transcends the classroom. It propels our curiosity and ignites a sense of satisfaction indispensable to our happiness.
