Analog Nomad

If you haven’t read my previous post re: teaching, then I’ll quickly summarize now: I went into a full-time teaching contract without any previous teaching experience — no supply teaching experience at all.

Those four months were a way to experiment in a way that Tim Ferriss has architected for me: taking risks where the worst case still has a ton of upside. In the case of that teaching gig, the worst case would be that I would burnout for a couple of months because of barely being able to handle the classroom and having to reach out to colleagues for guidance and assistance. But there is a lot of upside to this worst case.

I decided not to extend that contract because I felt like I had learned 80% of the job, and wanted to pivot to learn another 80% of a new circumstance, since I have the flexibility at my stage in life to do so (no dependents). I wanted to continue to craft risks that I could take which had very little downside.

I’ve elected to go backwards and do some supply teaching for a couple of months before I jet off to Japan for the month of March. As much as I enjoyed teaching my elementary school students, there are a few reasons why I’m choosing to supply teach right now:

1. To experience different age groups and subjects that I have previously not encountered, which will allow me to see if there is a different environment that is more aligned to my skillset and personality.
2. Visiting various schools exposes me to various principals, figuring out which schools I would want to work at on a more permanent basis in April. On the flip side, I create a strong reputation in the schools I want to work at in the near future, which potentially creates more opportunities for when the time comes.
3. Supply teaching = 5 hrs/day (subtracting all breaks); teaching on a contract = 8–10 hrs/day (breaks were often used for preparation). Huge difference in workload for basically the same pay rate (because of my lack of built up seniority at this stage in my career).
4. Because of the 40–50% of work time reduction, I have more free time to pursue two main “projects” of mine: deepening my spiritual practice and doing manual brew coffee pop-ups (@manualcoffeebar on Instagram), both of which have become a reality in my first month of supply teaching.
5. Currently it is a time where there is tons of supply work to be filled, so I basically have guaranteed employment. I’m luckily in a position to pick and choose the schools as I wish at 6:30am on a given workday, which is truly freeing, because I literally get to choose if I’m going to work that day or not, without a clue as to where I’ll end up until 6:30am rolls around and there are jobs posted.

In this particular situation, the downside is capped because every day I supply teach I accumulate lessons learned, but also seniority, means I’m only opening more doors instead of closing them as I continue to explore.

photo taken by a friend during my first pop-up ever @manualcoffeebar

I’ve created a “digital nomad” lifestyle, of the analog variety. I’m exploring the world within my own city, immersing myself in new experiences almost daily, seeing new parts of the city and meeting tons of strangers that have become friends within an encounter or two.

I have the freshness of a nomad, while not being constrained to a computer screen for several hours every day. This lifestyle took some thought to build, and a lot of courage to challenge these societal norms:

• stable income/job
• achieving career goals within a 5–10 year plan
• sacrificing savings for the future, for present moment learning and exploring

Now is the time for me to do this, more than there will be in the future. Tough to say what the future holds, but I can say with certainty that there is nothing/no one holding me back right now, and nothing to lose with the way I’m living out my “career life”.

I have never felt so alive before. Interestingly enough, my tremendous amount of exposure in various environments has created tons of career opportunities as well.

So ask yourself: When in my life will I have the least to lose? If it is the present moment, consider creating opportunities for yourself in the most dynamic way possible. Career opportunities will be created if you are smart/valuable enough to society, but organizations have to know you exist for those opportunities to arise in the first place. Get out there and become a nomad in your own way.