#4 | Finding your WHY as an Educator: Triumphs, failures, and getting caught waiting tables outside of school

This is the story of a man who sacrificed two-thirds of his annual salary to become a teacher… You might be the ONLY male educator at your school site, quite an isolating experience. So in order to keep the classroom as invigorating as you imagined it would be when you first answered the call to teach, we need to share stories and reconnect with our why. We present to you, Vladimir Puvača. Listen to Vladimir’s story and apply these takeaways to your class tomorrow: The things I wish someone had told me earlier as a teacher, and the things you CAN achieve that first-year teachers would call IMPOSSIBLE How to have empathy but still set boundaries as an educator The age-old question that never goes away: “Why’d I become a teacher again?” A story about a teacher getting caught waiting tables after school  (0:00) Class in session (4:00) Vladimir introduces himself and what he learned about setting boundaries as a first-year high school teacher and how to get buy-in from students as a leader (11:00) Closing your classroom door between periods (15:00) Ashanti reflects on all the mistakes he’s made as an educator (17:20) Ashanti and Vladimir share their “teacher persona” masks (20:00) Waiting tables at Chili’s after teaching all day, and what happens when your faculty shows up (23:00) Why Vladimir became a teacher, what he left behind at his corporate job, and why psychology and therapy are very important to him (31:00) Vladimir fired himself instead of following his CEO’s mandate to fire 100 workers. This moment led him to teaching. (34:00) Vladimir’s salary in his corporate job was 3 times more than his new job as an educator. He’s still an educator today :) How did he not go back? (37:45) Finding time to do more for students and the community outside of the classroom, and being motivated by and gifted with empathy and the ability to understand student’s pain (41:55) Vladimir’s message to youth on uprising, revolution, defiance, and finding oneself Connect with Vladimir Puvača:  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladimirpuvaca/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladimir-puvaca/  Join our Skool Community: https://www.skool.com/efc-young-mens-advocates-2345  Create your own mask anonymously at https://millionmask.org/  Email us questions and comments at [email protected]  --- Connect with Ashanti Branch: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/branchspeaks/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BranchSpeaks Twitter: https://twitter.com/BranchSpeaks LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashantibranch/ Website: https://www.branchspeaks.com/ --- Support the podcast and the work of the Ever Forward Club: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/branch-speaks/support  --- Connect with Ever Forward Club: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/everforwardclub Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/everforwardclub Twitter: https://twitter.com/everforwardclub LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-ever-forward-club/