Connect to Careers: Former Teacher Finds Her Own Middle Ground in Real Estate

 

Interested in switching careers? Check out how this teacher opened new doors for herself in a completely different field.Much of the divisiveness in this world might dissipate if folks just spent their days doing what they want to do. Countless people go to work every day in jobs they don’t find particularly satisfying, but they keep plugging along because they won’t envision any other possibilities. Carolyn Molly found herself in that position several years ago. A former educator frustrated by all the testing and data that had consumed the profession, she connected with a career in a completely different field—real estate.

“I always found teaching incredibly hard. The performance and creative pieces of teaching were the part that I felt passionate about,” Molly explained. “Gradually, it became more scientific and mathematical with more head and less heart. The data, the meetings, and the planning made it so.”

Molly, also passionate about community theater, had a flair for creating activities and actually performing science and social studies lessons for her students. Her school principal nominated her for Social Studies Teacher of the Year in 2012. She did after-school STEM projects where students had to create a receptacle for an egg that would protect it in the event of a fall. She then climbed on the roof of the school and dropped each student’s project off the edge to see which eggs would remain intact. As testing requirements grew, she found that she had less time and energy for these types of activities.

“When you try to remove the artistry from teaching for the sake of the numbers that fit into the columns, you’ve lost the point. I’m heart driven. It’s kind of like that doctor’s oath, `First, do no harm.’ I felt like the way education was going with all the testing was harming,” she said.

A self-proclaimed “square peg” herself, Molly had difficulty trying to force the students into the “round holes” that are sometimes necessary to achieve academic success.

What doors do you want to open? Real estate proves to be an excellent choice for this former teacher.“Our children are individuals—the system makes us compartmentalize them. I got tired of watching my kids struggle while I educated them according to state and national norms,” she explained.

Real estate seems like a surprising connection here, considering that the profession is so numbers-driven. For Molly, it makes sense.

“As a Coast Guard family, we moved frequently. Just by buying and selling my own homes, I knew that I had a flair for real estate. I’m one of those people who likes to go to the open houses realtors offer on the weekends. I never met a house I didn’t like,” she said.

The connection real estate has with education goes even deeper for this former teacher.

“In teaching, when you think about the kids that come to us, the ones who struggle, you see something there that you can build on. No matter what our students have been through, they have spark. Potential. It’s like that with houses,” she said. “Even the older houses that haven’t had the best maintenance throughout the years are just a little careworn. They just need some investment. There’s always something worthwhile there.”

It’s one thing to find a connection with a different career, but how does a person go about taking the leap into something completely new? Check back tomorrow as we continue the discussion on taking the leap into career change!

This post has been linked to the Best of the Blogosphere Link Party! Check out the interesting writing and ideas there!

Kids need many opportunities to read and practice their fluency. When teachers can combine fluency practice with social studies skills, so much the better!
Career switchers are strong women. Check out this Readers’ Theater play about other strong women through history.

 

10 thoughts on “Connect to Careers: Former Teacher Finds Her Own Middle Ground in Real Estate

  • May 17, 2017 at 12:36 am
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    Really interesting article. I’m actually in a position now where I’m changing careers, to something completely unrelated to my degree but I am doing it in the hopes of finding more happiness in my work life. Great stuff 🙂

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    • May 25, 2017 at 11:22 am
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      Good for you! So glad you are rocking something new! Thanks for stopping by! Much happiness to you!

      Reply
  • May 17, 2017 at 9:35 am
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    I don’t have the best to say about public education, but I’m happy about the lady who decided to change her work path. Big courage.

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    • May 25, 2017 at 11:21 am
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      I’m sorry you didn’t have a good experience in public education. She does have big courage, though! Thanks for stopping by!

      Reply
  • May 17, 2017 at 11:43 am
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    That’s a very interesting way of connecting teaching with real estate! I wouldn’t thought that was possible before!

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    • May 25, 2017 at 11:19 am
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      I didn’t either until I talked with her. Pretty cool, huh?

      Reply
  • May 17, 2017 at 6:03 pm
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    Wow such a change!! Sounds exciting and always great to try something new.

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    • May 25, 2017 at 11:18 am
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      It is! Thanks so much for your comment! I appreciate you stopping by!

      Reply
  • May 17, 2017 at 7:09 pm
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    I love the connection and how you rock both! I’ve always had different jobs that aren’t similar to each other… it keeps things fun

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    • May 25, 2017 at 11:18 am
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      Doesn’t it, though? Thank so much for stopping by, and keep on being wild and free!

      Reply

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