Savvy Guest Blogger: The School Counselor Kind
Hey there! I’m Kayla, and I’m grateful to be an elementary School Counselor in Maine! Check out my brand new blog: http://theschoolcounselorkind.wordpress.com.
Splinters: We’ve All Got a Few
My name is Kayla, and I have a few splinters.
It is School Counselor job hunting season! I am lucky to have a position, but I remember all too well my own hunt three short years ago. I hope sharing my story will help others who are currently hunting for their perfect position.
When I was in the biggest job search of my life after completing graduate school, I spent HOURS completing School Counselor and even some Ed. Tech. applications at various schools. This work was tedious and draining. Each time I completed an application, I had feelings of hope that would slowly fade over time from hearing nothing at all or receiving letters of rejection. It was a roller coaster, and it was exhausting. I was building a stack of rejection letters that were rough to read and even touch – I felt like I was failing. All. The. Time.
Finally, after three months and many hours later, I nailed an interview and was hired as a School Counselor in a small school that felt like a great fit for me. My hard work had paid off, and I was so ready to begin my career. Since that interview on that humid day in July, 2010, I have now completed three successful years doing what I love!
Still, it’s important to remember the journey I was on. I kept count, and over the three month period, I completed 15 application procedures, and I was called to interview at only 4 schools; all others, I was rejected. I did the math on this: completing those 15 applications brought me success at a rate of 26.7% in those three months (meaning, I got an interview, at least); this means that I “failed” 73.3% of the time.
The numbers themselves are discouraging to me. But it’s not about that. It’s about the perseverance and resiliency I maintained to eventually reach success. I could have given up after receiving the first few rejection letters; filed them under REJECT or FAILURE and moved on. I didn’t. I stuck with it and tried again, and again, and again, each time getting a few more wounds, each time gaining a little strength. The way I see it is, failing 73.3% of the time doesn’t sound very good, but it’s a lot better than failing 100% of the time because I never tried.
Isn’t there a quote about missing 100% of the shots you don’t take? Yeah, that’s basically what I mean. The rest is just the splinters you have to get to walk your wooden plank and leap. Without a few splinters, it doesn’t mean very much. Remember those splinters – you will heal, and you’ll be a lot more humble.
Thank you, Kayla, for this timely advice for those future school counselors who are still in the process of searching for their first jobs. Congratulations on your new blog! We look forward to hearing more from you.
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Sarah
Kayla,
Awesome blog and great encouragement for people looking for a job and going through the tedious job of applying and interviewing! WE are lucky to have you at our school!
Kayla Marston
Aww, thanks Sarah! I am very glad to be a part of our school! 🙂