Paralyzed by Choices

Maybe you think you do not have choices in your professional growth. Every so often we should check our assumptions though. Do you really not have choice or are you paralyzed by all the possible choices you actually *do* have?

Could you choose your own Professional Learning?

Of course you could. Just like as students choose to learn things outside of school, so could we.

Why are you not choosing your Professional Learning?

You may not be opting into much more than incidental , unintentional learning because you are “not earning credit.” Remember that the next time you have to tell a students that yes, s/he must use complete sentences.

What level of choice over your Professional Learning would paralyze you?

The reality is that we have likely been in school since the tender age of 5. And we may in fact default to someone telling us how and what to learn. To break out of that structure is tough since that system built us.

You have choice. You may not control if you are given choice while at work, but you can expand your horizons on your own! Some of the easiest ways are: Twitter chats/hashtags, MOOCs or any other online courses, book studies, joining professional organizations {see my post on Professional Learning and Conferences}

Do you really want Choice?

Sometimes it is easier to complain about no choice than to make a choice. After years of being told what to do, we find ourselves paralyzed. It is important to embrace this feeling for a couple of reasons. First, people less qualified than you have been making disjointed and I’ll-informed decisions for you long enough. Second, if you as a professional learner are frightened to make a choice, follow a path, in your personal learning – imagine what students feel like! As an educator you need to make a choice to select intentional, quality learning. You need to feel the anxiety and do it anyway; how else can we expect our students to do so?

Share your Professional Learning Journey

Share the good and the bad; be real. Your journey could inspire another learner. It does not matter if they are an educator or a student.