At 16, I took on my fifth part-time job – at McDonalds.
It was about gaining new skills and social experience, and having increased personal responsibility and an introduction to corporate culture.
I could showcase my existing skills, gained from babysitting and jobs in a milk bar, a real estate office and the florist, where the wage was $6 for a 3-hour shift. I compared work life with school life, and ‘self-funding’ with being given pocket money. I also began to understand the distinction between public, private and catholic education through my relationships with various workmates.
Looking back, I know it was an opportunity, and an invaluable lesson in perception and perspective.
Today, the lessons continue. I’ve visited more than 50 countries, lived overseas, and worked with hundreds of unique education providers, locally and internationally.
When a situation or problem arises, these experiences enable me to make comparisons, and take a fair and reasonable approach to potential solutions. Just as importantly, I’m able to understand that the views of others stem from their own broader (or narrower) experiences.
Some individuals, like me, have had the opportunity to travel far and wide; others have never left their state or country. Some have the security of a permanent position, and never have to worry about where their next paycheck will come from. Others, like me, are self-employed, and are always conscious that financial security is not a given. And there are many other scenarios in between.
We must get out and about, appreciate what others have to offer and experience what is around and beyond us. Otherwise, we run the risk of breathing in our own exhaust and believing or mindlessly doing what others tell us.
On the other hand, we must never forget that people are more alike than different. We all have the capacity to enhance our own lives and contribute to the lives of others. Rather than merely waiting for opportunity to knock, it’s more a matter of creating or providing opportunities, and seizing them whenever they come our way.
Copyright © Cheryl Lacey 2018
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Cheryl Lacey is an educationist and advocate of agitating change in Australian education to face global challenges facing Australia and Australians.
If you would like to learn more about the outcomes achieved by educational leaders and teams who have worked with me, contact me at cheryl@cheryllacey.com or visit www.cheryllacey.com
