All I Really Need to Know [about Business Communication] I Learned [Teaching] Kindergarten

The other day, I thought about my first class of Teach for America (TFA) students. They were chubby-cheeked kindergarteners back then. By now, they’ve graduated high school and are starting their journey as adults.

I had joined TFA thinking of following my dad’s footsteps in education. He had been a career special education teacher and administrator. I was good at coaching kids, so maybe I was destined to be a teacher, too? Turns out, I was not. Teaching is a calling, and I simply was not called, despite having the funniest, sweetest students I could have asked for.

 With that realization, I had to decide what would follow my TFA commitment. And, over the next several years, through dozens of grad school, internship, and full-time job interviews, I struggled to figure out how teaching prepared me for roles outside of the classroom. In retrospect, this struggle was a failure of my self-narrative, not of the skills I had acquired.

 Teachers – even, no especially, kindergarten ones – develop skills imminently transferrable to other jobs. Yes, there might be fewer financial statements in the classroom than the board room, but teachers develop critical communication and management skills needed for any manager.

Differentiated Instruction —> Tailored People Management          

Differentiated instruction is “teaching in a way that meets the different needs and interests of students, using varied course content, activities, and assessments.” And planning lessons with each student’s individual needs, abilities, and goals in mind made me a far better people manager to a team of 10. I was able to adapt my support and direction to the needs of the person in front of me, not their job description.  

Lesson Planning —> Project Management

The CDC includes this milestone for five year olds: “Pays attention for 5 to 10 minutes during activities. For example, during story time or making arts and crafts (screen time does not count).” Now imaging planning enough activities every day to both meet curriculum requirements and keep 25 different kiddos engaged. The timetables, to-do lists, and color-coding required put any Gantt-chart-loving project manager to shame.

Public speaking —> well, … Public Speaking

Kids of any age are a brutally honest audience.  They will tell you if you’re boring them, if you’re speaking too fast, if you’re being corny. No one provides as much real-time feedback as a child. After honing my speaking style in front of these pint-sized critics, I’ve never faced down as tough a crowd and, for the most part, overcame any fears I might have once had and am not a more confident speaker.

 Withstanding Classroom Observations —> Navigating Challenging Conversations

While everyone has a boss, few corporate roles involve regular surprise events where said boss shows up to intently watch you work for an hour straight, recording every slip-up for posterity. No client presentation has ever had me as on-edge as that type of scrutiny. The learned grace (or at least non-sweatiness) under pressure is forever useful.

In retrospect, I shouldn’t have sold myself short when I was making a career transition. Educators bring meaningful experience to non-teaching roles and should be valued for that.

Thanks for reading,

Shannon